Category Archives: Fakes and Forgeries

National Geographic’s “Bible Hunters”: Some Observations

Posted on November 22, 2018 by

As Larry Hurtado mentioned on his blog a couple days ago, the cover story of the December 2018 issue of National Geographic magazine is on “Bible Hunters,” that is to say both nineteenth century figures like Constantine von Tischendorf and … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Fakes and Forgeries, First Century Mark, Oxyrhynchus Papyri, P.Ryl. 3.457, Van Kampen Collection | 2 Comments

An Old Quote from Frank Moore Cross on Unprovenanced Artifacts

Posted on October 30, 2018 by

I’ve just returned from a stimulating week at the University of Agder. I had loads of interesting conversations about a number of topics, many of them stemming from the Museum of the Bible’s admission that (at least) five of their … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Market, Dead Sea Scrolls, Fakes and Forgeries, Frank Moore Cross, Palaeography | 7 Comments

Fake Dead Sea Scrolls at the Museum of the Bible

Posted on October 23, 2018 by

It has been a truly fascinating day for me at the University of Agder. After spending Monday morning and afternoon listening to sharp and informative talks by Matthew Monger, Ingrid Breilid Gimse, Josephine Munch Rasmussen, and Årstein Justnes on the probability that many … Continue reading →

Posted in Dead Sea Scrolls, Fakes and Forgeries | 1 Comment

Visiting the University of Agder

Posted on October 17, 2018 by

I’m excited that next week I’ll be heading to the University of Agder in Norway to visit the research project, “The Lying Pen of Scribes: Manuscript Forgeries and Counterfeiting Scripture in the Twenty-First Century,” best known for its incisive investigations … Continue reading →

Posted in Fakes and Forgeries, Rylands Papyri | 2 Comments

“Ink & Blood” Back? (but with less ink?)

Posted on July 22, 2018 by

I’ve recently been doing some research on a few early Christian books that were on the antiquities market about a decade ago. There are a lot of interesting stories here. We’re all pretty familiar with the collection now known as … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Dealers and Collectors, Antiquities Market, Fakes and Forgeries, Oxyrhynchus Papyri | 11 Comments

Faces from Oxyrhynchus?

Posted on April 28, 2018 by

Earlier this year I had the pleasure of visiting the University of Edinburgh. In addition to chatting with a fascinating group of graduate students, I was able to squeeze in a quick trip to the National Museum of Scotland. While … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Market, British Museum, Fakes and Forgeries, Oxyrhynchus Sculpture, William Matthew Flinders Petrie | 4 Comments

Anton Fackelmann and Cartonnage

Posted on January 1, 2018 by

Since I began this blog midway through 2017 with a post about Anton Fackelmann and some of the papyri he allegedly removed from mummy cartonnage, I thought I might close out the old year and open up the new with … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Market, Anton Fackelmann, Book covers, Fakes and Forgeries, First Century Mark, Mummy cartonnage | 1 Comment