Mount of Olives - wikipedia Mount of Olives `` Mount Olivet '' redirects here. For other uses, see Mount Olivet ( disambiguation ). Mount of Olives הַר הַזֵּיתִים ‬, Har HaZeitim الطور, جبل الزيتون Jabal az - Zaytūn, Aț - Țūr Aerial photograph of the Mount of Olives Highest point Elevation 826 m ( 2,710 ft ) Coordinates 31 ° 46 ′ 42 '' N 35 ° 14 ′ 38 '' E ﻿ / ﻿ 31.77833 ° N 35.24389 ° E ﻿ / 31.77833 ; 35.24389 Coordinates : 31 ° 46 ′ 42 '' N 35 ° 14 ′ 38 '' E ﻿ / ﻿ 31.77833 ° N 35.24389 ° E ﻿ / 31.77833 ; 35.24389 Geography Location East Jerusalem Parent range Judean Mountains Climbing Easiest route Road The Mount of Olives or Mount Olivet ( Hebrew : הַר הַזֵּיתִים ‬, Har ha - Zeitim ; Arabic : جبل الزيتون, الطور ‎, Jabal al - Zaytun, Al - Tur ) is a mountain ridge east of and adjacent to Jerusalem 's Old City. It is named for the olive groves that once covered its slopes. The southern part of the Mount was the Silwan necropolis, attributed to the ancient Judean kingdom. The Mount has been used as a Jewish cemetery for over 3,000 years and holds approximately 150,000 graves, making it central in the tradition of Jewish cemeteries. Several key events in the life of Jesus, as related in the Gospels, took place on the Mount of Olives, and in the Acts of the Apostles it is described as the place from which Jesus ascended to heaven. Because of its association with both Jesus and Mary, the Mount has been a site of Christian worship since ancient times and is today a major site of pilgrimage for Catholics, the Eastern Orthodox, and Protestants. Much of the top of the hill is occupied by At - Tur, a former village and now a neighbourhood of East Jerusalem with a majority - Muslim population. Contents 1 Geography and geology 2 History 2.1 Status since 1948 3 Recent events 4 Religious significance 4.1 Old Testament references 4.2 Burial and resurrection 4.3 New Testament references 5 Landmarks 5.1 Brigham Young University Jerusalem Center 6 Gallery 7 See also 8 References 9 External links Geography and geology The Mount of Olives is one of three peaks of a mountain ridge which runs for 3.5 kilometres ( 2.2 miles ) just east of the Old City across the Kidron Valley, in this area called the Valley of Josaphat. The peak to its north is Mount Scopus, at 826 metres ( 2,710 feet ), while the peak to its south is the Mount of Corruption, at 747 m ( 2,451 ft ). The highest point on the Mount of Olives is At - Tur, at 818 m ( 2,684 ft ). The ridge acts as a watershed, and its eastern side is the beginning of the Judean Desert. The ridge is formed of oceanic sedimentary rock from the Late Cretaceous, and contains a soft chalk and a hard flint. While the chalk is easily quarried, it is not a suitable strength for construction, which is why the Mount was never built up and instead features many man - made burial caves. History Mt. of Olives, circa 1899 Egyptian camel transport passing over `` Olivet '', 1918 From Biblical times until the present, Jews have been buried on the Mount of Olives. The necropolis on the southern ridge, the location of the modern village of Silwan, was the burial place of Jerusalem 's most important citizens in the period of the Biblical kings. The religious ceremony marking the start of a new month was held on the Mount of Olives in the days of the Second Temple. Roman soldiers from the 10th Legion camped on the Mount during the Siege of Jerusalem in the year 70 AD. After the destruction of the Second Temple, Jews celebrated the festival of Sukkot on the Mount of Olives. They made pilgrimages to the Mount of Olives because it was 80 meters higher than the Temple Mount and offered a panoramic view of the Temple site. It became a traditional place for lamenting the Temple 's destruction, especially on Tisha B'Av. In 1481, an Italian Jewish pilgrim, Rabbi Meshullam da Volterra, wrote : `` And all the community of Jews, every year, goes up to Mount Zion on the day of Tisha B'Av to fast and mourn, and from there they move down along Yoshafat Valley and up to Mount of Olives. From there they see the whole Temple ( the Temple Mount ) and there they weep and lament the destruction of this House. '' In the mid-1850s, the villagers of Silwan were paid £ 100 annually by the Jews in an effort to prevent the desecration of graves on the mount. Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin asked to be buried on the Mount of Olives near the grave of Etzel member Meir Feinstein, rather than Mount Herzl national cemetery. Status since 1948 The armistice agreement signed by Israel and Jordan following the 1948 Arab -- Israeli War called for the establishment of a Special Committee to negotiate developments including `` free access to the holy sites and cultural institutions and use of the cemetery on the Mount of Olives ''. However, during the 19 years the Jordanian annexation of the West Bank lasted, the committee was not formed. Non-Israeli Christian pilgrims were allowed to visit the Mount, but Jews of all countries and most non-Jewish Israeli citizens were barred from entering Jordan and therefore were unable to travel to the area. By the end of 1949, and throughout the Jordanian rule of the site, some Arab residents uprooted tombstones and plowed the land in the cemeteries and an estimated 38,000 tombstones were damaged in total. During this period, four roads were paved through the cemeteries, in the process destroying graves including those of famous persons. Jordan 's King Hussein permitted the construction of the Intercontinental Hotel at the summit of the Mount of Olives together with a road that cut through the cemetery which destroyed hundreds of Jewish graves, some from the First Temple Period. Graves were also demolished for parking lots and a filling station and were even used in latrines at a Jordanian Army barracks. However, the United Nations did not condemn the Jordanian government for these actions. Following the 1967 Six - Day War and the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem, its government began restoration work and re-opened the cemetery for burials. Israel 's 1980 unilateral annexation of East Jerusalem was condemned as a violation of international law and ruled null and void by the UN Security Council in UNSC Resolution 478. Recent events As of 2010, the Jewish cemetery on the Mount of Olives has been targeted regularly by Arab vandals. Mourners have been assaulted. Notable graves that have been defaced by vandals include those of the Gerrer Rebbe and Menachem Begin. On 6 November 2010, an international watch - committee was set up by Diaspora Jews with the aim of reversing the desecration of the Jewish cemetery. According to one of the founders, the initiative was triggered by witnessing tombstones that were wrecked with `` the kind of maliciousness that defies the imagination. '' Religious significance Old Testament references The Mount of Olives is first mentioned in connection with David 's flight from Absalom ( II Samuel 15 : 30 ) : `` And David went up by the ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up. '' The ascent was probably east of the City of David, near the village of Silwan. The sacred character of the mount is alluded to in the Ezekiel ( 11 : 23 ) : `` And the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city. '' The biblical designation Mount of Corruption, or in Hebrew Har HaMashchit ( I Kings 11 : 7 -- 8 ), derives from the idol worship there, begun by King Solomon building altars to the gods of his Moabite and Ammonite wives on the southern peak, `` on the mountain which is before ( east of ) Jerusalem '' ( 1 Kings 11 : 7 ), just outside the limits of the holy city. This site was known for idol worship throughout the First Temple period, until king of Judah, Josiah, finally destroyed `` the high places that were before Jerusalem, to the right of Har HaMashchit... '' ( II Kings 23 : 13 ) An apocalyptic prophecy in the Book of Zechariah states that YHWH will stand on the Mount of Olives and the mountain will split in two, with one half shifting north and one half shifting south ( Zechariah 14 : 4 ). According to the Masoretic Text, people will flee through this newly formed valley to a place called Azal ( Zechariah 14 : 5 ). The Septuagint ( LXX ) has a different reading of Zechariah 14 : 5 stating that a valley will be blocked up as it was blocked up during the earthquake during King Uzziah 's reign. