Engineering:Frankfurt silver inscription

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Short description: Oldest known evidence of Christianity north of the Alps

[ ⚑ ] 50°9′18.8″N 8°37′37.3″E / 50.155222°N 8.627028°E / 50.155222; 8.627028

The amulet with the Frankfurt silver inscription
Map of Roman fortifications (red) and civilian settlements (blue) in Nida. The inscription was found at a burial site on Heilmannstraße (yellow circle).
Map of Limes Germanicus, the system of fortifications representing the boundary of Roman control in Upper Germania

The Frankfurt silver inscription is an 18-line Latin engraving on a piece of silver foil, housed in a protective amulet dating to the mid-3rd century AD. Due to its reference to Jesus Christ, it represents the oldest known evidence of Christianity north of the Alps,[1] and from its explicit invocation of Saint Titus, it is the earliest evidence of the Christian practice and belief of the veneration and intercession of saints. The amulet was discovered in 2018 during archaeological excavations at a cemetery near the former Roman town of Nida, located in the northwestern suburbs of Frankfurt am Main.

The amulet was intended to ward off demons, and invokes Jesus and Saint Titus for protection. It contains the earliest known written use of the Trisagion. The amulet quotes lines from the Epistle to the Philippians in Latin translation.

Discovery

In her 1994 work about Nida, Ingeborg Huld-Zetsche (de) presented an overview of the multiple burial sites at Nida,[2] a Roman border town that was inhabited from the 1st until the late 3rd centuries CE.[3][4][5] The existence of a grave field near Heilmannstraße in Frankfurt's Praunheim district had been known since the 19th century, with a total of twelve burials excavated between 1893 and 2016.[5]

In 2017, an archaeological excavation at Heilmannstraße 10 revealed the presence of an entire cemetery.[6]

In 2018, during a second dig, more of the site was excavated, and a total of 127 burials were identified.[3][7] Among the burials was a man aged approximately 35 to 45.[8] Beneath his chin, archaeologists found a silver amulet capsule measuring 35 mm (1.4 in) in length and 9 mm (0.35 in) in width. Inside the capsule was a rolled, folded, and crumpled silver foil, 91 mm (3.6 in) long. Based on burial goods, including an incense burner and a mug made of baked clay, the burial was dated to between 230 and 270 CE.[9][7][8][lower-alpha 1] Isotopic analysis of the remains, aimed to determine the man's origins, have been underway, but the results of that analysis were still pending as of 2024.[3]

During restoration at the Frankfurt Archaeological Museum (de), the amulet and silver foil were separated. In 2019, X-ray imaging revealed the presence of an inscription on the inside of the silver foil. The thin, fragile foil could not be unrolled physically, so it was scanned via computed tomography by the Leibniz Center for Archaeology (de) and Goethe University Frankfurt. A 3D model of the foil was created,[3] enabling virtual unrolling.[11][8][12]

During a December 2024 press conference in Frankfurt am Main, the artifact and its inscription were publicly unveiled, after which the piece was added to the permanent collection of the Frankfurt Archaeological Museum.[13][7]

The inscription

[in nomi?]NE SANCTI TITĪ
AGIOS AGIOS AGIOS
[in] NOMINE IHS XP DEI F(ilii)
[...]
QVONIAM IHS XP OMNES{T} GENVA FLECTENT CAELESTES TERRESTRES ET INFERI ET OMNIS LINGVA CONFITEATVR

[In the name?] of St. Titus.
Holy, holy, holy!
In the name of Jesus Christ, Son of God!
[...]
That at the name of Jesus Christ every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue should confess

Lines 1–3, 13–18

The text on the silver foil invokes the name of the Christian God for protection.[14] The inscription refers to Jesus Christ multiple times and identifies him as the Son of God.[15]

It is mostly complete, except for a few gaps on the left margin that can be interpreted in different ways.[10] In the first three lines, the text invokes Saint Titus, followed by a Trisagion ("holy, holy, holy") and a reference to Jesus Christ, Son of God.[15] This is followed by several sentences that praise Jesus.[9] In the final six lines, it quotes Paul's Christ poem, Philippians 2:10–11, in an early Latin translation.[16]

The writing, a mixture of majuscule and minuscule cursives, can be dated to the 3rd century.[10]

Significance

The 3rd-century piece functioned as a magical protective amulet, meant to ward off demons and safeguard its wearer.[14] At that time, Christians were still subject to persecution within the Roman Empire.[12][lower-alpha 2]

