An Olive Oil Press in Jerusalem
Olive oil was a very important part of the diet in Israel during ancient times. Olives were eaten, but most of the olives were pressed to get the oil. In addition to using the oil for cooking, it was burned for light. To make olive oil, olives were squeezed with a press. The oil usually flowed from openings below the press. The photograph above shows an olive press from a Roman guard house near the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem. The man demonstrating the turning of the press is Ezra, a very good tour guide. The presses were often turned by oxen or other domesticated animals.
- Other sites in the The Jerusalem Tour:
- The Citadel of David
- Hezekiah's (Broad) Wall
- The Temple Mount, which includes The Pinnacle of the Temple, Robinson's Arch, Herodian Stones, and The Western (Wailing) Wall
- The Pool of Bethesda
- The Steps to Gethsemane
- Other sites in the Life during Biblical Times Tour:
- Jeroboam's Granary at Megiddo
- A Roman Aqueduct at Caesarea
- The Pool of Bethesda
- A Model of a Four Room House
- A Four Room House at Beersheba
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