The “Sisters,” or the olive trees of Noah, are located in the Lebanon town of Bechealeh. It is thought to be among the world’s oldest olive trees. Historians estimate that these trees are approximately 5,000 to 6,000 years old and have Biblical roots.
The 16 olive trees are hidden away and have withstood 6,000 years of political turmoil, plagues, diseases, climatic changes, and shifting civilizations. They might be the world’s oldest living non-clonal trees, if this is accurate. The locals refer to these olive trees as the “trees of Noah.” They view them as a living miracle because, as we all know, nature is often silent and helpless in the face of adversity, greed, and violence. Dendrochronology, or tree-ring dating, has not been used to calculate the age of the olive trees of Noah, and it is unlikely that this is because the inner tree-ring structures have deteriorated over time.
One of the greatest unsolved and mostly unexplored pre-Biblical mysteries is still the location of “The Sisters” olive trees. According to popular belief and certain Biblical scholars, these are the trees from which the dove brought a branch back to Noah when the deluge receded.
This theory makes sense when you take into account that “The Sisters,” which are perched at an altitude of 1300 meters, were the highest planted olive trees from antiquity to the present, and the ancient Bechealeh trees are still producing premium olive oil during that great flood when the entire Middle East was submerged.
The local folklore refers to “The Sisters,” a priceless national asset. The Ministry of Tourism and Culture has designated the sister olive trees as a place of national significance, and they are even included on Lebanese stamps. At the end of the Biblical Flood, the Sisters, as the source of the olive branch, returned to Noah’s Ark.
All religions have long praised olive oil for its nutritional and holistic qualities; modern science has established the oil’s healing properties and antioxidant values, which help to prevent heart disease, cancer, and other diseases as well as lower cholesterol levels. Therefore, if you are going to Lebanon, don’t miss the opportunity to see the oldest trees in the world.