Reconsidering the Redating of Five Jewish Documents in the 1990s: Updated Radiocarbon Dating Programs, Coins and Contracts from the Bar Kokhba Era

In the late 1990s five papyrus economic contracts that were found in the caves of Wadi Murabba‘ât and had been dated by paleography to the Second Jewish Revolt (c. 132-136 CE) were redated to the First Jewish Revolt (c. 66-73 CE) on different grounds. The documents are: P.Mur 22, 23, 25, 29, 30, three of which, P.Mur 22, 29 and 30, were radiocarbon dated in the early and mid-1990s. In addition, P.Mur 19, known as the ‘Masada divorce bill’, was also redated to the First Revolt by Yigael Yadin based on his new interpretation of the document’s dating formula. However, considering advances in the latest scientific technology, using updated calibrations of existing radiocarbon data, and traditional historical methodology, this follow-up study now questions the redating of five of the six documents some 30 years ago. The traditional historical method involved comparing political dating formulas on the redated contracts with slogans on coinage from the First and Second Revolts. Our findings suggest that five of the redated contracts should be considered for dating back again to the second century due to their strong textual connections with the coins of the Second Revolt, and that the accuracy of the earlier scientific evidence should be reassessed. The redating of P.Mur 19 is not unequivocal; therefore, the date of this contract should remain open for the possibility that a more secure result might be possible in the future.