Does an Ancient Ring Found in a Shipwreck Depict Jesus Christ?
In December, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced the subaquatic discovery of a Roman-era gold ring bearing the image of a shepherd boy. The gold and blue-green gemstone ring was one of a few artifacts found in the excavations of two shipwrecks off the coast of Israel near the ancient port of Caesarea. The ring is significant, the IAA says, because the image was used by Christians to symbolize Jesus. But did the ring belong to a Christian at all? And if it did, what does that mean?
The IAA states that the ring was part of a cache of treasures scattered on the seabed near the hulls of the two shipwrecked vessels. Though their remains were discovered close to one another, the two wrecks were separated by roughly a thousand years. The construction of a breakwater at Caesarea in the first century A.D. created short-terms gains but the deficiencies in the engineering led to the harbor silting up and caused numerous shipwrecks over the ensuing centuries. Jacob Sharvit, of the IAA’s marine archeology unit, said the “The ships were probably anchored nearby [to the port of Caesarea] and were wrecked by a storm.” Among the wreckage archeologists also uncovered hundreds of bronze and silver coins from the third century, Roman figurines, bronze bells, another ring containing a carved red gemstone, and a large horde of 14th century coins.
The most widely publicized item in the find, however, was the “Good Shepherd” ring named because in the New Testament Jesus describes himself in this way (John 10:11-18). To the IAA, the proximity to Caesarea is key; Sharvit noted that Caesarea was home to an early community of Jesus followers and was the location where Peter baptized the Roman centurion Cornelius. “From here,” Sharvit said, “the Christian religion began to be disseminated across the world.”