Olive trees in the Jerusalem garden
where Jesus Christ prayed before
he was crucified have
"miraculously" lived through the
past nine centuries bacteria-free,
according to a molecular research
presented last year at the Vatican
Radio in Rome.
Carried by a team of researchers
from Italy's National Research
Council (CNR) and various Italian
universities, the three-year study
investigated eight gnarled olive
trees in the Garden of Gethsemane,
one of the holiest sites of
Christendom.
The research found that three of
the eight healthy trees (the only
ones on which it was technically
possible to carry out the dating)
come from the middle of the 12th
century, although the roots
underground are certainly much
older.
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"These olives are among the oldest
broad-leaved trees in the world,"
lead researcher Antonio Cimato of
the CNR's Tree and Timber Institute
in Florence, said.
Carbon dating showed that the
trees come from the years 1092,
1166 and 1198, a period when the
Crusaders, engaged in the
reconstruction of the great
churches of the Holy Land, re-built
the Basilica of Gethsemane in
Jerusalem.
According to the researchers, it is
likely that during the construction
of the church, the olive garden was
rearranged and renovated.
Indeed, olive trees can grow back
after being cut down or even
burnt.
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DNA analysis of the eight trees
revealed they were all related to a
single, older tree.
"All eight trees have similar genetic
profiles, meaning they are olive
'twins,' all children of a single
specimen," Cimato said.
According to the researcher, this
means the olives were not
spontaneous trees, but were
deliberately planted.
Why did the Crusaders choose one
single tree, among the thousands
growing in Jerusalem? Were they
trying to preserve a specific,
meaningful lineage? Are the olives
linked to the
very trees under which, according
to the gospel of Luke, Jesus sweat
drops of blood as he prayed?
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The questions will remain
unanswered, according to Cimato.
"Finding the original tree is
impossible," he said.
Despite their age, the 900-year-old
olive trees were found in excellent
health, unaffected by lead pollution
and bacteria.
Amazingly, the garden's earth
appears to block insects and
bacterial proliferation.
"I would call it a small miracle,"
Cimato said.

Holy Christ.