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus mentions in Antiquities of the Jews that the valley in the area of the King 's Gardens was blocked up by landslide rubble during Uzziah 's earthquake. Israeli geologists Wachs and Levitte identified the remnant of a large landslide on the Mount of Olives directly adjacent to this area. Based on geographic and linguistic evidence, Charles Simon Clermont - Ganneau, a 19th - century linguist and archeologist in Palestine, theorized that the valley directly adjacent to this landslide is Azal. This evidence accords with the LXX reading of Zechariah 14 : 5 which states that the valley will be blocked up as far as Azal. The valley he identified ( which is now known as Wady Yasul in Arabic, and Nahal Etzel in Hebrew ) lies south of both Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives. Burial and resurrection Main article : Mount of Olives Jewish Cemetery Many Jews have wanted to be buried on the Mount of Olives since antiquity, based on the Jewish tradition ( from the Biblical verse Zechariah 14 : 4 ) that when the Messiah comes, the resurrection of the dead will begin there. There are an estimated 150,000 graves on the Mount, including tombs traditionally associated with Zechariah and Absalom. On the upper slope, the traditional Tomb of the Prophets Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi is situated. Notable rabbis buried on the mount include Chaim ibn Attar and others from the 15th - century to present. New Testament references Flevit super illam ( He wept over it ) ; by Enrique Simonet, 1892. The Mount of Olives is frequently mentioned in the New Testament as part of the route from Jerusalem to Bethany and the place where Jesus stood when he wept over Jerusalem ( an event known as Flevit super illam in Latin ). Jesus is said to have spent time on the mount, teaching and prophesying to his disciples ( Matthew 24 -- 25 ), including the Olivet discourse, returning after each day to rest ( Luke 21 : 37, and John 8 : 1 in the additional section of John 's Gospel known as the Pericope Adulterae ), and also coming there on the night of his betrayal. At the foot of the Mount of Olives lies the Garden of Gethsemane. The New Testament tells how Jesus and his disciples sang together -- `` When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives '' Gospel of Matthew 26 : 30. Jesus ascended to heaven from the Mount of Olives according to Acts 1 : 9 -- 12. Landmarks Part of a series on Jerusalem History Timeline City of David Second Temple Period Aelia Capitolina Middle Ages Kingdom of Jerusalem Mutasarrifate British Mandate Jordanian annexation Reunification Sieges 701 BCE 597 BCE 587 BCE 63 BCE 37 BCE 70 614 614 637 1099 1187 1244 1834 1917 1948 Places East West Old City Temple Mount Temple Western Wall Dome of the Rock Synagogues Mosques Al - Aqsa Church of the Holy Sepulchre Hebrew University Knesset Biblical Zoo People Demographic history Mayor Chief Rabbi Grand Mufti Greek Orthodox Patriarch Crusader kings Positions Religious significance Judaism Christianity Islam Jerusalem Law Jerusalem Day Quds Day Judaization Islamization U.S. Jerusalem Embassy Act U.S. recognition Other topics Names Flag Emblem Municipality Greater Jerusalem City Line Transport Holyland Model Songs Jerusalem portal Landmarks on the top of the Mount of Olives include the Augusta Victoria Hospital with the Lutheran Church of the Ascension and its highly visible 50 - metre bell tower, the Mosque or Chapel of the Ascension, the Russian Orthodox Church of the Ascension with its tall white bell tower, the Church of the Pater Noster, and the Seven Arches Hotel. On the western slope there are the historic Jewish cemetery, the so - called Tomb of the Prophets, the Catholic Church of Dominus Flevit, and the Russian Orthodox Church of Mary Magdalene. At the foot of the mount, where it meets the Kidron Valley, there is the Garden of Gethsemane with the Church of all Nations. Within the Kidron Valley itself are the Tomb of the Virgin Mary, the Grotto of Gethsemane, and the nearby tomb of the medieval historian Mujir ed - Din, and further south are the tombs of Absalom ( Hebrew name : Yad Avshalom ), the Hezir priestly family and of Zechariah. At the northern margin of Mount Olivet stand the Brigham Young University Jerusalem Center with the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden and the Jewish settlement of Beit Orot, bordering on the Tzurim Valley which contains the Temple Mount Sifting Project. What lays north of here