The site of the oak was acquired in 1868 by Archimandrite Antonin (Kapustin) for the Church of Russia, and the Monastery of the Holy Trinity was founded nearby. The site has since been a major attraction for Russian pilgrims before the revolution, and is the only functioning Christian shrine in the Hebron region. After the Russian Revolution, the property came under the control of the ROCOR. A long-standing tradition is that the Oak of Abraham will die before the appearance of the Antichrist. The main oak trunk has been dead since 1996. In 1998 a root sprout appeared.