They became symbols of "beauty, precious shade and succulent plenty," Kershner wrote. Home Judean Date Palm Grown From 2,000 Year Old Seed Bears Fruit. Great piece I had no idea about such amazing botanical work going on. Benjitheijneb/CC BY SA 3.0 (Creative Commons ) A tree grown from a 2,000-year-old seed may bring its sub-species back to Israel, where it once flourished, after a . The first of the ancient date seedlings, Methusaleh, is named for the oldest person mentioned in the Bible. A handful of date seeds from fruit that ripened around the time of Jesus have been successfully planted and grown in southernIsrael, researchers have revealed., The worlds most remarkable date palm trees might not exist if Sarah Sallon hadnt gotten sick while working as a doctor in India in 1986. During Yigal Yadins excavations of Masada in the mid 1960s, ancient date seeds were discovered beneath rubble at the Northern Palace approach. Both Adam and Jonah have produced flowers. The experiment worked. They called him Methuselah after the oldest person in the Bible. Interesting Engineering reports that Recently, Hannah's fruit was harvested for the first time.. A team led by Sarah Sallon, which planted these six trees, first tried in 2005 to germinate a 2,000-year-old seed from the . After this process, one seed was found to be damaged and was subsequently discarded. Its a childrens story about the science and what it represents., Viva Sarah Press is a journalist and speaker. [10] The plant was nicknamed "Methuselah" after the longest-lived person listed in the Bible. CBN News got its first look ten years ago when Methuselah was still in the lab. Ms. Solowey chose Methuselah to be the father, and she moved pollen from him onto Hannahs flowers. Also available on most smart TVs and streaming services. Judean date palm in 2012. Judean Date Palm Grown From 2,000 Year Old Seed Bears Fruit. I clicked on the link from Facebook because I remember date palms being grown and harvested in the San Diego area in the early 60's. Now a major discovery has come regarding these projects, from of all places, his bathtub. During 19631965, excavations at Herod the Great's palace on Masada, Israel, revealed a cache of date palm seeds preserved in an ancient jar. Collect date seeds. Like Methuselah, they have all been given Biblical names. ( The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies ). And though shes just nine-years-old, she carries an ancient heritage. Ancient sources have suggested that the Judean date palm tree had many unique medicinal properties no longer found in todays palm varieties. It would be interesting if they were used back then for the same reasons, she tells NoCamels during a phone call from her Jerusalem home. You can use the pits from any fresh dates bought from the grocery store to grow a flourishing date palm. Masada was the last stand of a small band of Jewish rebels who held out against three Roman legions for several years before committing mass suicide in 73 AD. What is the origin of the legend of the Christed Son who was born of a virgin on December 25th? The Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is an important symbol in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.Methuselah represents a variety of date palm that was grown in ancient Judea but disappeared many hundreds of years ago. In ancient times, the classical writers described in detail, the dates of ancient Judea. Climate change, terrible typhoons, and hurricanes. The date palms are named for Biblical figures. Thats why we view every news story through the lens of faith. Ancient Origins 2013 - 2023Disclaimer- Terms of Publication - Privacy Policy & Cookies - Advertising Policy -Submissions - We Give Back - Contact us. Prophecy from the Bible is revealing itself as we speak. Available at: https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/6/eaax0384, Whelan, E. (2020) Fabled Palm Trees Reborn From Ancient Seeds In Israel. Ancient Origins. Then, two things happened: either Chaos or Gaia created the universe as we know it, or Ouranos and Tethys gave birth to the first beings. Judith and Boaz date back to approximately mid-second century BCE. A land of wheat and barley, of vines, figs, and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey. An ancient coin design depicting a date palm and two baskets full of dates has been reused for the front side of the modern Israeli ten-shekel coin. Recently, a restoration of life, in a sense, took place in the Holy Landbut with 2,000-year-old dry date seeds from the same region where the religious legends began., Mazal tov to Hannah and Methuselah on their 111 miracle