SCROLL DECEPTION [FT393:12]
Washington DC’s Museum of the Bible, found to have unwittingly purchased 16 fake fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls, is again in the spotlight following the arrest of an Oxford University associate professor of papyrology and Greek literature. Dr Dirk Obbink is suspected of involvement in the theft of ancient papyri bearing fragments of biblical scripture. The papyri are part of the Oxyrhynchus Collection housed at Oxford’s Sackler Gallery and owned by the Egypt Exploration Society (EES). But 16 pieces had somehow ended up in a collection belonging to the Museum of the Bible, founded in 2017 by a family of billionaire American evangelical Christians who own a chain of crafting stores.
Dr Obbink, who denies any wrongdoing, was suspended from duties at Oxford in October 2019 following an investigation into the disappearance of materials from the Oxyrhynchus collection. Thames Valley police were notified of the alleged theft on 12 November and arrested Dr Obbink in March 2020. He has been released pending further enquiries.
The EES alleges the materials were removed from Oxford University premises and sold to the Museum of the Bible, but EES director Dr Carl Graves confirmed that the Museum of the Bible have been cooperative, returning the missing fragments. “These are early fragments of the Gospels or biblical fragments,” he said. “They are testament to Egypt’s early Christian heritage and are early evidence of biblical scripture. We don’t value them monetarily but they are priceless and irreplaceable.” Some of the fragments contain only one or two words, and Graves said it had taken decades of work to piece them together. They contain extracts from Genesis, Exodus and Deuteronomy, among others.
In a statement, Dr Obbink described as “entirely false” any allegations that he had stolen or sold the papyri fragments, claiming “there are documents being used against me which I believe have been fabricated in a malicious attempt to harm my reputation and career”. theguardian.com, 16 Apr 2020.