Grave violators

«Order of Caesar. It pleases me that the sepulchers and graves, of any kind that were made for the devotion to parents or for the devotion of children or family members, remain undisturbed in perpetuity». Thus begins the inscription of Nazareth and continues by ordering "that (the violator) suffer the death penalty on the accusation of violator of tombs". For a long time, based on the Gospel of Matthew (28.11-15), this was considered the Roman answer to the empty tomb of Jesus and to the nascent Christian doctrine that proclaimed his resurrection. The history of this stele, however, is not simple and new research could shed new light on the find.

The inscription, in Greek, was purchased in Paris in 1878 by the German collector Wilhelm Froehner. When, on his death, the find went to the collection of the Département des Monnaies, Médailles et Antiques of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the only indication available was: "sent from Nazareth". This situation opens up many doubts. In the first place, it is not certain that the actual place of origin is that indicated.

Since the modern scientific excavation methods had not yet been introduced, the collecting market was flourishing and varied and there was no hesitation in inventing facts and places, if they could interest the buyer. Furthermore, the loss of the information acquired through the excavation does not allow to indicate a precise context. However, new glimmers could open the study conducted by an international team and published in the Journal of Archaeological Science. The scientists analyzed the carbon and oxygen isotopes of a sample of the plate. This technique, which allows us to accurately identify the area of ​​origin of the marble, indicated the area of ​​the Greek island of Kos.

The content of the text and the style in which the Greek letters were engraved suggests a date between the 1st century BC. and the first century. A.D. On this basis, scholars hypothesize that the stele refers to an event that took place in Kos in 30 BC. Upon the death of the hated local tyrant, Nikias, his tomb was violated and his body desecrated. This episode, and not the empty tomb of Jesus, could be the basis of the edict reported on the stele of Nazareth.

Agnese Picco
NP may 2020