A Seventh-day Adventist Church-sponsored museum is celebrating 20 years of brining Bible history to life through displays of artifacts and manuscripts relating to the story of Scripture.

The Museum of Biblical Archeology (MAB) of the Adventist University Center of São Paulo (Unasp) is located at the school’s Engenheiro Coelho campus, in the east of São Paulo state. Dr. Paulo Bork initially began the collection, and it currently has 2617 items. They are materials resulting from donations and acquisitions in the areas of archaeological artifacts, numismatics, rare works, manuscripts, paleontology and geology.

Historical collections

The archaeological collection covers a period of more than 4,500 years, from the so-called Bronze I (2,600 BC) until the 16th century AD, with specimens from Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, England, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Iraq and Israel. The numismatic collection includes Persian, Greek, Roman, medieval, Near Eastern and Middle Eastern examples. In the collection of rare works, there are Bibles and books of theology that are quite valuable for understanding the translation of the Scriptures and its forms of presentation over the years. The oldest Bible is dated 1528.

Archaeologist Dr. Rodrigo Silva and museum specialist Dr. Janaina Xavier curate the museum, which has support from the History department and collaborating professors from Unasp. MAB's physical facilities are located in a small long-term exhibition room next to the Unasp library.

Visits by researchers and school groups and churches occur frequently, which is why Unasp is raising funds for the construction of an adequate headquarters for the museum. The new building includes all the spaces, furniture, and equipment necessary for the smooth running of its activities. There will be an administrative office, long-term and temporary exhibition rooms, rooms for the educational sector, library, study space, auditorium, bathrooms, warehouse, pantry, reception and technical area with laboratory.

For this dream to come true, MAB approved the project under Brazil’s Rouanet Law, which allows private entrepreneurs to designate up to 4% of their income tax to be directed to the project. Through this tax incentive, Unasp hopes to find partner companies and raise the necessary funds for the construction of the museum.

Origins of Biblical Archeology

The interest in locating artifacts in the region of present-day Palestine that could relate to the Gospels arose with Queen Helena (225 - 330 AD), mother of Emperor Constantine. She ordered an expedition to Jerusalem in the hope of finding the cross of Christ. Since then, numerous caravans have been carried out in the following centuries by Christian pilgrims and antique dealers.

In the 19th century, entire cities of ancient Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Assyrian civilizations were unearthed in order to recover temples and objects to be displayed in Europe's great museums. The old inscriptions started to be deciphered. And they clarified many aspects about Israel and the biblical context. In the early 20th century, excavations in Palestine were intensified, with discoveries in Jericho, Samaria, Lachish, Mount Carmel, Beersheba, Gaza and En Gedi.

However, it was only after the Second World War that the so-called biblical archeology began to employ scientific methodologies, making the results achieved more accepted. Important archaeologists dedicated themselves to defending the historicity of the Bible, among them William Foxwell Albright (1891-1972) and Nelson Glueck (1900 - 1971).

Nowadays we have archaeologists Dr. Randall Price and Dr. William G. Dever who carry out investigations on the history of Israel and the Near East in biblical times.

In the Adventist context, the names of Dr. Lynn H. Wood (1887-1976), Dr. Siegfried H. Horn (1908-1993), Dr. Lloyd Willis, Dr. Michael G. Hasel, Dr. Oystein LaBianca, Dr Lawrence T. Geraty are all notable for their contributions to the field. In Brazil, we can add the research by Dr. Siegfried J. Schwantes (1915-2008) and, currently, by Dr. Rodrigo Silva, among others.

Another growing trend has been the creation of specific museums or collections of biblical archeology, especially in large American academic centers. We can count 83 museums in the USA that have artifacts from the biblical context and, among them, Adventist initiatives—the Siegfried H. Horn Museum (1970), at Andrews University and the Lynn H. Wood Archaeological Museum (2000), at Southern Adventist University .

Scientific research on Brazilian soil

Along these lines, the Biblical Archeology Museum has developed, on Brazilian soil, a bridge with scientific research. And, also, with the dissemination of this knowledge through publications, lectures and exhibitions. And more recently, the Postgraduate Program in Biblical Archeology of the Ancient Near East and the Mediterranean, which started in 2019, and which in 2021 will open its third class.

Businesses wishing to make their donations for the construction of the Biblical Archeology Museum can contact us by phone (19) 3858.9301. Academics interested in Postgraduate Studies in Biblical Archeology in the Ancient Near East and the Mediterranean can obtain information by calling (19) 3858.9006 or by visiting the website: https://www.unasp.br/cursos/ec/pos-graduacao/historia-e-arqueologia -do-ancient-oriente-proximo /

 This article was originally published on the South American Division’s Spanish site