Oxford professor accused of stealing ancient bible fragments, selling them to Hobby Lobby

A professor at Oxford University has been accused of stealing ancient bible fragments and selling them to arts-and-crafts retailer Hobby Lobby.

The Washington Post reports Dirk Obbink, one of the world’s most celebrated classics professors, was named following a months-long investigation by officials with Oxford’s Oxyrhynchus Papyri project.

The results of the three-month investigation were released Monday and found Obbink allegedly sold at least 11 ancient Bible fragments to the Green family, the owners of Hobby Lobby and part of a group of founders behind the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

{mosads}The Egypt Exploration Society (EES), a nonprofit that oversees the Papyri Project’s collection, detailed the findings of the investigation in a statement posted to its website.

“The [museum] has informed the EES that 11 of these pieces came into its care after being sold to Hobby Lobby Stores by Professor Obbink,” the nonprofit said.

A spokeswoman for the museum said Hobby Lobby bought the artifacts “in good faith.”

“Former employees who have not been associated with the museum since 2012 made the decision” to accept the 13 Bible fragments, museum spokeswoman Heather Cirmo told the Post. “Since then, Museum of the Bible curators and registrars began rigorously reviewing all acquisitions and researching documentation and dealers, with special attention on antiquities, items that may originate in modern conflict zones, and agents who are now known to [have] sold items of questionable origin or authenticity.”

Obbink did not respond to a request for comment from the Post, but previously told the Daily Beast that he denied some of the allegations, notably saying that the claim he sold the fragment of the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark to Hobby Lobby “is not true.”

The statement from the EES says the Museum of the Bible alleges that 11 fragments were sold to it by Obbink in two separate instances in 2010.

The society added that Obbink was removed as general editor of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri project “because of unsatisfactory discharge of his editorial duties, but also because of concerns, which he did not allay, about his alleged involvement in the marketing of ancient texts.”

The investigation sheds light on what had been long-standing rumors that the oldest Bible fragment ever existed and was now owned by Hobby Lobby, though it was unclear at the time how it obtained the artifacts.

The Green family has compiled one of the largest collections of biblical artifacts in the world, many of which are on display in the Museum of the Bible in Washington.

In 2017, Hobby Lobby agreed to return more than 5,000 artifacts that had allegedly been smuggled out of Iraq after an investigation by the Department of Justice.

The company at the time said it had begun acquiring historic religious artifacts to preserve them for future generations and to provide access to scholars.