Olive Press, Jerash, Jerash Governorate, Jordan

Olive Press, Jerash, Jerash Governorate, Jordan 

It is impossible to travel in the Middle East without grasping the deep sense of agricultural history that permeates the landscape and the culture. The Middle East has been cultivating olive trees and producing olive oil for over 6,000 years. During trip determined to turn back time and explore a region of the world whose identity is so closely linked to the venerable olive. History came to life through the eyes of an olive farmer named Fayez, and many olive oil-infused meals.

Dr. Mohammad Tarawneh, Professor of Archaeology at the Al-Hussein Bin Talal University and one of the guides on our trip to Jordan, told that the earliest evidence of olive stones from settled sites in the Levant goes back to the Natufian period, more than 10,000 years ago. Some scholars believe the earliest evidence for the domestication of olives comes from the Chalcolithic Period archaeological site of Tleilat Ghassul in Jordan.

Epic Jordan Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound