Lizard Temporal range: Early Jurassic – Recent, 199–0 Ma Possible Late Triassic record. PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N
Central bearded dragon, Pogona vitticeps
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Superclass:	Tetrapoda
Class:	Reptilia
Subclass:	Diapsida
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Lacertilia* Günther, 1867
Families
Many, see text.
Range of the Lizards, all species

Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with more than 5600 species ^[1], ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains. The group, traditionally recognized as the suborder Lacertilia, is defined as all extant members of the Lepidosauria (reptiles with overlapping scales), which are neither sphenodonts (i.e., tuatara) nor snakes – they form an evolutionary grade.^[2] While the snakes are recognized as falling phylogenetically within the Toxicofera clade from which they evolved, the Sphenodonts are the sister group to the Squamates, the larger monophyletic group, which includes both the lizards and the snakes.

Lizards typically have feet and external ears, while snakes lack both of these characteristics. However, because they are defined negatively as excluding snakes, lizards have no unique distinguishing characteristic as a group. Lizards and snakes share a movable quadrate bone, distinguishing them from the sphenodonts, which have a more primitive and solid diapsid skull. Many lizards can detach their tails to escape from predators, an act called autotomy, but this ability is not shared by all lizards. Vision, including color vision, is particularly well developed in most lizards, and most communicate with body language or bright colors on their bodies as well as with pheromones.

The adult length of species within the suborder ranges from a few cm for chameleons like Brookesia micra and geckos like Sphaerodactylus ariasae to nearly 3 m (9.8 ft) in the case of the largest living varanid lizard, the Komodo Dragon. Some extinct varanids reached great size. The extinct aquatic mosasaurs reached 17 m (56 ft), and the giant monitor Megalania is estimated to have reached perhaps 7 m (23 ft).

Physiology[link]

Feral Jackson's Chameleon from a population introduced to Hawaii in the 1970s

Sight is very important for most lizards, both for locating prey and for communication, and, as such, many lizards have highly acute color vision. Most lizards rely heavily on body language, using specific postures, gestures, and movements to define territory, resolve disputes, and entice mates. Some species of lizard also utilize bright colors, such as the iridescent patches on the belly of Sceloporus. These colors would be highly visible to predators, so are often hidden on the underside or between scales and only revealed when necessary.

The particular innovation in this respect is the dewlap, a brightly colored patch of skin on the throat, usually hidden between scales. When a display is needed, the lizards erect the hyoid bone of their throat, resulting in a large vertical flap of brightly colored skin beneath the head which can be then used for communication. Anoles are particularly famous for this display, with each species having specific colors, including patterns only visible under ultraviolet (UV) light, as many lizards can see UV light.^{[citation needed]} Many lizard species are also capable of severing their tails when faced with danger. Although severing and regrowing tails is a strenuous process for a lizard, this mechanism is often used by lizards to save their lives.

Lizard...

Evolution and relationships[link]

Fossil mosasaur Prognathodon, a varanoid

The retention of the basic 'reptilian' amniote body form by lizards makes it tempting to assume any similar animal, alive or extinct, is also a lizard. However, this is not the case, and lizards as squamates are part of a well-defined group.

The earliest amniotes were superficially lizard-like, but had solid, box-like skulls, with openings only for eyes, nostrils, termed the anapsid condition. Turtles retain this skull form. Early anapsids later gave rise to two new groups with additional holes in the skull to make room for and anchor larger jaw muscles. The Synapsids, with a single fenestra, gave rise to the superficially lizard-like Pelycosaurs, which include Dimetrodon and the Therapsids, including the Cynodonts, from which the modern mammals would evolve.

The modern Tuatara retains the basic lepidosaur skull, distinguishing it from true lizards in spite of superficial similarities. Squamates, including snakes and all true lizards, further lightened the skull by eliminating the lower margin of the lower skull opening.

