This mysterious 1,800-year-old silver amulet discovered in Germany could rewrite the history of Christianity in Europe

Scientists have deciphered the inscription on a mysterious 1800-year-old amulet. The 3.5 cm long silver symbol was found with a human skeleton at a burial site on the outskirts of Frankfurt, Germany.

The amulet contains the "Frankfurt silver inscription," an 18-line engraving on a thin piece of foil. According to experts, this text is the oldest known evidence of Christianity north of the Alps, dating from between 230 and 270 AD, which could rewrite the history of the known religion in Europe, DailyMail reports.

The research

Experts used computed tomography to "digitally unroll" the thin plate and read the inscription for the first time since the third century AD.

"The challenge in the analysis was that the silver sheet was rolled, but after around 1,800 years, it was of course also creased and pressed. Using CT, we were able to scan it at a very high resolution and create a 3D model," said Ivan Calandra, an archaeologist at the Leibniz Center for Archaeology (LEIZA).

The silver amulet was taken from the grave of a man who was also buried along with an incense bowl and a jug of fired clay. According to the researchers, the jewelry was located under the man's chin, and experts believe that he once wore it on a string around his neck to protect himself in the afterlife.

Most importantly, the man's tomb was dated to the period between 230 and 270 AD, a time when Christianity was a cult that was constantly expanding but still subject to persecution. At that time, the dominant religions were Judaism and paganism.

The study of the 18 lines of text was led by an archaeologist from Goethe University in Frankfurt, Professor Markus Scholz.

According to the experts, the plate-thin silver foil was too fragile to simply roll up because of the long time it had been in the ground. Therefore, the team of experts used an X-ray imaging procedure called computed tomography at LEIZA.

The researchers actually placed the individual scan segments together until the words became visible. Although there are still gaps in the text, scientists say.

Important data

In addition to the fact that the owner of the amulet was definitely a devout Christian, it is unusual that the inscription is entirely in Latin. "Such inscriptions in amulets were usually written in Greek or Hebrew," said Professor Scholz.

Furthermore, up until the 5th century, precious metal amulets of this type always contained a mixture of different beliefs, such as Judaism or pagan influences. But experts describe this amulet as "purely Christian" because it has no pagan references such as demons or elements of Judaism.

The Latin text mentions the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as well as St. Titus, an early Christian missionary and church leader.

Scholars are surprised by the place where the amulet was found and its age, as well as by the man who considered his Christian faith so important that he took it to his grave. Such early authentic evidence (between 230 and 270 AD) of pure Christianity north of the Alps has never existed before.

Experts consider this believer "the first Christian north of the Alps."

Frankfurt Mayor Mike Josef called the inscription a "scientific sensation". "It will force us to turn back the history of Christianity in Frankfurt and far beyond by around 50 to 100 years. The first Christian find north of the Alps comes from our city – we can be proud of that, especially now, so close to Christmas," the mayor said.

"This extraordinary find affects many areas of research and will keep science busy for a long time to come. This affects archaeology as well as religious studies, philology and anthropology. Such a significant find here in Frankfurt is really something extraordinary," said Ina Hartwig, head of the Frankfurt Department of Culture and Science.

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