"Biblical Artifacts" Declared Forgeries by Israeli Authorities In 2002, the news that an ancient ossuary might be associated with James, the brother of Jesus of Nazareth, created great excitement in the world of biblical archaeology. The ossuary, or burial box, was purported to have an Aramaic inscription reading “Ya’akov, son of Yossef, brother of Yeshua,” further translated as “James, son of Joseph, son of Jesus” (see AR 3,3:12). The limestone ossuary was in the possession of Oded Golan, a well known Israeli collecter of antiquities. In late December 2004, Israeli police indicted him along with three other antiquities dealers on charges of running a forgery ring for over 20 years. In addition to forgery, charges included causing damage to antiquities, and receiving fraudulent goods.
Other spectacular pieces now revealed as forgeries include:
• An ivory pomegranate, once thought to be the top of a temple priest’s scepter. Unitil recently on display in the Israel Museum, the pomegranate was believed to be the only known relic from Solomon’s temple.
• A stone seal purportedly belonging to Menashe (also known as Manasseh), king of Judah ca. 687-642 BC. It is reported to have been offered to a private collector for $1 million. Reference to Menashe’s rule and to his captivity in Babylonia can be found in II Chronicles 33:11-13. His reign was noted for a toleration of foreign gods
• A decorated stone menorah said to belong to the temple High Priest. This also was offered to private collectors for a large sum of money.
• The Yoash (or Jehoash) Inscription. The sandstone tablet, if it had been authentic, would have been of immeasurable historical value. It supposedly contained instructions in ancient Hebrew for repairing the First Temple in Jerusalem during the reign of Yehoash, son of Akhazyah, King of Judah (836-798 BC). Based on linguistic analysis, the inscription, however, was considered to be a forgery by most scholars almost from the start.
• Fragments of clay vessels with inscriptions that show a connection to biblical sites including the biblical temples.
• A quartz bowl with an Egyptian inscription describing the destruction of Megiddo by Egyptian armies.
[haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/520771.html, 29 Dec. 2004;
http://www.orientalisi.net/ lehmann.htm, 5 Mar. 2004; Lewitt, I. (Ed.) 1995. The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. New York, Vendome Press. Freedman, D. 2004. “Don’t Rush to Judgment.” Biblical Archaeology Review 30:49-51.]
http://www.athenapub.com/archnew2.htm