MADRID: It was hailed as an archaeological discovery of global importance showing, among other things, the oldest representation of Christ on the cross and proof that Egyptian influences had survived deep in Roman Spain.

For traditional Basques the pictures, symbols and words found scraped onto pieces of third century pottery dug up near the town of Nanclares, in northern Spain, included miraculous evidence that their unique language of Euskara was far older than ever thought. Eighteen months ago the dig’s director, Eliseo Gil, claimed that some finds at the Roman town known as Veleia were on a par with those at Pompeii or Rome itself. Basque nationalists bristled with pride. This archaeological jewel gave them a far greater claim to a distinctive, millennial and Christian culture than they had dreamed possible.

Now a committee of experts has revealed those jewels to be fakes. “They are either a joke or a fraud,” said Martin Almagro, a professor in prehistory. “How has something like this been taken seriously for so long?”

The fraudster seems either to have buried the pieces or planted them in a laboratory where experts sifted through finds.

The Calvary scene was hailed as both the nearest thing mankind had to a contemporary pictorial account of the crucifixion, and proof that Basques had been relatively early Christians.

Now experts who have studied the pieces in depth say the fakes, some of which used modern glue, should have rung warning bells immediately. References were found to non-existent gods, 19th century names and even to the 17th century philosopher Descartes. Words in Euskara used impossible spellings. The hieroglyphs included references to Queen Nefertiti which would have been almost impossible to make prior to the 19th century.

—Dawn/ Guardian News Service