The Garden of Eden
A UN effort to help restore Iraq's 'Garden of Eden' home to rare and unique species like the Sacred ibis and African darter, an $11-million project, funded by Japan.....21 April 2005 News Release

Traditionally the date for Adam and the Garden of Eden has been 4000 B.C. based on the genealogies of Genesis and Matthew .

Adam was the first and lonely inhabitant of Eden. He was required to dress and keep it. All the inhabitants of earth and air passed before him, and he named them all; but for him there was not found a suitable companion, and to meet this want, the woman was created and placed in the garden with him (Genesis 2:8-23) The Garden of Eden in which Adam and Eve lived in sinless bliss was a subtropical climate, for they lived there without clothing (Genesis 1:25), and the fig tree grew in luxuriance (Genesis 3:7).

Friedrich Delitzsch places Eden in the country around Babylon and south of it, a country which was beautiful in its luxuriant vegetation and abundant streams. This region is watered practically by the Euphrates alone, which is here on a higher level than the Tigris..

The Oldest Known City in the World

Eridu is archaeologically one of the oldest settlements known dating to 4000 B.C. According to ancient Mesopotamian tradition, Eridu ranks as the oldest city in the world, and it was also regarded as a sacred city. Eridu, has been explicitly described in Sumerian inscriptions as "standing upon the shores of the sea," and Ur (Abraham's hometown, situated only a few miles away from Eridu) was also described as having quays (landing docks) where oceangoing vessels changed their cargos. Both of these cities now lie about 150 miles inland from the Gulf .After about 2000 B.C., the sea level dropped and the Persian Gulf retreated to its present-day position, leaving former seaports--one after another--high and dry.