Just so everyone is made aware, Dr. James Tabor just sent me the following note in the comments:
All the photos that Chris and our other consultants have been using are being posted on thejesusdiscovery.org web site just as soon as possible. They show the inscription from all angles, lighting, and various distances so I hope this will help resolve the matter of the disputed iota/zeta or the iota that Chris thinks is an epsilon. I remain convinced that our initial reading of the letters stands. I look forward to hearing from others.
Stay tuned …
b”h
Re: the “Jonah” ossuary
I am curious about the rectangular object inscribed next to the “fish” / “amphora.”
Has this been identified?
I am no archaeologist of any kind and I have just stumbled onto this site. The first thought that came to me upon looking at the photo of the “Jonah” ossuary was that the “fish/amphora” is actually a wide-mouthed temple vessel for catching and throwing sacrificial blood. These vessels were constructed so that they could not be set down and had to be held and agitated to keep blood from coagulating. The blood was dashed on the corners of the altar, which might be what the rectangle represents. That would probably signify that the ossuary was of a cohen. But there may be a myriad of reasons of which I’m unaware that negate my conjecture. Again, has a solution has been proposed for the rectangular object?
Best.
haven’t seen any speculation on that.
b”h
Here are a modern reconstructions of vessels by the Temple Institute after thorough study of Jewish sources.
“Mizrakim”
http://www.templeinstitute.org/vessel_images/mizrak.jpg
http://www.templeinstitute.org/vessel_images/large_mizrak.jpg
Meal offering vessel (possibly the “half-fish” image of the ossuary)
http://www.templeinstitute.org/vessel_images/copper_vessel.jpg
These vessels of course are modern interpretations of texts, so there may be differences between these renderings and what was used in the first century, as suggested by the reconstructed Menorah, with caphtor and perach grouped together, in contrast to the Titus Arch rendering where they are spaced around the arms.
http://www.templeinstitute.org/vessel_images/menorah.jpg
Best