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International

event. Both families were related, and both accompanied the Sphere since its inauguration
families were strongly committed to peace and in 1939, and today provides shelter for the
internationalism. We leave it up to historians peacocks that Gustav Revilliod, middle son of
to confirm if our guess about the connection Leonard Revilliod, insisted should live here.
of the Tree with the Black Marble Obelisk in
honour of Peace and to commemorate the And in a way, this tree is not only the custodian
First Congress of Peace. of all secrets of the Palais des Nations, but it
is also the living custodian of the UN and its
In any case, this tree is the oldest living tree in legacy. And if our above guess confirmed, it
Ariana Park, and has witnessed the history of should be definitely included in the Register
the League of Nations, the Palais des Nations, of the Peace Monuments, marking almost two
and 75 years of the United Nations. It has centuries of peace actions in Geneva! •

Lebanese Cedar have also been subject to overexploitation throughout the
centuries as their wood was precious by most empires which
This is one of about 3,000 Cedars which were planted conquered the area (Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians,
through the 19th century in le Lake Geneva area (that’s Greeks, Romans, Crusaders, Ottomans, etc.). Only a
more than the largest Cedar reserve in Lebanon!). few small reserves remain today in Lebanon. Geneva’s
The tree was planted from the seeds of the first tree which climate has proven far more favourable for these Cedars
was brought in Geneva 97 years earlier (after having and allowed them to flourish in better conditions than on
travelled as a seed from England to Paris, and then as Mount-Lebanon. Its wood allowed to build the ships which
a shrub from Paris to Geneva in a hat). That tree was facilitated international relations and diplomacy between
planted in 1735 in the cities and states thousands
nearby Parc Beaulieu where of years ago.
it still stands today.
As a Lebanese expat in
Lebanese Cedars which Geneva, this Cedar makes
are native to the Levant’s me feel at home, as it
mountainous areas have reminds me of many of the
been a symbol of strength, glorious Cedars which I
resilience and immortality, encountered daily around
having been mentioned for Kartaba, my hometown
their grandiosity in the Epic which stands on a high
of Gilgamesh (circa 2,000 mountainous plateau
BCE) and the Songs of Solomon in the Old Testament (circa above the Adonis river valley in the historic Byblos area
750 BCE). Their strong and lightweight wood was used by of Mount-Lebanon.
the Phoenicians to build the ships which allowed them to run
their trade businesses across the Mediterranean long before The Cedar’s prominence won it a place on the flag of my,
the Greeks and the Romans. Mount-Lebanon’s Cedars are and its presence for 188 years so far in the Ariana Park,
subject to very harsh weather means that it has seen people from almost all corners of
conditions, and only those the world, especially since the League of Nations moved to
whose root is at least 45 cm Geneva: the symbol of one nation thus acts as a symbol
long by the end of their first for all nations! This Cedar has accompanied more than
summer manage to survive a century of promoting peace in and around the Palais
the heavy snowfalls in winter. des Nations. It perpetuates its symbol as an important
Those that do survive, grow benchmark of peace and multilateralism in Geneva.
with resilience, and live for
thousands of years. The Cedar Extract prepared by Fabio El Khoury, former UNECE
Forests of Mount-Lebanon consultant

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