The earliest known fossil remains of a lizard belong to the iguanian species Tikiguania estesi, found in the Tiki Formation of India, which dates to the Carnian stage of the Triassic period, about 220 million years ago.^[3] However, doubt has been raised over the age of Tikiguania because it is almost indistinguishable from modern agamid lizards. The Tikiguania remains may instead be late Tertiary or Quaternary in age, having been washed into much older Triassic sediments.^[4] Lizards are most closely related to a group called Rhynchocephalia, which includes the tuatara. Rhynchocephalians first appeared in the Late Triassic, so it can be inferred that the lizard-rhynchocephalian divergence occurred at this time and that the earliest lizards appeared in the Triassic.^[4]

Mitochondrial phylogenetics suggests that the first lizards evolved in the late Permian. Most evolutionary relationships within the squamates are not yet completely worked out, with the relationship of snakes to other groups being most problematic. From morphological data, Iguanid lizards have been thought to have diverged from other squamates very early, but recent molecular phylogenies, both from mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, do not support this early divergence.^[5] Because snakes have a faster molecular clock than other squamates,^[5] and there are few early snake and snake ancestor fossils,^[6] it is difficult to resolve the relationship between snakes and other squamate groups.

Lizard diversification[link]

Within the Lacertilia are found four generally recognized suborders, Iguania, Gekkota, Amphisbaenia and Autarchoglossa, with the "blind skinks" in the family Dibamidae having an uncertain position. While traditionally excluded from the lizards, the snakes are usually classified as a clade with a similar subordinal rank.^[7]

Iguania[link]

Anoles mating, Gainesville, Florida

The suborder Iguania, found in Africa, south Asia, Australia, the New World, and with iguanas colonizing the islands of the west Pacific, form the sister group to the remainder of the squamata. They are largely arboreal, and have primitively fleshy, non-prehensile tongues, some even have scales, but this condition is obviously highly modified in the chameleons. This clade includes the following families:

• Family Agamidae – Agamid lizards, Old World arboreal lizards
• Family Chamaeleonidae – Chameleons
• Family Corytophanidae – Helmet lizards
• Family Crotaphytidae – Collared lizards, leopard lizards
• Family Hoplocercidae – Dwarf and spiny tail iguanas
• Family Iguanidae – American arboreal lizards, chuckwallas, iguanas, iguanids
• Family Opluridae – Malagasy iguanas
• Family Phrynosomatidae – North American spiny lizards
• Family Polychrotidae – Anoles and kin
• Family Tropiduridae – Tropidurid lizards

Gekkota[link]

Active hunters, the Gekkota includes three families comprising the distinctive cosmopolitan geckos and the legless flap-footed lizards of Australia and New Zealand. Like snakes, the flap-footed lizards and most geckos lack eyelids. Unlike snakes, they use their tongues to clean their often highly developed eyes. While gecko feet have unique surfaces that allow them to cling to glass and run on ceilings,^[8] the flapfoot has lost its limbs. The three families of this suborder are:

• Family Eublepharinae – 'Eyelid' geckos
• Family Gekkonidae – Geckos
• Family Pygopodidae – Flap-footed lizards

Relationship with humans[link]

Komodo dragons on Rinca

A lizard as the symbol of the Military Organization Lizard Union, a WWII Polish anti-Nazi resistance group

Green iguanas (Iguana iguana), are popular exotic pets

Most lizard species are harmless to humans. Only the largest lizard species, the Komodo dragon, which reaches 3.3 m (11 feet) in length and weighs up to 166 kg (365 pounds), has been known to stalk, attack, and, on occasion, kill humans. An eight-year-old Indonesian boy died from blood loss after an attack in 2007.^[9] The venom of the Gila monster and beaded lizard is not usually deadly but they can inflict extremely painful bites due to powerful jaws.

Numerous species of lizard are kept as pets, including iguanas, anoles, geckos (such as the popular leopard gecko) Some lizards have an affinity for humans, but many are suspicious or skittish around humans. Lizards that bite humans are very rare. Lizards are predominantly insectivorous, but some eat fruit, or vegetables. Live crickets and worms are the most typical foods for pet lizards, though the crested gecko (not a friendly lizard to humans) can feed entirely on fruit.

