Following a series of tests, the papyrus is said to be written in Coptic and contains a dialogue in which Jesus refers to "my wife."
Karen King, a professor at the Harvard Divinity School, writes in the Harvard Theological Review that the papyrus is almost certainly a product of ancient Christians and probably dates to eighth-century Egypt, based on carbon dating and chemical tests on the ink.
* An ancient fragment provided as proof by scholar and scientists that Jesus had a wife during his lifetime
According to Prof King and her team, none of the testing has produced any evidence that the fragment is a modern fabrication or forgery.
It was gathered that the fragment, which has some legible lines on the front and on the back, contains the words: "Jesus said to them, 'My wife …. She will also be my disciple."
James Yardley from Columbia University, and Alexis Hagadorn from Columbia University Libraries, used a technique called micro-Raman spectroscopy to determine that the carbon character of the ink matched samples of other papyri that date from the first to eighth centuries CE.
Malcolm Choat from Macquarie University examined the fragment at HDS and offered an independent assessment of the handwriting.
Prof King first announced the existence of the fragment in September 2012, at the International Coptic Congress in Rome, where she dubbed it "The Gospel of Jesus's Wife."
The use of the word "gospel" refers to the fragment's most distinctive claim that Jesus was married.
* Jesus loves carrying kids according to Bible teachings
Her announcement caused controversy among Christians and religious scholars, many of whom believe the document may be a forgery because of the poor grammar, shape of the handwriting and the ink's colour and quality.
The Vatican newspaper also released an editorial after the announcement declaring it a fake.
Karen King, a professor at the Harvard Divinity School, writes in the Harvard Theological Review that the papyrus is almost certainly a product of ancient Christians and probably dates to eighth-century Egypt, based on carbon dating and chemical tests on the ink.
* An ancient fragment provided as proof by scholar and scientists that Jesus had a wife during his lifetime
According to Prof King and her team, none of the testing has produced any evidence that the fragment is a modern fabrication or forgery.
It was gathered that the fragment, which has some legible lines on the front and on the back, contains the words: "Jesus said to them, 'My wife …. She will also be my disciple."
James Yardley from Columbia University, and Alexis Hagadorn from Columbia University Libraries, used a technique called micro-Raman spectroscopy to determine that the carbon character of the ink matched samples of other papyri that date from the first to eighth centuries CE.
Malcolm Choat from Macquarie University examined the fragment at HDS and offered an independent assessment of the handwriting.
Prof King first announced the existence of the fragment in September 2012, at the International Coptic Congress in Rome, where she dubbed it "The Gospel of Jesus's Wife."
The use of the word "gospel" refers to the fragment's most distinctive claim that Jesus was married.
* Jesus loves carrying kids according to Bible teachings
Her announcement caused controversy among Christians and religious scholars, many of whom believe the document may be a forgery because of the poor grammar, shape of the handwriting and the ink's colour and quality.
The Vatican newspaper also released an editorial after the announcement declaring it a fake.