Evidence · Case 03 · Reliability of Scripture
The Pilate Stone
One exhibit from the free evidence repository at apologetics.pro.
In 1961, a team led by Antonio Frova found a limestone block at Caesarea, reused in a theater, carrying the name Pontius Pilate and the title “prefect of Judea.”
Sources
Objections & responses
- Nobody doubted Pilate existed; Josephus, Philo, and Tacitus all mention him. What does the stone add?
Fair in one sense: Pilate’s existence was never in serious doubt. The stone’s value is that it is a contemporary inscription rather than a later literary reference, that it fixes his correct title (prefect), and that it confirms the Gospels’ picture of a Roman governor based at Caesarea. It is a small corroboration and should be weighed as one.