OLIVES,

See also:

• MOUNT, WILLIAM SIDNEY (1807-1868)

MOUNT OF, or MOUNT OLIVET ("

See also:

• OPUS ('O7rois)

Opus 'EXc uwos or riov 'EXauav; mod.

See also:

• JEBEL (plur. jibed)

Jebel-et-Tur)  , the ridge facing the Temple Mount at Jerusalem on the east, and separated from it by the Kidron . A basis of hard cretaceous limestone is topped with softer deposits of the same, quaternary deposits forming the summit . There are four distinct elevations in the ridge: traditionally the southernmost, which is separated by a cleft from the others, is called the " Hill of Offence," and said to be the scene of Solomon's idolatry . The summit to the north of this is often (wrongly) spoken of as Olivet proper . Still worse is the error ofcalling the next hill but one to the north " Scopus." The top of the ridge affords a comprehensive view . There are four Old Testament references: 2 Sam. xv . 30 sqq., Neh. viii . 15, Ezek. xi . 23, Zech. xiv . 4 . In the New Testament the place is mentioned in connexion with the last days of the life of Jesus . He crossed it on his kingly entry into Jerusalem, and upon it he delivered his great eschatological address (Mark xiii.3) .

That the

Ascension took place from the summit of the Mount of Olives is not necessarily implied in Acts i . 12; the words " over against Bethany " (Luke xxiv . 50) perhaps mean one of the secluded ravines on the eastern slope, beside one of which that village stands . But since Constantine erected the " Basilica of the Ascension " on the spot marked by a certain sacred cave (Euseb . Vita Const . 41), the site of this event has been placed here and marked by a succession of churches . The present building is quite modern, and is in the hands of the Moslems . Close to the Chapel of the Ascension is the vault of St Pelagia, and a little way down the hill is the labyrinth of early Christian rock-hewn sepulchral chambers now called the " Tombs of the Prophets." During the middle ages Olivet was also shown as the mount of the Transfiguration . A chapel, bearing the name of the Caliph Omar, and said to occupy the place where he encamped when Jerusalem surrendered to the Moslems, formerly stood beside the Church of the Ascension . There are a considerable number of monasteries and churches of various religious orders and sects on the hill, from whose beauty their uniform and unredeemed ugliness detracts sadly . On Easter day 1907 was laid the foundation of a hospice for pilgrims, under the patronage of the German empress .