The olive trees and the tradition.
Long-revered as a perfect plant, providing beauty,
fruit and essential oil, the olive tree is believed to have existed for
more than 5,000 years old. The French describe it as "L'arbre roi"
- the regal tree. In Spain they have a saying, "Aceite de oliva,
todo mal quita" - olive oil makes all pain go away. In mythology,
the tree was Athena's gift to the city of Athens, making her their patron
goddess. Even the Bible carries numerous references to the olive tree,
including the dove with the olive branch that signaled the end of the
great flood to Noah.
The olive tree not only appears throughout history,
but remains as an important economic influence:
Olive trees do not have rings to determine their
age, but scholars estimate their age to one and two thousand years old.
Through carbon dating, archeologists have established
the presence of olive trees on the Island of Crete before 2500 B.C.
The systematic cultivation of olive trees started
in the Stone and Bronze Age.
The oldest olive tree is 5,000 years old in Kolymvari,
Chania.
The Romans cut down all the olive trees in their
siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
In the ancient Olympic Games, winners were given
olive wreaths as trophies.
In mythology, the olive tree was Athena's gift
to the city of Athens, and she was chosen as their patron goddess.
The island of Corfu has more than three million
olive trees, covering one third of the Island.
The Mediterranean region produces 99% of the world's
olive oil.