Most other known early Christian amulets feature writing in Greek or Hebrew, but not Latin. Its sophisticated style indicates that the writer was an elaborate scribe.[9]

According to the archaeologist Markus Scholz (archaeologist) (de), what is unique about this inscription is that it exclusively features Christian content rather than polytheistic elements. Similar artifacts often invoke various deities, whereas this inscription completely lacks elements from Judaism or paganism.[15][18][9] It was only in the 5th century that amulets made of precious metal stopped commonly representing a variety of different faiths in parallel.[9] The only comparable artifact from an area east of the Rhine comes from a child's grave at the Roman bath ruins of Badenweiler, and that inscription invoked both the Christian-Jewish God and a Germanic spring deity.[19][9] The meaning of the artifact for the history of early Christianity remains a subject of further study.[15] For example, according to Scholz, it must now be examined whether the Latin version of Paul's letter to the Philippians is the oldest source for it to date.[10][lower-alpha 3]

According to the church historian Wolfram Kinzig (de) from the University of Bonn, the inscription is among the earliest attestations of the New Testament in Roman Germania.[16] It also marks the first known usage of the Trisagion anywhere in the Christian liturgy.[15]

Scholars believe the discovery necessitates rewriting the history of the spread of Christianity in northern Europe, pushing back its known history by 50 to 100 years.[21] While there is indirect evidence for Christian communities in Gaul and Upper Germania, like the persecution of Christians in Lugdunum (modern Lyon) in 177,[18][22][lower-alpha 4] the first reliable evidence of Christianity north of the Alps until now was a mention of Maternus, bishop of Cologne, who participated in the Synod of Rome in 313.[19][15][lower-alpha 5]

See also

  • Herculaneum scrolls, another set of inscriptions that were first read by virtually unrolling them
  • History of Christianity

