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Caiaphas Was a Real Guy and All

High priest of Jerusalem is featured, er, prominently in the Gospels

by
Marc Tracy
July 01, 2011
The ossuary.(WP/AP)
The ossuary.(WP/AP)

A recently authenticated 2,000-year-old ossuary—who took Latin and can tell us what goes in ossuaries?—likely proves the historical existence of Caiaphas, scientists say. In the New Testament, Caiaphas is the Jewish high priest of Jerusalem who plays a crucial role in the killing of Jesus. It apparently is the ossuary of Caiaphas’s granddaughter. Scientists conducting extensive laboratory tests are convinced it is not a forgery. The scientists also, however, found nothing dispositive of the fact that Mel Gibson is still a schmuck.

Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.