babies! Soak them in a bowl of cool water for 48 hours. All kinds of trees for food will grow up on both banks of the stream. Dr. Solowey successfully germinated one of these seeds, which sprouted into a young date palm today, Methuselah has a permanent home in the Arava Institute research park on Kibbutz Ketura. This seed, among others, was found during the excavations of Masada in the mid 1960s. ( Marcos Schonholz ). Between 2011 and 2014 Ms. Solowey planted the seeds and six more have sprouted over the years. Top Image: Methuselah is a Judean date palm grown from a 2,000-year-old seed found at Masada. The date palms are named for Biblical figures. The remaining 33 were carefully soaked in water and fertilizer to encourage germination. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail; they will yield new fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the Temple. Sarah M. Wells is the author ofThe Family Bible Devotionaland two collections of poems,Between the Heron and the MossandPruningBurning Bushes. Judith and Hannah were female, but only Hannah flowered. Specimen Pindo Palm Tree can be seen on the University of Georgia campus in Athens, GA. The researchers conducted a series of tests to verify the age of the seeds, and it was confirmed through carbon 14 dating that they were more than 2,000 years old. They dont read science journals, she tells NoCamels, noting that her friend, Jane Goodall, wrote the introduction to her unpublished childrens book. No. Methuselah the Judean Date Palm is still going strong even after sprouting from a 2,000-year-old seed. Norimitsu Odachi: Who Could Have Possibly Wielded This Enormous 15th Century Japanese Sword? The date palm is one of the oldest cultivated fruit trees in the world and is highly symbolic in parts of the Middle East, as well as the Muslim, Christian and Jewish faiths. . The tree and its fruit are mentioned in the Song of Songs and Psalms and featured on coins throughout the region. For thousands of years, the date palm was a staple crop. Sallon explained that the taste is very close but not exactly the same as what the residents of the country would have eaten 2,000 years ago since in ancient times dates were grown from shoots from the best producing trees rather than by pollinating date palm flowers. The seedlings would later be moved to Kibbutz Ketura. In the future, the hope is for Methuselah, a male tree, to be bred with a female to produce the same date variety eaten commonly in ancient Judea, where it was valued as much for its delicious flavor as for its medicinal properties., We all know the resurrection story from 2,000 years ago described in the pages of the Christian bible. The Romans eventually succeeded and by 500 AD the once plentiful date palm had almost completely disappeared, driven to extinction for the sake of conquest. Ancient Judean date palm trees resurrected from ancient seeds. Joanna Gillan is a Co-Owner, Editor and Writer of Ancient Origins. Medieval Sea Monster Was Likely a Whale, New Research Reveals, What is Shambhala? Sallon, a medical doctor, started this project more than 15 years ago after becoming interested in natural medicine. 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Available at: https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/extinct-tree-resurrected-ancient-seeds-now-dad-002838, Hassan, N. (2020) Israeli Researchers Mate 2,000-year-old Date Seeds, Hope for Fruit. Haaretz. And they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees; and they encamped there beside the water. The findings suggest that it might be a good option for examining the lifetime of plant seeds. Fifteen years ago, the first tree Solowey sprouted was a male. Hundreds of seeds were collected between 1963 and 1991. The researchers discovered that the seeds were up to 30 percent larger than date seeds today, which probably meant the fruit was larger, too. About 100 ripe, tasty dates were cut from Hannah. Available at: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/science/.premium-israeli-researchers-mate-2-000-year-old-date-seeds-hope-for-fruit-1.8503447, Kalman, M. (2005) Seed of extinct date palm sprouts after 2,000 years. SFGATE. Government Bouncers on Your Church's Front Door? They were widely used for different kinds of diseasescancers, TB [tuberculosis]all kinds of problems., Harvested dates grown on the ancient Judean date palm. But these werent ordinary dates. Because they were famous. Other date seeds were found in caves near the Dead Sea. They were given the names Jonah, Uriel, Boaz, Judith, Hannah, and Adam. Sign up to our free daily newsletter today to get all the most important stories