Gethsemane, Garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives, East Jerusalem
Gethsemane is a garden at the base of the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem, where ancient olive trees spread over stone walkways. The site includes several separate sections, each managed by different communities and marked by low walls and fences.
The site was revered as a pilgrimage destination already in Byzantine times, when a church was built there. Later excavations uncovered the remains of a ritual bath from the Second Temple period, showing the area was used centuries earlier.
The name derives from the Hebrew Gat Shmanim, meaning oil press, which points to the area's history of olive production. Today, Catholic and Orthodox communities share the management of the site, with each group maintaining and opening separate sections to visitors.
Access is typically through guided groups that depart from the Old City, with morning hours offering quieter conditions. Paths in the garden are partly uneven and include steps, so sturdy footwear is advisable for the visit.
A 2012 study by Italy's National Research Council carbon-dated three of the eight ancient olive trees to AD 1092, 1166 and 1198, among the oldest known to science. DNA tests showed the three were planted from the same parent plant, and their hollow trunks left the other five undated.
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