A ceramic bowl discovered off the coast of Egypt may contain the world's first reference to Christ.I'm not sure why this story has resurfaced, but this Mail article from a few days ago has generated some interest in the media (here, here, here, here, and MSN reprint here).The so-called 'Jesus Cup' was unearthed in 2008 by a team led by French marine archaeologist Franck Goddio during an excavation of Alexandria's ancient great harbor.
Remarkably well preserved, the bowl is missing only a handle and bears a Greek inscription: DIA CHRSTOU O GOISTAIS, translated as 'Through Christ the chanter.'
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As indicated, the story is from 2008 and PaleoJudaica and others covered it then. Details at the link.
Briefly, it's an interesting artfact, but it is not at all clear what it is about. The word translated "Christ" is an odd spelling and could have other meanings. The word goistas, if that's what it is, is not a known Greek word as far as I can tell. It bears some resemblance to Greek goēs ("sorcerer" or "enchanter") or goētēs ("wailer"), but the resemblance is not very strong and the word could mean other things.
The Mail article gives a range of possible interpretations. See also my link above for more discussion.
Also, Roy D. Kotansky has published an article that critiques the "Christ the Magician" intepretation and offers another one. It is posted on his Academia.edu page:
The So-Called "Christ" Magician's Cup Roy D . KotanskyKotansky is an expert in such matters and he would have good judgment. Beyond that, it's always a good idea to go with Frank Moore Cross's epigraphic principle, "The more banal interpretation is to be preferred." (Should we call that Cross's Razor?)
2021, Early Christianity
https://doi.org/10.1628/EC-2021-0017Abstract
A ceramic cup recovered in 2006 during maritime explorations of Alexandria is thought to record a reference to Christ as a "sorcerer". Dated to ca. the 1st cent. BCE / 1st cent CE, a modestly restored version of the text more likely preserves a gnomic phrase, "By a creditor is the complainer!" Or, "By a usurer (comes) the grumbler!" -- a reading that has nothing to do with magic. Analogies with ancient "drinking songs" (skolia) are examined that often promote such sayings. Other examples, introduced in passing, include the famed Nestor's Cup inscription, which may also be proverbial, and a mimic composition finely etched on a painted glass beaker (also possibly from Alexandria) that preserves fragments of a scene, with text. Plausible lyric features of the gnomic cup are also examined.
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