ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Tuesday, April 2, 1996                 TAG: 9604020078
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL   PAGE: A3   EDITION: METRO 
DATELINE: JERUSALEM 
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS

CASKETS MATCH HOLY FAMILY

Researchers say they have found caskets from a 1st-century tomb near Jerusalem that bear the names Joseph, Mary and Jesus, son of Joseph. But archeologists say the find is probably a coincidence.

The oblong limestone caskets, which contained no bones, were excavated in 1980 from a building site near Jerusalem. They were rediscovered two weeks ago by researchers for a television program, and found to have come from the same tomb.

``There is no proof that these belonged to the holy family, but the combination of names is interesting,'' said Ray Bruce, director of the independent television company CCTV, which produces ``Heart of the Matter'' for the British Broadcasting Corp.

But Israel's Antiquities Authority and other archeologists dismissed the find as a coincidence, saying the names Joseph, Mary and Yehoshua - or Jesus - were common in the 1st century.

``They're all very common, perhaps the most common names,'' said the Rev. Murphy O'Connor, a biblical scholar. ``It would be a statistical abnormality if you didn't find them in conjunction at some point.''

O'Connor said scholars believe Joseph probably was buried in Galilee, in what is now northern Israel. Mary is believed to be buried in Jerusalem. The Bible holds that Jesus' body was taken to heaven.

``Archeological evidence shows that chances of these being the actual burials of the holy family are almost nil,'' said Motti Neiger, a spokesman for the Antiquities Authority.

The BBC plans to broadcast the findings April 7, Easter Sunday.

LENGTH: Short :   42 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:   AP Joan Bakewell, anchor of the BBC program, "Heart of 
          the Matter," sits in front of a recently excavated 1st century rock 
          tomb, where researchers say the caskets were discovered.