JAMES TABOR'S NEW BOOK, The Jesus Dynasty is reviewed in the Toronto Star and Tabor himself is interviewed:

Jesus' hidden history
Scholar James Tabor presents a bold reconstruction of the life and times of the Christian Messiah
With archaeological evidence and a careful reading of the gospels, he pieces together a compelling story

The most interesting bit is here:

The unveiling of an ossuary, or burial box, in late 2002 with the inscription, "James son of Joseph brother of Jesus," helped spread the word that Jesus had a brother, Tabor says, but the ensuing controversy over the limestone box's authenticity soon shut down any discussion about the brothers' importance.

For the record, Tabor believes the ossuary is authentic, and would like more tests done to help settle the matter.

[...]

There has been some backtracking by scientists involved with the IAA testing, while the ROM and other specialists have continued to stand by their original pronouncements of its authenticity, Tabor points out.

And while the origins of the James Ossuary have never been verified, Tabor is intrigued by the idea that it came from the Talpiot Tomb just outside the Old City of Jerusalem, where several other ossuaries were also discovered in 1980.

When news of the tomb broke in 1996, it was hailed as the "Jesus family tomb" thanks to the collection of names inside: two Marys, a Joseph, a Jude, a Matthew and a "Jesus son of Joseph."

Tabor would like to have DNA tests done both on these ossuaries and the James Ossuary to see if the bodies placed inside them were related. Requests to Israeli authorities for such testing have been turned down, however.

But that has not stopped Tabor from imagining the possibilities. DNA tests would show who among those buried were the parents and who were the children, he says, and whether the James and the Jesus listed in ossuary inscriptions were brothers.

"It would give you some real strong circumstantial evidence that it is real," Tabor says of the James Ossuary.

From there, the unique combination of names would be enough to convince Tabor that the Talpiot Tomb was the Jesus family burial ground, complete with Jesus' own remains — something he admits would be difficult to accept for those who believe Jesus was resurrected three days after his crucifixion.

"It would be earthshaking," he says.

"I hope I live to see it."

Well, I'm skeptical. All of those names were extremely common at that time and place. Still, it would be interesting to see the DNA tests done, if there's any DNA left in the skeletons after this many centuries. Can any paleo-osteologists out there tell me if that's likely?

UPDATE: Tabor responds to the article here.