page_title: Beit She'arim National Park
hierarchical_section_title: Beit She'arim National Park
caption_attribution_description: English: Decorated sarcophagus at Beit Shearim necropolis (Lower Galilee)
context_page_description: Beit She'arim is the currently used name for the ancient Jewish town of Bet She'arāyim or Kfar She'arāyim, made popular by its necropolis, now known as Beit She'arim National Park. The site, located on a hill, was known initially by its Arabic name Sheikh Ibreik or Sheikh Abreik, purchased by the Jewish National Fund, and which historical geographer Samuel Klein in 1936 identified as Talmudic Beit She'arim.
  The partially excavated archaeological site consists mainly of an extensive necropolis of rock-cut tombs and some remains of the town itself. The site is managed by the National Parks Authority. It borders the town of Kiryat Tiv'on on the northeast and is located five kilometres west of Moshav Beit She'arim. It is situated 20 km east of Haifa in the southern foothills of the Lower Galilee.
  In 2015, the necropolis was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town's vast necropolis is carved out of soft limestone and contains more than 30 burial cave systems. Although only a portion of the necropolis has been excavated, it has been likened to a book inscribed in stone.
context_section_description: Beit She'arim (Hebrew: בֵּית שְׁעָרִים, "House of the Gates") is  the currently used name for the ancient Jewish town of Bet She'arāyim (בּית שערַיִם, "House of Two Gates") or Kfar She'arāyim (כְּפר שערַיִם, "Village of Two Gates"), made popular by its necropolis, now known as Beit She'arim National Park. The site, located on a hill, was known initially by its Arabic name Sheikh Ibreik or Sheikh Abreik, purchased by the Jewish National Fund, and which historical geographer Samuel Klein in 1936 identified as Talmudic Beit She'arim.
  The partially excavated archaeological site consists mainly of an extensive necropolis of rock-cut tombs and some remains of the town itself. The site is managed by the National Parks Authority. It borders the town of Kiryat Tiv'on on the northeast and is located five kilometres west of Moshav Beit She'arim. It is situated 20 km east of Haifa in the southern foothills of the Lower Galilee.
  In 2015, the necropolis was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town's vast necropolis is carved out of soft limestone and contains more than 30 burial cave systems. Although only a portion of the necropolis has been excavated, it has been likened to a book inscribed in stone. Its catacombs, mausoleums, and sarcophagi are adorned with elaborate symbols and figures as well as an impressive quantity of incised and painted inscriptions in Hebrew, Aramaic, Palmyrene, and Greek, documenting two centuries of historical and cultural achievement. The wealth of artistic adornments contained in this, the most ancient extensive Jewish cemetery in the world, is unparalleled anywhere.
caption: Decorated sarcophagus in "Cave of the Coffins", Catacomb no. 20
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