belongs to Mount Scopus. On the south - eastern slope of the Mount of Olives lies the Palestinian Arab village of al - Eizariya, identified with the ancient village of Bethany mentioned in the New Testament ; a short distance from the village centre, towards the top of the mount, is the traditional site of Bethphage, marked by a Franciscan church. Brigham Young University Jerusalem Center The construction of the Brigham Young University Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies, better known locally as the Mormon University, owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter - day Saints ( LDS ) near the valley separating the Mount of Olives from Mount Scopus, initially sparked controversy due to concerns that the Mormons would engage in missionary activities. After the Mormons pledged not to proselytize in Israel, work on the building was allowed to proceed. Mount of Olives in July 2009 Gallery 2000 year old olive tree on the Mount of Olives. Tomb of Absalom Tomb of Zechariah Tomb of Zechariah and Tomb of Benei Hezir Mount of Olives Jewish Cemetery Church of All Nations, Gethsemane The Russian Orthodox Church of Maria Magdalene Seven Arches Hotel BYU Jerusalem Center Augusta Victoria Hospital See also Beit Orot, Jewish settlement on the Mount of Olives Ma'ale ha - Zeitim, Jewish settlement on the Mount of Olives Olivet ( disambiguation ) References ^ Jump up to : Har - El, Menashe ( 1977 ). This is Jerusalem. Jerusalem : Canaan Publishing House. p. 117. ^ Jump up to : Ussishkin, David ( May 1970 ). `` The Necropolis from the Time of the Kingdom of Judah at Silwan, Jerusalem ''. The Biblical Archaeologist. 33 ( 2 ) : 33 -- 46. Jump up ^ `` International committee vows to restore Mount of Olives ''. Ynet News. Jump up ^ Hull, Edward ( 1885 ). Mount Seir, Sinai and Western Palestine. Richad Bently and Son, London. p. 152. ^ Jump up to : Har - el, Menashe ( 1977 ). This is Jerusalem. Jerusalem : Canaan. pp. 120 -- 23. Jump up ^ Nom de Deu, J. ( 1987 ). Relatos de Viajes y Epistolas de Peregrinos Jud. os a Jerusalén. Madrid. p. 82. Jump up ^ Menashe Har - El ( April 2004 ). Golden Jerusalem. Gefen Publishing House Ltd. p. 244. ISBN 978 - 965 - 229 - 254 - 4. Jump up ^ Sheleg, Yair ( 2007 - 07 - 04 ). `` The good jailer ''. Haaretz. Retrieved 2010 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ To Rule Jerusalem By Roger Friedland, Richard Hecht, 2000, p. 39, `` Tourists entering East Jerusalem had to present baptismal certificates or other proof they were not Jewish. '' Jump up ^ Thomas A Idinopulos, Jerusalem, 1994, p. 300, `` So severe were the Jordanian restrictions against Jews gaining access to the old city that visitors wishing to cross over from west Jerusalem... had to produce a baptismal certificate. '' Jump up ^ Armstrong, Karen, Jerusalem : One City, Three Faiths, 1997, `` Only clergy, diplomats, UN personnel, and a few privileged tourists were permitted to go from one side to the other. The Jordanians required most tourists to produce baptismal certificates -- to prove they were not Jewish... '' Jump up ^ Bronner, Ethan ; Kershner, Isabel ( 2009 - 05 - 10 ). `` Parks Fortify Israel 's Claim to Jerusalem ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 2010 - 03 - 27. Jump up ^ Nadav Shragai, The Mount of Olives under Jordanian Rule, JCPA 2009 and references Jump up ^ Alon, Amos ( 1995 ). Jerusalem : Battlegrounds of Memory. New York : Kodansha Int'l. p. 75. ISBN 1 - 56836 - 099 - 1. After 1967, it was discovered that tombstones had been removed from the ancient cemetery to pave the latrines of a nearby Jordanian army barrack. Jump up ^ Meron Benvenisti ( 1996 ). City of Stone : The Hidden History of Jerusalem. University of California Press. p. 228. ISBN 978 - 0 - 520 - 91868 - 9. Jump up ^ Har - El, Menashe. Golden Jerusalem, Gefen Publishing House Ltd, 2004, p. 126. ISBN 965 - 229 - 254 - 0. `` The majority ( 50,000 of the 70,000 ) was desecrated by the Arabs during the nineteen years of Jordanian rule in eastern Jerusalem. '' Jump up ^ Tessler, Mark A. A History of the Israeli - Palestinian conflict, Indiana University Press, 1994. p. 329. ISBN 0 - 253 - 20873 - 4. Jump up ^ Blum, Yehuda Zvi. For Zion 's Sake. Associated University Presse. p. 99. ISBN 978 - 0 - 8453 - 4809 - 3. Jump up ^ Mount of Olives