Australian Institute of Archaeology - Studying the Ancient Near East

JESUS AND ARCHAEOLOGY

What archaeological remains may one expect from Jesus as the Gospels describe him? He was an itinerant teacher who died and rose, not even leaving bones. The early church had no interest in any material evidence for Jesus and it was not until a few centuries later when Christianity became ‘official’ and was accepted by the Roman establishment that there was any interest in sites associated with Jesus.

In the Gospel of Matthew (Chapter 4) there is a story where Jesus was offered the role of an earthly king, but he rejected it and instead became an itinerant teacher in Galilee, a distant region of the Roman Empire.

It may be interesting to compare Jesus and Herod. The latter was one of the greatest builders of the Roman world and left many significant archaeological remains, Jesus left none. Herod murdered many people while Jesus raised people from the dead. The contrast could not be greater.

Today interest in the archaeology of Jesus’ time may help an understanding of the cultural milieu in which he lived. It may identify the existence of contemporary people, Herod, Pilate, Tiberius Caesar, and so on, but it will not establish the truth or otherwise of what he said and taught. An enduring demonstration of the power of his message is the fact that someone so archaeologically ephemeral and politically irrelevant could establish a belief system that, in name at least, dominates the world.

Resources

1. Pilate’s Inscription
An inscription referring to Pontius Pilate was found in the remains of the ancient theatre of Caesarea by Italian Archaeologists under Dr Frova in 1961.
Inscription …….STIBERIEVM ..s Tiberium [PON]TIVSPILITVS (Pon)tius Pilate [PRAEF]ECTVSIVDA[EAE] (Praef)ectus of Jud(ea)	Comment The inscription had been reused by restorers of the theatre in the fourth Century AD and was partly destroyed in the process. It refers to a building named after the Emperor Tiberius and records the name of Pontius Pilate. This places Pilate in Palestine during the reign of Tiberius and at the time of Jesus. Location Location: Israel Museum, Jerusalem AE1963 No104 Provenance: Ceasarea, Israel Size: 820 x 680 x 20 Material: Limestone Photo: C.J.Davey
Image Click to Enlarge	Links For this and other details about Pilate http://www.bible-history.com/empires/pilate.html http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/latin/pilate.html


2. Ossuary
Ossuaries are receptacles that store bones. For a brief period in the first Centuries BC and AD Jews in the area of Jerusalem recovered bones from tombs and stored them in ossuaries so that they could reuse the tomb. It will be remembered that Joseph of Arimathaeas’s tomb in which Jesus was laid had ‘not been used’ (Matthew 27:60 Luke 13:53). It was common to scratch the name of the person on the ossuary. The names of Jesus, Joseph and Mary have commonly been found on ossuaries often giving rise to controversy. While the claims made about the possible connections with the New Testament have always been doubtful, they do reveal the names that were popular at the time. This ossuary is in the collection of the Institute, it is unused - ie no bones were ever put into it. The decoration is common. There were no names scratched on it as you would expect if it had been used.
Click to Enlarge	Location Location: Australian Institute of Archaeology Material: Limestone Photo: H. Huggins Links A report on the Ossuary inscribed ‘James the brother of Jesus’. http://www.bibleinterp.com/articles/Official_Report.htm Comment on the ‘Jesus’ Ossuary http://www.michaelsheiser.com/M%20Heiser%20Ossuary.pdf


3. Tomb
There are many tombs around Jerusalem. The picture is of one such tomb known as the tomb of the Kings. It has a rolling stone at the entrance and it is first Century.
Click to Enlarge	Photo: C.J.Davey


4. Parchment
The printing of religious documents has been a major purpose for writing. This parchment is a fragment from a manuscript of the Apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy, advising him that local church leaders, deacons, should not drink too much wine (1 Timothy 3:8–10). The script is Coptic and the language is the Sahidic dialect of Coptic. It is thought that the text comes from the White Monastery, which was near Sohag in Upper Egypt. The decoration around religious texts became increasingly ornate. People who devoted their lives to the task of copying the Bible prepared these manuscripts.
Click to Enlarge	Location Location: Australian Institute of Archaeology IA15.105 Provenance: Egypt, eighth century Material: vellum Size: 12 x 13 cm (irreg.),


5. Nails
It is common to find iron nails on Roman sites. Those pictured come from a site in first Century AD Roman Britain. The nails are square in section.
Click to Enlarge	Location Location: Australian Institute of Archaeology Provenance: Britain, Roman Period Material : Iron Photo: H.Huggins