The oldest inscription proclaiming Jesus as God – considered “the greatest discovery since the Dead Sea Scrolls” – was discovered under the floor of an Israeli prison and is now on display in a museum in America.
The 1,800-year-old mosaic discovered by a foodie of Megiddo prisonbears the ancient Greek writing: “The theophile Akeptou offered the table to God Jesus Christ as a memorial”.
The mosaic of 53.98 sq.m. decorated the world’s first prayer hall in 230 AD.confirming that Christians believed that Jesus was the son of God from the beginning.
The Mosaic of Megiddoincludes some of the earliest depictions of fish, which, according to experts, refer to the story of Luke 9:16, when Christ multiplied the fish to feed a crowd of 5,000 people (“The Miracle of the Feast of the Five Thousand”).
The floor has been hidden under the prison since it was discovered in 2005, but is now on loan to a museum in Washington, DC, until July 2025.
Carlos Campo, CEO of the museum, hailed the mosaic as “the greatest discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls”, while his colleagues noted that it was “the most important archaeological discovery for the understanding of the early Christian church”.
“We’re really one of the first people ever to see this, to experience what almost 2,000 years ago was put together by a man named Brutius, the incredible craftsman who laid the floor here,” Campo said at the exhibit’s opening.
The expression “‘God, Jesus Christ'”
Alegre Savariego, curator of the exhibition, said: “The mosaic provides radical evidence for the practices and beliefs of early Christians, including the archaeological case of the expression: ‘God, Jesus Christ’.
The Megiddo Mosaic was discovered in the Jezreel Valley, where it is believed that Christians fought the final battle of Armageddon, as described in the Book of Revelation. The excavation is being carried out by archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), which lasted five years and revealed the 53.98 sq m mosaic floor.
What the inscriptions of the impressive mosaic reveal
The mosaic mentioned the name of the Roman official who made the commission, during the Roman conquest of Judea. Studies suggest that the Romans may have coexisted with the Christians – despite the well-known stories of skirmishes and massacres of the time.
An inscription on the mosaic read: “Gaianos, a Roman official, pursuing his honor, created the mosaic at his own expense.” The team discovered a Roman camp near the site, lending more support to the theory that the two populations were at peace.
The prayer hall, the church, was probably abandoned and covered up, due to the transfer of the Roman Empire’s Sixth Legion to Transjordan – the area east of the Jordan River.
The role of the 5 women mentioned in the inscriptions
The mosaic contained the names of five women, highlighting their important role in the church.
Apart from Akeptou, who is mentioned because of her donation of a bank in the prayer room, the mosaic inscription also says “In memory of Primila, Kyriaki and Dorothea and finally, Christi”.
Bobby Duke, director of the Academic Department at the Museum of the Bible, said: “It is undoubtedly one of the most important archaeological excavations for the understanding of the early Christian church.”
«For example, the mosaic highlights the decisive role of women in the early liturgy of the church, through the naming of five women”, continues.
«Indeed, the mosaic offers a wealth of new data for church historians, as the Dead Sea Scrolls did for biblical scholars.”
The IAA stated that there is no other evidence to explain the reason for the reference of these women, but it is something very unusual, since they did not expect God to remember people.
“While they were of great importance to the community, the inscription does not indicate whether they were patrons of the community (like Akeptou), or martyrs, or some other honored person.” explained representatives of the Museum of the Bible.
After the great archaeological discovery, the IAA’s conservation department cleaned and stabilized the mosaic, reassembled it and relaid the loose mosaics, while filling the gaps with mortar.
The transfer of the artwork for the exhibition: “The Mosaic of Megiddo”
The IAA had to separate the floor, placing its parts on 11 pallets that were shipped to the US earlier in 2024, for the exhibition entitled: “The Mosaic of Megiddo: The Foundations of Faith” (“The Megiddo Mosaic: Foundations of Faith»).
“It was impossible to lift the entire floor”, Duke noted.
«Very skillfully, they cut away various sections of the mosaic, in order not to damage the artwork at all. Sono they had all the departments the same size».
“Each of the pallets that went into this gallery weighed 1,000 kilograms.” The Megiddo mosaic will return to Israel after the exhibition is completed and will be put on permanent display at the exact spot where it was discovered. The inmates of Megiddo will be transferred to another prison once the mosaic is returned.
The year the mosaic was moved to the Museum of the Bible, the IAA came under fire for allowing such an important piece of Christian history to be displayed in another museum.
Since opening its doors in 2017, the museum has been forced to return thousands of artifacts, including the Mesopotamian inscription, along with hundreds of clay papyri looted from Iraq. He was also forced to admit that many of the fragments from the Dead Sea Scrolls that were on display in the collection were modern forgeries.
«While some of the museum’s founders and actions are questionable in nature, the museum clearly has an ideological agenda, not puritanical, but very helpful in this particular case.” explains Professor Aren Maeir, an archaeologist at Bar-Ilan University, in an interview with Haaretz.com. “As long as we follow the letter of the law, there is no problem.”
Source: www.enikos.gr
