Joseph, son of Caiaphas

Simon Peter proceeds apace. I have introduced Caiaphas, the Jewish High Priest that organized the plot to kill Jesus, in the novel. Before doing this, I naturally reviewed the material about Caiaphas.

Again, and this happens all the time, the actual material is disturbingly scant. There's a little in Matthew, a little in John. After the crucifixion there's some in Acts. The Biblical account of Caiaphas is a handful of verses. The historical record is equally scant - Josephus mentions Caiaphas briefly. The actual tomb of Joseph, son of Caiaphas has been found, and rests on the Mount of Olives.

That's it. And by New Testament standards, Caiaphas is well documented! He does seem to exist without the intervention of bogus Testamonium Flaviums or the like! But, like all New Testament characters, the information on such an important person to subsequent Western history is so scant. Writing a historical novel about these people, again, is simply impossible. The best you can really do is write a fantasy using the names and events as the barest of skeletons.

Still, I think the book is good!