TWO Roman nails dating back 2,000 years, found in the burial cave of the Jewish high priest who handed Jesus over to the Romans, may be linked to the crucifixion, an Israeli filmmaker has claimed.
The gnarled bits of iron, which measure around three inches (eight centimetres) each, were shown to reporters in Jerusalem on Tuesday at the premier of a television documentary series examining the question of whether they could have been the nails used to crucify Jesus.
The two nails were first found in Jerusalem 20 years ago when archaeologists uncovered a family tomb believed to be that of Caiaphas, the high priest who handed Jesus over to the Romans to be crucified.
One nail was found inside one of 12 limestone coffins found inside the cave, while the second was lying on the floor of the tomb.
'Two iron nails were found inside that tomb,' said Israeli documentary maker Mr Simcha Jacobovici, who presented the popular series called 'The Naked Archaeologist' which was broadcast on The History Channel. 'Somebody went to his grave with that nail among his bones and nobody reported it,' he added.
The length of the nails and the fact they were bent at one end were both consistent with the crucifixion of hands, he said.
Source: AFP [April 13, 2011]
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| Simcha Jacobovici shows the Roman nails which he believes may have been used in the crucifixion of Jesus [Credit: AFP] |
The two nails were first found in Jerusalem 20 years ago when archaeologists uncovered a family tomb believed to be that of Caiaphas, the high priest who handed Jesus over to the Romans to be crucified.
One nail was found inside one of 12 limestone coffins found inside the cave, while the second was lying on the floor of the tomb.
'Two iron nails were found inside that tomb,' said Israeli documentary maker Mr Simcha Jacobovici, who presented the popular series called 'The Naked Archaeologist' which was broadcast on The History Channel. 'Somebody went to his grave with that nail among his bones and nobody reported it,' he added.
The length of the nails and the fact they were bent at one end were both consistent with the crucifixion of hands, he said.
Source: AFP [April 13, 2011]
