The ridge on the southeastern edge of the Jezreel valley where Saul's reign ends — the Philistines drawn up on the plain below, Israel broken on the heights, Saul falling on his own sword after three of his sons are killed (1 Samuel 31). ⚠️ David's lament curses the ground itself: 'Mountains in Gilboa — let there be no dew and no rain on you, nor fields of offerings' (2 Samuel 1:21). The site matters strategically: whoever holds the Jezreel valley holds the road between Egypt and Mesopotamia, which is why so much of Israel's history is decided in this one plain.