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Name:
James Ossuary
What Is It?
According to some, an ossuary has been discovered which once held the bones of James, the
brother of Jesus. As reported in the "Biblical Archaeology Review," the discovery was made
by French scholar Andre Lemaire after a chance encounter with a collector in Jerusalem.
According to Lemaire, the ossuary can be dated to some time between 20 BCE and 70 CE.
Does it Matter?
The discovery of this ossuary made headlines all over the world and heated conversations
among both scholars and interested lay readers ensued. Why is so much importance placed
upon this artifact? If genuine, it would represent a solid confirmation that a person named
Jesus, with a brother named James, lived around the same time as the figure of Jesus
portrayed in the gospels of the Christian New Testament.
The Ossuary
Ossuary is a Latin term for an urn or any other receptacle used to hold the bones of
the dead. Ossuaries were a common part of Jewish burial practices from around 100
BCE through the destruction of the Temple by Roman soldiers in 70 CE. Most burials
involved putting the corpse in a cave until only a skeleton remained; after that, the
bones would be placed in a stone chest for permanent storage.
The Inscription
The actual inscription reads: Ya'akov bar Yosef akhui diYeshua. In English, this means
Jacob (James), son of Yosef (Joseph), brother of Yeshua (Jesus). Curiously, the letters
for the first part of the inscription are very soft while those at the end, the important
reference to Jesus, are much sharper and exhibit less apparent aging. This discrepancy
is an important piece of evidence for those who dispute the ossuary's authenticity.
Authenticity
Is the Ossuary of James authentic? The original report in BAR included testimony from
experts from the Geological Survey of Israel who stated that, among other things, there
was a grey patina (a coating of age) over the ossuary which could be found in some of
the letters - but it isn't clear this patina was in any of the letters referencing Jesus.
The patina is problematic for other reasons as well. The forgery of patina is of great interest to those who create fake antiquities. Real patina does not wash away, but this ossuary was cleaned and some of the patina was evidently removed in the process. Real patina can also appear with fake inscriptions so long as the caring in question is shallow while the patina appears in deeper scratches or pits.
Provenance
Another problem for the claims of authenticity is the "provenance" of the artifact.
Provenance is a term which refers to the path an object has taken between its origin and
its current location. An object with a good provenance can be traced through reputable
collectors, dealers, and/or museums to an archaeological dig where the artifact can be
placed in a historical and cultural context.
The so-called James Ossuary, however, does not have such a provenance - the collector, who originally wanted to remain anonymous (always a bad sign), claimed to have purchased it from an unknown Arab dealer in antiquities in the Old City of Jerusalem some time during the 1970s. For some strange reason, during the 30 years he owned the ossuary he never noticed the importance of the inscription - even though he claimed to have purchased it precisely because of those markings. Eventually the collector was identified as Oded Golan - and Golan has come under investigation for antiquities theft.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
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