James Ossuary

The James Ossuary is an ossuary, a limestone box for containing bones, which came to light in Israel in 2002. It is claimed to have been the ossuary of James, the brother of Jesus. Its provenance is unknown. Although the Israel Antiquities Authority assess it as a modern forgery, some scholars maintain its historical authenticity. Its discovery was followed in January 2003 by another contentious archaeological "find" soon connected with Oded Golan, the so-called "Jehoash Inscription" (see below). A documentary film The Lost Tomb Of Jesus (2007) makes reference to this ossuary. By 2008, in what has been termed "one of the biggest forgery scandals ever in the history of archaeology", it has become known that an Egyptian, Samah Shoukri Ghatas, had confessed to manufacturing the many items for Oded Golan. Golan, a well-known Tel Aviv antiquities collector, is presently on trial for the forgery. [images] [Israel]

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