Last stop on the tour train is Bet She’an. It is the world class in terms of it’s examples of Roman ruins/cities. The city here really is something to see. Pretty amazing. Here is the model of the area.
There is a theatre and a couple of hippodromes just like we saw at Caesarea Maritime. One of the first things we saw was the bathhouse.
These were like pillars that held up a marble floor. A fire was started under the floor so the air could be circulated underneath and the marble floor would warm and ultimately heat the water and cause sauna effects. The slaves tasked with keeping the fire going would enter and exit here.
Quite the sizable bath house and undertaking to run it! Next was the Main Street of the city.
Mosaic tiles near the Main Street beginning.
The pillars have been reset as they were toppled in the 749AD earthquake. The street had been filled with water a day previous from all the rain, but the ancient drainage system had handled it nicely all these years later. The street was higher in the middle than the edges, moving the water to the curbs, into drainage, back to the middle under the street, and then down to the end of the street, all just using gravity to move it. The street was dry.
We could also see the ancient ruins of the time of Saul and Jonathan on top of this green hill.
Some of our crew made the trek up to see it, I did not. All those steps looked like a sure fire way to contract pneumonia to me. Nevertheless, this is where their bodies would have been displayed as it talks about in Scripture.
The folks that excavated this site decided to leave some of the pillars as they were found. These were knocked over in the earthquake.
It was kinda neat to see everything up close and get to touch it.
Column tops and building trim. Such workmanship and artistry.
This would have basically been the main square of town.
Not sure if these would have been entrances to shops or homes. So well preserved.
Pretty impressive.
The fact that all of this tile survives for that many years is crazy.
Very cool.
Original marble.
The gate into the theatre, can see the seating in the back.
All in all, a very interesting and more intact place than any that we saw. Pretty cool. We ate lunch and loaded up the bus to head back to the kibbutz for packing and sleeping, at least for me. Here marks the end of the tour! Thanks all for reading! One more post to put a bow on top…