Tsafrir and Foerster (1997:143–144) suggest that a significant earthquake struck Scythopolis (aka Bet She'an) sometime between the end of the sixth century and the second half of the seventh centuries CE. The event occurred after the construction of structures such as Silvanus Hall in the agora and before the erection of the Umayyad street of shops. Blanke and Walmsley (2022) and other scholars associate this earthquake damage with the Jordan Valley Quake(s) of 659/660 CE.

Tsafrir and Foerster (1997:143–144) report that the earthquake caused the destruction of Silvanus Hall: all columns in the southwestern part collapsed in the same direction, leaving “no doubt” about the cause. The same event likely also caused the collapse of the porticoes of the Byzantine agora, the portico of the sigma, and probably the columns of Palladius Street. Blanke and Walmsley (2022) further note that the sixth-century civic basilica on Silvanus Street collapsed completely and was replaced by twenty new shops behind arched colonnades, commissioned by Caliph Hishām b. ʿAbd al-Malik (r. 724–743). Tsafrir and Foerster (1997:143–144) also emphasize that while the earthquake significantly damaged the city, it did not destroy it entirely. They note that post-earthquake rebuilding efforts were far less ambitious than those following earlier seismic events, suggesting that the city lacked both the