Lizard symbolism plays important though rarely predominant roles in some cultures (e.g., Tarrotarro in Australian Aboriginal mythology). The Moche people of ancient Peru worshipped animals and often depicted lizards in their art.^[10] According to a popular legend in Maharashtra, a Common Indian Monitor, with ropes attached, was used to scale the walls of the Sinhagad fort in the Battle of Sinhagad.^[11]

Green Iguanas are eaten in Central America and Uromastyx in Africa. In North Africa, Uromastyx are considered dhaab or 'fish of the desert' and eaten by nomadic tribes.^[12]

Classification[link]

Gekko gecko in Thailand

Close-up of the head of the legless fossorial amphisbaenid Rhineura

Underside of a Thorny devil, an agamid, Western Australia

The Eastern blue-tongued lizard, a scincomorph

Suborder Lacertilia (Sauria) – (Lizards)

• Family †Bavarisauridae
• Family †Eichstaettisauridae
• Infraorder Iguania
  • Family †Arretosauridae
  • Family †Euposauridae
  • Family Corytophanidae (casquehead lizards)
  • Family Iguanidae (iguanas and spinytail iguanas)
  • Family Phrynosomatidae (earless, spiny, tree, side-blotched and horned lizards)
  • Family Polychrotidae (anoles)
    • Family Leiosauridae (see Polychrotinae)
  • Family Tropiduridae (neotropical ground lizards)
    • Family Liolaemidae (see Tropidurinae)
    • Family Leiocephalidae (see Tropidurinae)
  • Family Crotaphytidae (collared and leopard lizards)
  • Family Opluridae (Madagascar iguanids)
  • Family Hoplocercidae (wood lizards, clubtails)
  • Family †Priscagamidae
  • Family †Isodontosauridae
  • Family Agamidae (agamas)
  • Family Chamaeleonidae (chameleons)
• Infraorder Gekkota
  • Family Gekkonidae (geckos)
  • Family Pygopodidae (legless lizards)
  • Family Dibamidae (blind lizards)
• Infraorder Scincomorpha
  • Family †Paramacellodidae
  • Family †Slavoiidae
  • Family Scincidae (skinks)
  • Family Cordylidae (spinytail lizards)
  • Family Gerrhosauridae (plated lizards)
  • Family Xantusiidae (night lizards)
  • Family Lacertidae (wall lizards or true lizards)
  • Family †Mongolochamopidae
  • Family †Adamisauridae
  • Family Teiidae (tegus and whiptails)
  • Family Gymnophthalmidae (spectacled lizards)
• Infraorder Diploglossa
  • Family Anguidae (glass lizards)
  • Family Anniellidae (American legless lizards)
  • Family Xenosauridae (knob-scaled lizards)
• Infraorder Platynota (Varanoidea)
  • Family Varanidae (monitor lizards)
  • Family Lanthanotidae (earless monitor lizards)
  • Family Helodermatidae (gila monsters & beaded lizards)
  • Family †Mosasauridae (marine lizards)

References[link]

This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (March 2009)

General references

• Byiiuo, John L.; King, F. Wayne (1979). The Audubon Society Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of North America. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p. 581. ISBN 0-394-50824-6. 
• Capula, Massimo; Behler (1989). Simon & Schuster's Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of the World. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-69098-1. 
• Cogger, Harold; Zweifel, Richard (1992). Reptiles & Amphibians. Sydney: Weldon Owen. ISBN 0-8317-2786-1. 
• Conant, Roger; Collins, Joseph (1991). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians Eastern/Central North America. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 0-395-58389-6. 
• Ditmars, Raymond L (1933). Reptiles of the World: The Crocodilians, Lizards, Snakes, Turtles and Tortoises of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. New York: Macmillian. p. 321. 
• Freiberg, Dr. Marcos; Walls, Jerry (1984). The World of Venomous Animals. New Jersey: TFH Publications. ISBN 0-87666-567-9. 
• Gibbons, J. Whitfield; Gibbons, Whit (1983). Their Blood Runs Cold: Adventures With Reptiles and Amphibians. Alabama: University of Alabama Press. p. 164. ISBN 978-0-8173-0135-4. 
• Rosenfeld, Arthur (1989). Exotic Pets. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 293. ISBN 067147654. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sauria

• Data related to Sauria at Wikispecies

lez:Чурчул

Mauro Picotto (born December 25, 1966) is an Italian electronic music musician. Previously a member of the Italian eurodance group, Cappella^[1]. He became well known as a solo artist with techno-trance tracks including "Komodo" (2000), "Pulsar" (2001, with new mixes in 2002) and most famously for "Lizard" (1999, remixed in 2000). He has collaborated with other techno-trance musicians such as Tiësto and Mario Più.

He now promotes his own techno club night, Meganite (named after an early 21st century track of his), which has run for consecutive years annually since 2005 at Privilege Ibiza. He now produces under his own record label, Bakerloo.