security beefed up to stop vandalism, Jerusalem Post 17 - 12 - 2009 Jump up ^ Has Israel abandoned the Mount of Olives ?, Jerusalem Post 15 - 05 - 2010 Jump up ^ Vandalism returns to Mount of Olives cemetery, Ynet News 12 - 05 - 2010 ^ Jump up to : Shameful dereliction at the Mt. of Olives Cemetery, Jerusalem Post 06 - 11 - 2010 Jump up ^ Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, book 9, chapter 10, paragraph 4, verse 225, William Whiston Jump up ^ Daniel Wachs and Dov Levitte, Earthquake Risk and Slope Stability in Jerusalem, Environmental Geology and Water Sciences, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 183 -- 86, 1984 Jump up ^ Charles Clermont - Ganneau, Archaeological Researches in Palestine, Vol. 1. p. 420, 1899 ; Charles Clermont - Ganneau, Palestine Exploration Fund Quarterly Statement, April 1874, p. 102 Jump up ^ Mount of Olives description, from www.goisrael.com, retrieved January 4, 2012. Jump up ^ Matthew 21 : 1 ; 26 : 30, etc. Jump up ^ Matthew 26 : 39 ^ Jump up to : Alternative Tourism Group ( ATG ) - Study Center. The Mount of Olives ( 1 ) Jump up ^ `` Emek Tzurim ''. The City of David. 2009. Archived from the original on 2010 - 02 - 12. Retrieved 2010 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ `` Jerusalem - Beyond the Old City Walls ''. Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. July 22, 1946. Retrieved 2013 - 03 - 26. External links Har Hazeitim Grave Search Interactive Panoramas of the Mount of Olives -- jerusalem360.com, GoJerusalem.com `` Olives, Mount of ''. Encyclopædia Britannica ( 11th ed. ). 1911. Media related to Mount of Olives at Wikimedia Commons Cemeteries in Jerusalem Christian cemeteries Mount Zion Cemetery Franciscan Cemetery, Mount Zion Jewish cemeteries Har HaMenuchot Mount of Olives Jewish Cemetery Sanhedria Cemetery Shaare Zedek Cemetery Sheikh Badr Islamic cemeteries Mamilla Cemetery Military cemeteries Jerusalem British War Cemetery Mount Herzl Tombs Cave of Nicanor Cave of the Ramban David 's Tomb Jason 's Tomb Herod Family Tomb Holy Sepulchre Silwan necropolis Tomb of Absalom Tomb of Benei Hezir Tomb of Simeon the Just Tombs of the Sanhedrin Tomb of the Virgin Mary Tomb of Zechariah Tombs of the Kings Jerusalem portal Israel portal Judaism portal Christianity portal Islam portal New Testament places associated with Jesus Galilee Ænon Bethsaida Cana Capernaum Chorazin Gennesaret Mount of Transfiguration Nain Nazareth Sea of Galilee Judea Bethany Bethesda Bethlehem Bethphage Calvary Emmaus Gabbatha Gethsemane Jericho Jerusalem Temple Mount of Olives Other Al - Maghtas Bethabara Caesarea Maritima Caesarea Philippi Egypt Gerasa Road to Damascus Sychar Umm Qais Christianity Portal Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mount_of_Olives&oldid=852909522 '' Categories : Mount of Olives Cemeteries in Jerusalem Jewish cemeteries in Jerusalem Mountains of Jerusalem Neighbourhoods of Jerusalem Geography of Jerusalem Hebrew Bible mountains New Testament mountains Sacred mountains Land of Israel Hidden categories : All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from March 2018 Articles with permanently dead external links Articles containing Arabic - language text Coordinates on Wikidata Articles containing Hebrew - language text All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from January 2016 Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2010 All articles containing potentially dated statements All articles lacking reliable references Articles lacking reliable references from May 2015 Articles with unsourced statements from March 2016 Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikivoyage Azərbaycanca Български Català Cebuano Čeština Dansk Deutsch Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Gaeilge Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית ಕನ್ನಡ Ladino Magyar Македонски Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Occitan پنجابی Polski Português Română Русский Scots Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் Türkçe Українська اردو Tiếng Việt 吴语 ייִדיש 粵語 中文 45 more Edit links This page was last edited on 1 August 2018, at 05 : 10 ( UTC ). 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Question: where is the mount of olives in jerusalem
Answer: east of and adjacent to Jerusalem's Old City