Ancient History of Beit She'an

History and geography. Beit She'an's location has often been strategically significant, as it sits at the junction of the Jordan River Valley and the Jezreel Valley, essentially controlling access from the interior to the coast, as well as from Jerusalem to the Galilee. Its name is believed to derive from the early Canaanite "house of tranquility". Beit She'an is first listed among Thutmose III's conquests in the fifteenth century BC, and the remains of an Egyptian administrative center from the XVIII and XIX dynasties have been excavated. The Bible mentions it as a Canaanite city within the tribe of Manasseh in the Book of Joshua, chapter 17, verse 11 (also Book of Judges 1:27), and its conquest by David and inclusion in the later kingdom is noted, and large Solomonic administrative buildings destroyed by Tiglath-pileser III were uncovered from this period.[3] Its ninth century BC biblical capture by the Pharaoh Shishaq is corroborated by his victory list. [Wikipedia]