63 A.D. Inscription Refers to “Jesus.”

"First appearance in the archaeological record," say experts.

October 22, 2002  Washington, D. C. - The first and only appearance, so far, of the word “Jesus” inscribed in the archaeological record has been discovered by Andre Lemaire, a French expert in ancient inscriptions. Dated to A.D. 63, the words in Aramaic - the language that Christ and his followers used - are carved into a limestone burial box known as an ossuary: “James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus.” Lemaire says that ossuary burials - digging up a grave after a year to put the bones into a limestone box - were generally practiced between 20 B. C. and A. D. 70, exactly the time of the earliest Christian efforts in Jerusalem. According to Biblical scholars, the presence of all three famous names is extraordinary. Historic research to date have confirmed that only twenty men with the name “James” in Jerusalem in A.D. 63 would have had a father named Joseph and a brother named Jesus.