Jewish legal inscription from a synagogue

This Hebrew and Aramaic inscription, which was part of the mosaic floor at the entrance to the synagogue of Rehov, is the oldest known copy of a Talmudic text. It deals with agricultural laws relating to the sabbatical year and to tithes, which pertain only to the Land of Israel. As such, the inscription defines the borders of the Land and describes its agricultural produce in detail. The primarily gentile city of Beth Shean was exempted from these laws, and owing to its proximity of Rehov, its precise boundaries are clearly delineated in the text.