Biography[link]

Born in the Italian town of Cavour, near Turin, Picotto was raised in a family of stonemasons and dancers. His father ran a mason's yard called CRW, a name Mauro would later use as a pseudonym for his trance side-project.

Picotto longed to start making his own productions, but felt that to be successful he must first become a DJ. After winning the Walky Cup competition on national TV^{[citation needed]}, an event for the top DMC^{[clarification needed]} DJs in Italy, he met with Daniele Davoli who was there to promote his Black Box single "Ride On Time", and this led Picotto towards record producing. His first track "We Gonna Get", produced under the name RAF, became a Top 20 hit single across much of Europe.^{[citation needed]}

Another RAF release followed, alongside remixes and co-writing credits for Clubhouse (who had a European hit with "Light My Fire"), Cappella (best known for rave hits like "U Got 2 Let The Music" and "Move On Baby") and the 49ers. A track released under his own name, "Bakerloo Symphony", ended up being Number 1 in Italy for eight weeks.^{[citation needed]} Also in 1996 Picotto became a partner in Media Records alongside Gianfranco Bortolotti.

1998 saw the release of the gatecrasher anthem, "Lizard (Gonna Get You)". The track ended up being a Top 30 hit in the UK Singles Chart^[2] - and was followed by two further instalments in the reptilian trilogy: "Iguana" (#39) and "Komodo (Save a Soul)", which would give Picotto the highest UK chart position of his career - #13.^[2] This would see him make his only solo performance on BBC Television's Top of the Pops. Picotto was the first DJ to mix live on the show.^[3]

Later tracks he was involved in also made an impact on the UK chart. "I Feel Love" - released under the pseudonym CRW - reached #15 in 2000,^[4] whilst "Communication (Somebody Answer The Phone)" - which he produced alongside Mario Più - reached the UK Top 5 at the end of 1999.^[5]

His remix of "On The Beach" by York, also helped to propel that song into the UK Top Five in Spring 2000,^[6] when it was selected by the record company - Manifesto - to be used as the official radio edit. Two solo albums, The Double Album (2000) and The Others (2002), followed, as well as remixes and productions for Freddie Mercury, Jimmy Somerville, the Pet Shop Boys and U2. Upon leaving Media Records in 2002, Picotto formed Bakerloo Music, as well as a new label Alchemy, releasing several club tracks, including "New Time New Place" and the "Alchemy EP". That same year he launched his Meganite party at the Miami Winter Music Conference.

Picotto has more recently released several Meganite Ibiza albums on a new label Big In Ibiza.

Picotto's 'Meganite' party is held every Wednesday at Ibiza'a Privilege club.

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• The Album (2000)
• The Others (2002)
• Live in Ibiza (2002)
• Superclub (2006)
• Now & Then (2007)
• Meganite Ibiza (2008)
• 2010 (2010)

Singles[link]

Awards[link]

• German Dance Awards: Best International DJ, Best Producer, Best Radio Hit
• Danish Dance Awards: Best International DJ
• Ericsson Swiss Dance Awards: Best International DJ
• BBm Magazine Irish Dance Awards: Best International DJ
• Deejay Magazine Spanish Dance Awards Best International DJ
• TMF Dutch Dance Awards: Best International DJ
• RTÉ 2fm Irish Dance Music Awards: Best International DJ
• DJ Awards 2005 Ibiza: Winner
• Voted in the Top 100 DJs in TheDJList.com (US) and DJ Mag (UK)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Mauro Picotto Official Site
• Mauro Picotto at Discogs.com
• Mauro Picotto discography at MusicBrainz

Jesus
Jesus as Good Shepherd (stained glass at St John's Ashfield)
Born	7–2 BC/BCE[1] Judaea[2]
Died	30–36 AD/CE[3][4][5][6][7] Judaea
Cause of death	Crucifixion[8]
Ethnicity	Jewish[9]
Home town	Nazareth, Galilee[10]

Jesus ( /ˈdʒiːzəs/; Greek: Ἰησοῦς; 7–2 BC/BCE to 30–36 AD/CE), also referred to as Jesus Christ or simply Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and most Christian denominations venerate him as God the Son incarnated. In Islam, Jesus (in Arabic: عيسى‎ in Islamic usage, commonly transliterated as Isa) is considered one of God's important prophets.^[11][12]

