Ancient trial uncovered: Roman-era papyrus reveals legal drama

In 2014, Hannah Cotton Paltiel of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, a researcher from the Israel Antiquities Authority, discovered the longest Greek papyrus to date. The document, previously thought to be written in the Nabataean language, was revealed to be a Greek text outlining a court case from the period of Roman occupation. Together with her team, she translated it, showing that it contains prosecution notes from a legal case from the 2nd century CE, dating back to early Roman times.

The papyrus includes notes that might have been used by the prosecutor during the trial before Roman officials under the rule of Emperor Hadrian. The trial concerned two individuals, Gadalias and Saulos, who falsified documents related to slave trading to avoid paying taxes.

Forgery and tax evasion were severely punished under Roman law, which could result in hard labour or even the death penalty. The document also includes trial notes and the prosecutor's strategy, though missing fragments make it difficult to comprehend the case fully.

The papyrus provides evidence that at least one of the mentioned Jewish families owned slaves. However, it is unclear whether those slaves were also Jewish. The trial might have been interrupted by the Bar Kokhba revolt, a Jewish uprising against the Roman Empire between 132 and 135 CE, which likely led to the document being discarded in the caves of the Judean Desert.

According to the Live Science portal, this discovery is one of the best-documented legal cases from Judea, aside from the trial of Jesus. Research on the papyrus was conducted by Hannah Cotton from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the results were published in the journal "Tyche".