Jerusalem is situated on the southern spur of a plateau
in the Judaean Mountains, which include the Mount of
Olives (East) and Mount Scopus (North East). The elevation
of the Old City is approximately 760 m (2,490
ft).[237] The whole of Jerusalem is surrounded by valleys
and dry riverbeds (wadis). The Kidron, Hinnom,
and Tyropoeon Valleys intersect in an area just south of
the Old City of Jerusalem.[238] The Kidron Valley runs
to the east of the Old City and separates the Mount of
Olives from the city proper. Along the southern side of
old Jerusalem is the Valley of Hinnom, a steep ravine
associated in biblical eschatology with the concept of
Gehenna or Hell.[239] The Tyropoeon Valley commenced
in the northwest near the Damascus Gate, ran southsoutheasterly
through the center of the Old City down to
the Pool of Siloam, and divided the lower part into two
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hills, the Temple Mount to the east, and the rest of the
city to the west (the lower and the upper cities described
by Josephus). Today, this valley is hidden by debris that
has accumulated over the centuries.[238] In biblical times,
Jerusalem was surrounded by forests of almond, olive and
pine trees. Over centuries of warfare and neglect, these
forests were destroyed. Farmers in the Jerusalem region
thus built stone terraces along the slopes to hold back the
soil, a feature still very much in evidence in the Jerusalem
landscape.