Four indicted on charges of running antiquities fraud ring

JERUSALEM -- Four Israeli antiquities collectors and dealers were indicted Wednesday on charges they ran a sophisticated forgery ring that spanned the globe and produced a treasure trove of fake Bible-era artifacts, including some that were hailed as major archaeological finds.

Police said the ring forged what were presented as perhaps the two biggest biblical discoveries in the Holy Land in recent years -- the purported burial box of Jesus' brother James and a stone tablet with written instructions by King Yoash on maintenance work at the ancient Jewish Temple.

Shuka Dorfman, head of the Israel Antiquities Authority, said the scope of the fraud appears to go far beyond what has been uncovered so far.

"We discovered only the tip of the iceberg. This spans the globe. It generated millions of dollars," Dorfman said. The forgers "were trying to change history."

Investigators warned that collectors and museums around the world could be in the possession of fakes, and scholars urged museums to re-examine items of suspicious origin. The forgery ring has been operating for more than 20 years, Dorfman said.

Scholars said the forgers were exploiting the deep emotional need of Jews and Christians to find physical evidence to reinforce their beliefs.

The indictments were announced at a joint news conference of the Antiquities Authority and the police, capping a two-year probe.

The forgers would often use authentic but relatively mundane artifacts, such as a plain burial box, decanter or shard, and boost their value enormously by adding inscriptions, Dorfman said. Then the forgers would try to recreate patina, or ancient grime, to cover the carvings, the indictment said.

The four men indicted were Tel Aviv collector Oded Golan, owner of the James ossuary and the Yoash tablet; Robert Deutsch, an inscriptions expert who teaches at Haifa University; collector Shlomo Cohen; and antiquities dealer Faiz al-Amaleh. The four are free on bail, police said.

Golan said in a statement Wednesday "there is not one grain of truth in the fantastic allegations related to me." He said the investigation was aimed at "destroying collecting and trade in antiquities in Israel."

Deutsch dismissed the indictment as "ridiculous."

Hershel Shanks, editor of the Washington-based Biblical Archaeology Review, said in a telephone interview: "Either this is going to be proven a horrific scandal or the greatest embarrassment to the Israel Antiquities Authority."

Shanks disclosed the existence of the James ossuary at a November 2002 news conference.

Additional indictments will be issued in coming days, said Shaul Naim, chief investigator of the Jerusalem police.

The probe began after the Yoash tablet was offered for sale to the Israel Museum for $4.5 million two years ago.

Uzi Dahari, a top official in the Israel Antiquities Authority, said in a recent lecture that some of the forgeries were done by an Egyptian artisan who has worked in Israel for the past 15 years. The Egyptian went out drinking in a Tel Aviv pub from time to time and would brag about his exploits. Some pub-goers alerted the police, Dahari said.

Naim said many more fakes are apparently in the possession of collectors and museums worldwide.

"We have reason to believe that many more forged antiquities which we haven't uncovered yet are being held by private collectors in Israel and abroad, and in museums in Israel and abroad."

Shimon Gibson, an Israeli archaeologist, said museums should review items of questionable origin.

"Now it looks like we are going to have to go backward and double-check all our facts to make sure that what we thought was real really is," he said.

Last week, the Israel Museum said one of its most prized possessions, an ivory pomegranate scholars long believed served as the tip of a scepter for Jewish Temple priests, was also a fake.

The indictment listed the pomegranate as one of the items forged by the ring, but no charges were brought in this case because the statute of limitations expired. The pomegranate was bought by the Israel Museum in the late 1980s from an anonymous collector for $550,000.

In a statement, the Israel Museum expressed support for efforts to "end such criminal activities," adding that its investigation of the authenticity of the pomegranate was its own.

Investigators visited foreign countries and confiscated some artifacts, police said, but would give no further details.