Bible
The Bible That Stopped a Bullet
In 1863, a New Testament tucked in the pocket of Union soldier Charles W. Merrill prevented a musket ball from mortally wounding him
Henry VIII’s Book of Psalms Reflects His Quest for Legitimacy—and His Fear of Death
Handwritten annotations in the Tudor king's psalter show how he looked to scripture to justify his break from Rome and the annulment of his first marriage
World's Oldest Near-Complete Hebrew Bible Goes to Auction
The Codex Sassoon could break auction records, becoming the most valuable historical document ever sold
How an Unorthodox Scholar Uses Technology to Expose Biblical Forgeries
Deciphering ancient texts with modern tools, Michael Langlois challenges what we know about the Dead Sea Scrolls
What Nativity Scenes Tell Us About the Evolution of Christianity
From ancient mosaics to Saint Francis of Assisi, depictions of Jesus's birth reflect the changing conventions of the world's largest religion
Is Judaism a Younger Religion Than Previously Thought?
A new book by an Israeli archaeologist makes the stunning claim that common Jewish practices emerged only a century or so before Jesus
Museum of the Bible Returns Centuries-Old Gospel Manuscript to Greece
The artifact had been stolen from a monastery during World War I
Did Archaeologists Find Saint Peter's Birthplace?
An inscription uncovered at the site of an ancient church offers new evidence
Earliest Known Images of Two Biblical Heroines Unearthed in Israel
Found in an ancient synagogue, the 1,600-year-old mosaics tell the stories of Deborah and Jael
The Sects That Rejected Sex in 19th-Century America
Why three religious groups traded monogamy for celibacy, polygamy and "complex marriage"
An Archaeological Dig Reignites the Debate Over the Old Testament's Historical Accuracy
Beneath a desert in Israel, a scholar and his team are unearthing astonishing new evidence of an advanced society in the time of the biblical Solomon
The Secret Excavation of Jerusalem
A British aristocrat looking for the Ark of the Covenant launched history's most peculiar archaeological dig—and set off a crisis in the Middle East
Did Peter Paul Rubens Really Paint 'Samson and Delilah'?
A.I. analysis renews doubts over the authenticity of a star painting in the London National Gallery's collection
Ancient City's Destruction by Exploding Space Rock May Have Inspired Biblical Story of Sodom
Around 1650 B.C.E., the Bronze Age city of Tall el-Hammam was wiped out by a blast 1,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb used at Hiroshima
Researchers Find Physical Evidence of Earthquake Described in Old Testament
Excavations in Jerusalem revealed damage dating to the eighth century B.C.E., when the natural disaster reportedly took place
This 3,100-Year-Old Inscription May Be Linked to a Biblical Judge
A pottery fragment found in Israel bears the name Jerubbaal—a nickname for Gideon ben Yoash, who appears in the Book of Judges
Enormous Roman Basilica Dated to King Herod's Reign Revealed in Israel
At its height, the public building boasted opulent marble columns and sculptures
This Grotesquely Shaped Lamp Brought Luck to Jerusalem's Ancient Residents
The 2,000-year-old artifact, which resembles a face cut in half, was buried in the foundations of a Roman building
How A.I. Is Helping Scholars Unlock the Secrets of the Dead Sea Scrolls
A new handwriting analysis suggests that two scribes collaborated on a key ancient manuscript
Dozens of Dead Sea Scroll Fragments Found in Israeli Cave
The pieces of parchments are the first of their kind discovered during archaeological excavations in 60 years
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