Geneva Bible map identifies potential Garden of Eden location

An antiquities expert has highlighted a 1599 Geneva Bible containing a map titled ‘Situation of the Garden of Eden’ that may provide clues to the biblical paradise's location. The map is based on a 1554 version produced by Protestant reformer John Calvin while he was in Switzerland.

The map places the Garden of Eden near the Euphrates River at the foothills of Mount Ararat in modern-day Turkey. This placement aligns with descriptions in the Book of Genesis regarding a river system comprising the Pishon, Euphrates, Tigris, and Gihon.

While the location in Turkey matches the Euphrates, the identity of the Pishon and Gihon rivers remains a subject of scholarly debate, as they have previously been linked to the Nile and Ganges rivers. One proposed resolution, suggested by Calvin, is that the biblical ‘headwaters’ may refer to river mouths rather than sources, which would place all four waterways within the Mesopotamian region.