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The Pilate Stone is the name given to a damaged block (82 cm x 65 cm) of carved limestone with a partially intact inscription attributed to, and mentioning, Pontius Pilate, a prefect of the Roman province of Judaea from AD 26–36. It was discovered at the archaeological site of Caesarea Maritima in 1961. The artifact is particularly significant because it is the only widely accepted archaeological find, to date, of an authentic 1st-century Roman inscription mentioning the name "Pontius Pilatus". It is contemporary to Pilate's lifetime, and accords with what is known of his reported career.〔''Archaeology and the Galilean Jesus: a re-examination of the evidence'' by Jonathan L. Reed 2002 ISBN 1563383942 page 18〕〔''Studying the historical Jesus: evaluations of the state of current research'' by Bruce Chilton, Craig A. Evans 1998 ISBN 9004111425 page 465〕 In effect, the writing constitutes the earliest surviving record and only contemporaneous evidence for the historical existence of this person; otherwise known only from the New Testament and brief mentions in retrospective Roman histories, which have themselves survived only in still-later copies. It is likely that Pontius Pilate made his base at Caesarea Maritima, a city that had replaced Jerusalem since AD 6 as the administrative capital and military headquarters of the province,〔''A History of the Jewish People'', H.H. Ben-Sasson editor, 1976, page 247: "When Judea was converted into a Roman province (6 CE, page 246 ), the Romans moved the governmental residence and military headquarters from Jerusalem to Caesarea. The centre of government was thus removed from Jerusalem, and the administration became increasingly based on inhabitants of the Hellenistic cities (Sebaste, Caesarea and others).〕 and the site where the stone was discovered. Pilate probably travelled to Jerusalem, the central city of the province's Jewish population, only as often as necessary.〔''Historical Dictionary of Jesus'' by Daniel J. Harrington 2010 ISBN 0810876671 page 32〕 The ''Pilate Stone'' is currently located at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.〔Jerry Vardaman, ''A New Inscription Which Mentions Pilate as 'Prefect' '', ''Journal of Biblical Literature'' Vol. 81, 1962. pp 70–71.〕〔Craig A. Evans, ''Jesus and the ossuaries'', Volume 44, Baylor University Press, 2003. pp 45–47〕 Replica castings can be found at the Archaeological Museum in Milan, Italy, and on display in Caesarea Maritima itself. ==Inscription== On the partially damaged block is a dedication to the deified Augustus and Livia ("the Divine Augusti"), the stepfather and mother of emperor Tiberius, originally placed within a ''Tiberieum'', probably a temple dedicated to Tiberius. It has been deemed authentic because it was discovered in the coastal town of Caesarea, which was the capital of Iudaea Province〔 during the time Pontius Pilate was Roman governor. The partial inscription reads (conjectural letters in brackets):〔 :(AUGUSTI'' )S TIBERIÉUM :()NTIUS PILATUS :()ECTUS IUDA()E :(D'' )E() The translation from Latin to English for the inscription reads: :''To the Divine Augusti () Tiberieum'' :''...Pontius Pilate'' :''...prefect of Judea'' :''...has dedicated ()'' 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Pilate Stone」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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