We include this one as a lesson in reading the evidence honestly — because it is the opposite of a confirmation. A Jerusalem tomb held ossuaries inscribed with names including “Jesus son of Joseph,” “Maria” and “Yose,” and a 2007 documentary announced it as the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family. But those were among the most common names in first-century Jewish Jerusalem; the alleged “cross” is a mason's mark; and the symbol over the door is a standard Jewish motif, not a Christian one.
- What it is
- A first-century Jerusalem tomb of ten ossuaries bearing common Jewish names, promoted by a 2007 film as the family tomb of Jesus
- Date of artifact
- 1st century AD (tomb found 1980)
- Discovered
- East Talpiot, between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, 1980 (excavated by Yosef Gat and Amos Kloner)
- Where it is now
- Israel Antiquities Authority storage
- Related to
- A test of how NOT to read an archaeological find
- Scripture
- 1 Corinthians 15:4
What this find showsIt genuinely documents the ordinary Jewish practice of ossuary (bone-box) reburial in Jesus' era — and how common names like “Jesus son of Joseph” actually were.
What it does not proveIt does not identify anyone in the tomb with Jesus of Nazareth or his family; there is nothing Christian about it.
Contested: The “Jesus family tomb” claim is rejected by the near-unanimous consensus of archaeologists (Evans calls the symbol arguments “demonstrably false”). We list it to show that a sensational headline and a sober reading of the same find can point in opposite directions.
Sources & further reading