In 2002, an ancient limestone box called the James Ossuary was trumpeted on the world's front pages as the first material evidence of the existence of Jesus Christ. Today it is exhibit number one in a forgery trial involving millions of dollars worth of high-end, Biblical era relics, some of which literally re-wrote Near Eastern history and which could lead to the incarceration of some very wealthy men and embarrass major international institutions, including the British Museum and Sotheby's.
Set in Israel, with its 30,000 archaeological digs crammed with biblical-era artifacts, and full of colorful characters—scholars, evangelicals, detectives, and millionaire collectors—Unholy Business tells the incredibly story of what the Israeli authorities have called "the fraud of the century." It takes readers into the murky world of Holy Land relic dealing, from the back alleys of Jerusalem's Old City to New York's Fifth Avenue, and reveals biblical archaeology as it is pulled apart by religious believers on one side and scientists on the other.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Hard to get through
This book has some very interesting info about a recent spate of Biblical forgeries from the Holy Land and general information about the antiguities trade in the region. While the subject is to me very ... Read More
Rating: - Digging for facts in a reporters notebook
While you think an archeologist or a religious historian should have written this book, it wasn't. Burleigh who is a reporter wrote it. And the book reads like a compilation of her notes. The author also ... Read More
Rating: - Dry at Times, But Still Educational
Unholy Business is about archaeological dig sites in Jerusalem, people selling fake artifacts, and discusses the James Ossuary (the recently popular discovery of a tomb that supposedly had the lineage of ... Read More
Rating: - Simple Crime, Complex Background
Unholy Business is the story of a simple fraud that unfortunately takes place in so complex a milieu that no book-length treatment can adequately prepare a reader to make the kinds of judgments invited by ... Read More
Rating: - Good reporting; interesting reading
Burleigh's 'Unholy Business' plays to her writing strengths and background as a journalist. Unlike her last book ('Mirage,' in which her skills as an historian were less impressive than her ability to report ... Read More
- Hard to get through
- Dry at Times, But Still Educational