135 Titus Caesar

Museum Description: Marble Head of the Emperor Titus

Room: 70/Case: None/Number: 1909.6-10.1

Scripture: Luke 21:6

Jesus famously prophesied that the temple in Jerusalem would be destroyed.  Titus, later to be Caesar, was a General at the time and fulfilled that prophecy.  In 70 C.E. he built a wall of pointed stakes around the city, in fulfilment of Jesus' words at Luke 19:43.  This was also recorded by the Jewish historian Josephus, who travelled with the Roman army.  There is a story that the gold of the temple melted when the city was set on fire, and the soldiers moved the stones to get the gold out.  This is just a possible theory, however, as there is no account from the time that records this.  Josephus does record that the entire city was demolished: "the rest of the wall encompassing the city was so completely levelled to the ground as to leave future visitors no reason for believing that it had ever been inhabited."  An inscription found in the Colosseum of Rome says it was "erected with the proceeds of the treasure."  The treasure was taken by Titus in the war against the Jews, including the gold in the temple in Jerusalem.  The Arch of Titus in Rome also commemorates this event.