directly to your inbox. The Judean date disappeared entirely, and this site is also in terrible danger of destruction. See how the latest updates in Jerusalem and the world are connected to the prophecies we read in the Bible. But they're not the original date tree that grew here, Sallon said. Joanna completed a Bachelor of Science (Psychology) degree in Australia and published research in the field of Educational Psychology. Most of the haul is being kept for science purposes. Over the past decade, they grew an ancient Judean . It is not clear whether there was ever a single distinct Judean cultivar, but dates grown in the region have had distinctive reputations for thousands of years, and the date palm was anciently regarded as a symbol of the region and its fertility. In ancient times, date palms were used for their supposed medicinal properties to cure many diseases and infections, promoting longevity and acting as a mild aphrodisiac. I am reminded of the prophecy of Israel returning to itshomeland before the End of Days, and this resurrected tree, past symbol of Israel seen on shekel coins, seems to best epitomize that ancient prediction. I think thats why weve got such a tremendous response to bringing these dates back from extinction, she says. As the researchers hoped would be the case with their revived date palms, plants irrigated from the Jerusalem waters would be uniquely vibrant and grant special medicinal qualities. It has allegedly served as both an aphrodisiac and a contraceptive, and as a cure for a wide range of health issues including cancer, malaria, and toothache. References to it are made in the Bible, the Koran, and other ancient literature. Dates were one of the seven species listed as special to the land of Israel, described in the bible as honey., A land of wheat and barley, of vines, figs, and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey; Deuteronomy 8:8. Dr. Sarah Sallon, the director of the Borick Natural Medicine Research Center at Hadassah University Hospital, and Dr. Elaine Solowey, who runs the Center for Sustainable Agriculture at the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies at Kibbutz Ketura, have so far successfully managed to germinate seven seeds, among dozens that they have attempted to revive. In Scripture, Hannah prayed and prayed for a child, promising that if God would answer that prayer, she would dedicate her child to a life of serving the Lord. Who would have thought seeds thousands of years old would germinate?!? [13][15] Three of the seeds were subsequently planted at Ketura, Israel, in the Arabah in southern Israel. Sarah Sallon, director of the Louis L. Borick Natural Medicine Research Center in Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, led a team that included Elaine Solowey, and Nathalie Chabrillange. (DtoF) Boaz (54 months), Judith (47 months), and Hannah (88 months). In the mid-1900s, archaeologists discovered date palm seeds stored in an ancient jar in the ruins of the palace of Herod the Great in Masada, Israel. Sallons near future plans include learning more about the new-old dates, how to reintroduce the Judean date to the market, and continue to research the medicinal properties of these dates. It included the Jewish Sheheheyanu prayer recited on momentous occasions, as well as the traditional offering and tithing ceremony. Of these, six of the seeds successfully sprouted. Thegoal of Ancient Origins is to highlight recent archaeological discoveries, peer-reviewed academic research and evidence, as well as offering alternative viewpoints and explanations of science, archaeology, mythology, religion and history around the globe. This week the Arava Institute celebrated the first Judean Dates ever to be grown into fruit since the time of King Herod., They were given Biblical names: Adam, Boaz, Hannah, Jonah, Judith and Uriel. [22][23], As of June 2021, dates have grown from the pollination of Hannah, one of the female specimens, by Methuselah. To read the full paper on Origins and insights into the historic Judean date palm based on genetic analysis of germinated ancient seeds and morphometric studies by Sarah Sallon et al., please refer to Science Advances. Stay informed with the latest from CBN News delivered to your inbox. Changes in weather and growing conditions combined with human activity are likely to blame for the disappearance of the Judean date palm sometime in the Middle Ages. Theres a resurrection story you probably havent heard coming out of Judea. After all, date palms are praised in the Bible as well as in Islam, Greek and Roman civilizations as symbols of beauty, fertility, peace, and victory.