Abraham's Oak Holy Trinity Monastery, Eastern Orthodox monastery in Hebron, Palestine
Abraham's Oak Holy Trinity Monastery is a Russian Orthodox complex in Hebron whose church, built of stone in 1914, covers about 600 square metres on a cross-shaped plan and is crowned by two gilded domes visible across the city. The walled grounds of roughly 70 dunams hold the church, a two-storey pilgrim house, monks' cells and the graves of those who served here.
Archimandrite Antonin Kapustin bought the land with the Mamre oak in 1868, and a stone pilgrim house followed in 1874. The church of the Holy Forefathers was built in 1914, the last Russian church raised in the Holy Land before 1917. On 31 May 1925 Patriarch Damian of Jerusalem consecrated it, with side chapels to the Trinity and St Nicholas. In July 1997 Palestinian soldiers seized the monastery from the Russian Church Abroad and handed it to the Moscow Patriarchate.
Locals call the monastery al-Maskobiya, after "Moskva", Moscow. Inside the church, wall paintings depict Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael and their wives Sarah, Leah and Rachel. Three monks still live here and walk through Hebron in their habits, and a monk named Iskander chose to stay with the new brethren when the others left in the 1990s.
The monastery stands in the H1 sector of Hebron under Palestinian Authority control, about 3 km northwest of the Cave of the Patriarchs. It does not open its doors except on special religious occasions or to receive tourist delegations, particularly Russian ones. Three monks live on site and walk through Hebron in their habits.
The Mamre oak on the grounds is estimated by some visitors to be about 4,500 years old, and tradition holds that Abraham and Sarah rested in its shade and that angels announced the birth of Isaac there. In August 2025, intruders threw foil-wrapped hot coals over the fence, starting a fire that nearly reached the tree before monks put it out.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,120 contributors worldwide.