Most modern historians agree that Jesus existed and was a Jewish teacher from Galilee in Roman Judaea, who was baptized by John the Baptist, and was crucified in Jerusalem on the orders of the Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate.^{[13][14][15][16][8]} Scholars have offered competing descriptions and portraits of Jesus, which at times share a number of overlapping attributes, such as a rabbi, a charismatic healer, the leader of an apocalyptic movement, a self-described Messiah, a sage and philosopher, or a social reformer who preached of the "Kingdom of God" as a means for personal and egalitarian social transformation.^{[17][18][19][20]} Scholars have correlated the New Testament accounts with non-Christian historical records to arrive at an estimated chronology of Jesus' life.^{[3][5][21][22][23][24][25][26][27]}

Christians traditionally believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, performed miracles, founded the Church, died sacrificially by crucifixion to achieve atonement, rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven, from which he will return.^[28] The majority of Christians worship Jesus as the incarnation of God the Son, and the Second Person of the Holy Trinity.^[29] A few Christian groups, however, reject Trinitarianism, wholly or partly, believing it to be non-scriptural.^[29][30] Most Christian scholars today present Jesus as the awaited Messiah promised in the Old Testament and as God,^[31] arguing that he fulfilled many Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament.^[32]

In Islam, Jesus is a bringer of scripture, and the product of a virgin birth, but not the victim of crucifixion.^[33] Judaism rejects the belief that Jesus was the awaited Messiah, arguing that he did not fulfill the Messianic prophecies in the Tanakh.^[34] Islam and the Bahá'í Faith use the title "Messiah" for Jesus,^[35][36] but do not teach that he was God incarnate.

Etymology of name[link]

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"Jesus" is a transliteration, occurring in a number of languages and based on the Latin Iesus, of the Greek Ἰησοῦς (Iēsoûs), itself a hellenization of the Hebrew יְהוֹשֻׁעַ (Yĕhōšuă‘, Joshua) or Hebrew-Aramaic יֵשׁוּעַ (Yēšûă‘), both meaning "Yahweh delivers" or "Yahweh rescues". In Arabic, it is عيسى‎.^[37][38]

The etymology of the name Jesus in the context of the New Testament is generally expressed as "Yahweh saves",^[39][40][41] "Yahweh is salvation"^[42][43] and at times as "Jehovah is salvation".^[44] The name Jesus appears to have been in use in Judaea at the time of the birth of Jesus.^[44][45] Philo's reference (Mutatione Nominum item 121) indicates that the etymology of Joshua was known outside Judaea at the time.^[46]

In the New Testament, in Luke 1:26-33, the angel Gabriel tells Mary to name her child "Jesus", and in Matthew 1:21 an angel tells Joseph to name the child "Jesus". The statement in Matthew 1:21 "you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins" associates salvific attributes to the name Jesus in Christian theology.^[47][48]

"Christ" ( /ˈkraɪst/) is derived from the Greek Χριστός (Khrīstos), meaning "the anointed" or "the anointed one", a translation of the Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (Māšîaḥ), usually transliterated into English as "Messiah" ( /mɨˈsaɪ.ə/).^[49][50] In the Septuagint version of the Hebrew Bible (written well over a century before the time of Jesus), the word "Christ" (Χριστός) was used to translate the Hebrew word "Messiah" (מָשִׁיחַ) into Greek.^[51] In Matthew 16:16, the apostle Peter's profession "You are the Christ" identifies Jesus as the Messiah.^[52] In postbiblical usage, "Christ" became viewed as a name, one part of "Jesus Christ", but originally it was a title ("Jesus the Anointed").^[53][54][55]

Chronology[link]

Judaea and Galilee at the time of Jesus.

