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Joseph E. Zias was the Curator of Archaeology and Anthropology for the Israel Antiquities Authority from 1972 to 1997. Now retired, he is available for lectures and speaking tours throughout the world. Please contact the CenturyOne Foundation or Mr. Zias directly for more specific information.
Recently he has acted as film advisor and presenter for numerous documentaries on the subjects such as the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Historical Jesus. His most recent film projects include Traders of the Lost Scrolls BBC November 1997, The Jesus Papyrus BBC/Discovery Fall 1997, The Historical Jesus Australian Broadcasting System 1997, The Shroud of Turin CBS 1997, 12-hour documentary of the Historical Jesus French (ARTE) Television 1997, The Dead Sea Scrolls: 50 Years Later BBC 1997, Who Killed Jesus BBC 1997, Easter Sunday and The Historical Jesus Der Spiegel April 29, 1996, The Body In Question, BBC 1996. |   |
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HIGH IN THE HOLY LAND This is a historical and anthropological analysis of drugs in antiquity. It focuses on the use and history of drugs, both as a mendicant and for recreational use in the ancient Near East. It would include a demonstration of a popular "do it yourself" testing kit used by forensic specialists to determine traces of drugs on personal objects. This presentation would be suitable for fund raising in connection with substance abuse programs. HEALTH & HEALING IN ANTIQUITY This lecture is an overview of disease and man's attempts over several millennia to alleviate human suffering. This includes, dentistry, surgery, parasites and infectious disease as well. The lecture is geared to the public in that it can be presented before medical audiences in a very clinical scientific manner or can be presented before a general audience in a light and amusing style. This lecture can be presented as a series in two one-hour segments. ANCIENT MONASTERIES IN THE HOLY LAND This lecture is an overview of the monasteries of the Judean Desert and their role in preventing and containing infectious disease during the Early Christian period. This is geared primarily to a Christian audience as it puts early Christianity in a very positive light. CRUCIFIXION & THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS: An Anthropological Perspective The historical/anthropological and theological debates around this well known but poorly understood subject has made this one of the most requested lecture topics over the years. Along with this subject would be a few words on the famous Shroud of Turin, as well as an overview of our current research attempts to use DNA to help decipher the relationships between the thousands of ancient scroll fragments found at Qumran and the Judean Desert. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MEL GIBSON Despite the media hype surrounding the current film, which Gibson maintains is the most accurate portrayal of the last 12 hours of Jesus, the film is severely flawed. This lecture will attempt to highlight those specific areas and there are many, whereby the anthropological and historical evidence will show, that despite all the good intentions, crucifixion in ancient Syria-Palestine was markedly different from what is being shown to the public. What has been passed off as historically accurate will be shown to be the personal theology of the director and not history as we know it today. MESSAGES FROM THE OTHER WORLD or What Happens When You Mix Religion and Archaeology This lecture is a collection of vignettes involving true, yet bizarre and hilarious incidents which are part and parcel with being a biblical archaeologist in the Holy Land. Lay people with "dreams and visions" of where to dig and what to find, are a constant source of amusement to one in the profession. This lecture deals in a light-hearted, humorous way, with several of these dreams and visions. MASADA The story behind the myth of how human skeletal remains from the first century AD, found at Masada, were deemed (mistakenly) to be the last defenders of the heroic battle between the Roman forces and Jewish zealots.
JOSEPH E. ZIAS PO Box 37209 Jerusalem, Israel 91371 E-mail: joezias@yahoo.com Joe Zias' Web Site  Top of Page Back to the Article: Crucifixion In Antiquity - The EvidenceCenturyOne Foundation Main PageActivities of the Foundation | Making A Difference | Articles of Interest | Bookstore | Contact |