Scientists find ring with name of man who condemned Jesus

The discovery of the ring that could have belonged to the man who condemned Jesus to death raised a lot of speculation in the scientific community. Pontius Pilate was the Roman prefect of Judea between 26 and 36 AD. C who, according to the Bible, ordered the crucifixion of Jesus.

The ring was found in 1968-1969 during excavations carried out at Herodium, a palace built for King Herod (who lived from 74 to 4 BC). C), located about 5 km southeast of Bethlehem in the West Bank. Herod was a king of Judea whose reign was supported by Rome.

At the time the ring was discovered, archaeologists could not say that it had an inscription on it. After a few years, they used a technique known as reflectance transformation photography (RTI), where the inscription was developed and could be read.

RTI is a technique that photographs an object multiple times with a light source from different angles. These photographs are then analyzed using computer software.

The ring's design and its archaeological context mean it could have been created any time between the 1st century BC. C and mid-1st century AD. C, the research team reported in a paper published a few days ago in the Israel Exploration Journal.

Researchers believe it was used as an o-ring, a type of ring worn on a finger that can be pressed into a soft material – such as wax or clay – to create a seal that can be affixed to a document or object. Rings like these were often worn in the ancient world.

Who could have used it?

The name “Pilatus” is a rare name in the Roman world and previous archaeological research has shown that part of the Herodium was in use during the period when Pilatus was prefect of Judea. For these reasons, researchers cannot completely rule out the possibility that the ring was worn by the mayor. However, experts believe it is unlikely.

The problem is that someone with as high an office as a mayor would probably wear a much more elaborate ring, a made with gold or silver, plus an incised gemstone, instead of a simple metal ring, according to the researchers. Thin, simple metal rings, like the Herodium ring, were widely worn by soldiers, Herodian and Roman officials, and middle-income people of all trades and occupations. It was not commonly used by people of high status, such as the Roman Prefect.

Another problem is that, in addition to the inscription, the ring bears the image of a krater, a type of vessel used to mix water and wine. Kraters were frequently used in Jewish art some 2,000 years ago and would have been an unusual choice for a Roman prefect who was not Jewish.

“We find it implausible that a mayor would have used a single copper alloy personal o-ring, all in metal and with a Jewish emblem before and during the reign of Pontius Pilatus”, wrote the researchers.

While the person wearing this ring was most likely not Pontius Pilatus, it is possible that whoever wore it had a connection to the Roman prefect and decided to use his last name.

It could be someone in Pilatus' administration, a freed slave of Pilatus, or someone who was part of Pilatus's family, according to researchers. It is also possible, however, that the person who wore the ring had no connection with the famous Roman prefect and simply had the same last name.

The ring was found by Gideon Foerster, who is now a professor of archeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Team members who analyzed the ring included Shua Amorai-Stark, professor emeritus of art and aesthetics at Kaye College of Education. at Beer Sheva, as well as Malka Hershkovitz, Yakov Kalman, Rachel Chachy-Laureys, and Roi Porat, affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.