Notes

  1. ↑ Some, like the Frankfurt Archaeological Museum, give a more narrow range of between 230 and 260 CE.[7] Archaeologist Markus Scholz has given a slightly wider range, between 220 and 270 CE.[10]
  2. ↑ The persecution of Christians began in the 1st century AD. It ended with the Edict of Toleration by Galerius in 311[17] and the Edict of Milan in 313.[10]
  3. ↑ A candidate for the earliest surviving copy of the Epistle to the Philippians is Papyrus 16, paleographically dated to the late 3rd century.[20]
  4. ↑ The persecution in Lyon is recorded in Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History, which was written in the early 4th century in Syria Palaestina.[23] There are two different accounts of this incident, and their authenticity is contested.[10]
  5. ↑ It may or may not be a coincidence that this took place shortly after the end of the Christian persecution.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Frankfurter Silberinschrift: Ältestes christliches Zeugnis nördlich der Alpen gefunden" (in de). 11 December 2024. https://www.presseportal.de/pm/151290/5928571. 
  2. ↑ Huld-Zetsche, Ingeborg (1994). "Nida: eine römische Stadt in Frankfurt am Main". Schriften des Limesmuseums Aalen 48: 24–25. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Laud, Anja (12 December 2024). "Sensationsfund in Frankfurt sorgt für Aufsehen bei Archäologen" (in de). Hessisch-Niedersächsische Allgemeine. https://www.hna.de/hessen/eine-sensation-archaeologen-machen-in-frankfurt-eine-entdeckung-das-aelteste-christliche-zeugnis-93466111.html. 
  4. ↑ "Frankfurt silver inscription" (in en). Archäologisches Museum Frankfurt. 2024. https://www.archaeologisches-museum-frankfurt.de/index.php/en/exhibitions/frankfurt-silver-inscription. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Hampel, Andrea; Skrypzak, Rolf (2024). "Ausgrabungen im Zentrum des römischen NIDA in Frankfurt am Main-Heddernheim". Denkmal Hessen (1): 24–33. https://journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/dkhe/article/download/104727/99823. Retrieved 16 December 2024. 
  6. ↑ Hampel, Andrea (2018). Udo Recker. ed. "Das Gräberfeld "Heilmannstraße" in Frankfurt a. M.-Praunheim". Hessen-Archäologie. Jahrbuch für Archäologie und Paläontologie in Hessen (Wiesbaden: Landesamt für Denkmalpfege Hessen) (2017): 132–135. ISBN 978-3-8062-3810-5. https://www.academia.edu/50301254. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Zusätzliche Informationen zur Frankfurter Silberinschrift" (in de). Archäologisches Museum Frankfurt. 2024. http://archaeologisches-museum-frankfurt.de/index.php/de/?view=article&id=1506:frankfurter-silberinschrift-antworten-auf-die-wichtigsten-fragen&catid=14:ausstellungen. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "Archäologischer Sensationsfund. "Der älteste Christ nördlich der Alpen war Frankfurter"" (in de). 11 December 2024. https://www.hessenschau.de/kultur/archaeologie-sensation-in-frankfurt-amulett-ist-aeltestes-christentum-zeugnis-noerdlich-der-alpen-v4,archaeologie-sensationsfund-frankfurt-100.html. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Altuntaş, Leman (13 December 2024). "'Frankfurt Silver Inscription' Archaeologists Unearth Oldest Christian Artifact North of the Alps" (in en). https://arkeonews.net/frankfurt-silver-inscription-archaeologists-unearth-oldest-christian-artifact-north-of-the-alps/. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 "Archäologe erklärt Fund des christlichen Schriftstücks in Frankfurt. Wie sensationell ist der Sensationsfund tatsächlich?" (in de). 16 December 2024. https://www.domradio.de/artikel/archaeologe-erklaert-fund-des-christlichen-schriftstuecks-frankfurt. 
  11. ↑ Pflughoeft, Aspen (12 December 2024). "Mysterious ancient amulet turns out to be oldest trace of Christianity north of Alps" (in en). The News Tribune. https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/nation-world/world/article296997439.html. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Archaeologists uncover earliest Christian inscription north of the Alps in Frankfurt". The Jerusalem Post. 12 December 2024. https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/archaeology-around-the-world/article-833093. 
  13. ↑ "Archäologen haben ältestes christliches Zeugnis nördlich der Alpen entdeckt" (in de). 11 December 2024. https://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/mensch/frankfurt-am-main-archaeologen-haben-aeltestes-christliches-zeugnis-noerdlich-der-alpen-entdeckt-a-45669f5d-d56e-4877-87b9-c08ca551e1e6. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Killgrove, Kristina (15 December 2024). "1,800-year-old silver amulet could rewrite history of Christianity in the early Roman Empire". https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/1-800-year-old-silver-amulet-could-rewrite-history-of-christianity-in-the-early-roman-empire. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 (in en) "Frankfurt silver inscription" – Oldest Christian testimony found north of the Alps, Goethe University Frankfurt, 12 December 2024, https://aktuelles.uni-frankfurt.de/en/english/frankfurt-silver-inscription-oldest-christian-testimony-found-north-of-the-alps/, retrieved 13 December 2024 
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "University of Bonn Researcher Involved in Sensational Find in Frankfurt" (in en). University of Bonn. 13 December 2024. https://www.uni-bonn.de/en/news/university-of-bonn-researcher-involved-in-sensational-find-in-frankfurt. 
  17. ↑ Gibbon, Edward (1781). The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. 2. pp. 576–577. https://www.ccel.org/ccel/g/gibbon/decline/cache/decline.pdf. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Radley, Dario (15 December 2024). "Silver amulet unearthed in Frankfurt grave Is the oldest evidence of Christianity north of the Alps". https://archaeologymag.com/2024/12/oldest-evidence-of-christianity-north-of-the-alps/. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Geschichte des Christentums neu schreiben?" (in de). 11 December 2024. https://www.evangelisch.de/inhalte/237124/11-12-2024/aufregender-fund-frankfurt-geschichte-des-christentums-neu-schreiben. 
  20. ↑ Comfort, Philip W.; Barrett, David P. (2001). The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts. Tyndale House Publishers. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-8423-5265-9. 
  21. ↑ Moeed, Abdul (13 December 2024). "Early Christian Inscription Found in Northern Europe Rewrites History" (in en). Greek Reporter. https://greekreporter.com/2024/12/13/early-christian-inscription-northern-europe-rewrite-history/. 
  22. ↑ Kastilan, Sonja (15 December 2024). ""Heilig, heilig, heilig"" (in de). https://www.welt.de/wissenschaft/article254844358/Archaeologie-Frankfurter-Silberamulett-birgt-fruehes-Glaubensbekenntnis-zum-Christentum.html. 
  23. ↑ Eusebius (n.d.). "The Letter of the Churchs of Vienna and Lyons to the Churches of Asia and Phrygia including the story of the Blessed Blandina". History of the Church. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/177-lyonsmartyrs.asp. 




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