Although a few scholars have questioned the existence of Jesus as an actual historical figure,^[56], and some early Christian sects denied that Jesus existed as a physical being (see below), most scholars involved with historical Jesus research believe his existence, but that the supernatural claims associated with him cannot be established using documentary and other evidence.^{[57][58][59][16][60][61]} As discussed in the sections immediately below, the estimation of the year of death of Jesus places his lifespan around the beginning of the 1st century AD/CE, in the geographic region of Roman Judaea.^{[62][63][64][65][66]}

Roman involvement in Judaea began around 63 BC/BCE and by 6 AD/CE Judaea had become a Roman province.^[67] From 26-37 AD/CE Pontius Pilate was the governor of Roman Judaea.^[68] In this time period, although Roman Judaea was strategically positioned in the Near East, close to Arabia and North Africa, it was not viewed as a critically important province by the Romans.^[69][70] At the time the Romans were highly tolerant of other religions and allowed the local populations such as the Jews to practice their own faiths.^[67]

Year of birth[link]

Two independent approaches have been used to estimate the year of the birth of Jesus, one by analyzing the Nativity accounts in the Gospels of Luke and Matthew along with other historical data, the other by working backwards from the estimation of the start of the ministry of Jesus, as also discussed in the next section.^[5][22]

In its Nativity account, the Gospel of Matthew associates the birth of Jesus with the reign of Herod the Great, who is generally believed to have died around 4 BC/BCE.^[22][71] Matthew 2:1 states that: "Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king" and Luke 1:5 mentions the reign of Herod shortly before the birth of Jesus.^[22] Matthew also suggests that Jesus may have been as much as two years old at the time of the visit of the Magi and hence even older at the time of Herod's death.^[72] But the author of Luke also describes the birth as taking place during the first census of the Roman provinces of Syria and Iudaea, which is generally believed to have occurred in 6 AD/CE.^[73] Most scholars generally assume a date of birth between 6 and 4 BC/BCE.^[74] Other scholars assume that Jesus was born sometime between 7–2 BC/BCE.^[75]

The year of birth of Jesus has also been estimated in a manner that is independent of the Nativity accounts, by using information in the Gospel of John to work backwards from the statement in Luke 3:23 that Jesus was "about 30 years of age" at the start of his ministry.^[3][5] As discussed in the section below, by combining information from John 2:13 and John 2:20 with the writings of Flavius Josephus, it has been estimated that around 27-29 AD/CE, Jesus was "about thirty years of age".^[76][77] Some scholars thus estimate the year 28 AD/CE to be roughly the 32nd birthday of Jesus and the birth year of Jesus to be around 6-4 BC/BCE.^[3][5][78]

However, the common Gregorian calendar method for numbering years, in which the current year is 2012, is based on the decision of a monk Dionysius in the sixth century, to count the years from a point of reference (namely, Jesus’ birth) which he placed sometime between 2 BC and 1 AD.^[79] Although Christian feasts related to the Nativity have had specific dates (e.g. December 25 for Christmas) there is no historical evidence for the exact day or month of the birth of Jesus.^[80][81][82]

Years of ministry[link]

Israel Museum model of Herod's Temple, referred to in John 2:13.

There have been different approaches to estimating the date of the start of the ministry of Jesus.^{[3][76][77][83]} One approach, based on combining information from the Gospel of Luke with historical data about Emperor Tiberius yields a date around 28-29 AD/CE, while a second independent approach based on statements in the Gospel of John along with historical information from Josephus about the Temple in Jerusalem leads to a date around 27-29 AD/CE.^{[5][76][77][84][85][86]} A third method uses the date of the death of John the Baptist and the marriage of Herod Antipas to Herodias based on the writings of Josephus, and correlates it to Matthew 14:4.^[87][88][89]

The estimation of the date based on the Gospel of Luke relies on the statement in Luke 3:1-2 that the ministry of John the Baptist which preceded that of Jesus began "in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar".^[76] Given that Tiberius began his reign in 14 AD/CE, this yields a date about 28-29 AD/CE.^{[3][76][78][90][91]}

The estimation of the date based on the Gospel of John uses the statements in John 2:13 that Jesus went to the Temple in Jerusalem around the start of his ministry and in John 2:20 that "Forty and six years was this temple in building" at that time.^[5][76] According to Josephus (Ant 15.380) the temple reconstruction was started by Herod the Great in the 15th-18th year of his reign at about the time that Augustus arrived in Syria (Ant 15.354).^{[3][76][92][93]} Temple expansion and reconstruction was ongoing, and it was in constant reconstruction until it was destroyed in 70 AD/CE by the Romans.^[94] Given that it took 46 years of construction, the Temple visit in the Gospel of John has been estimated at around 27-29 AD/CE.^{[5][76][84][85][86][95]}

Although both the gospels and Josephus refer to Herod Antipas killing John the Baptist, they differ on the details, e.g. whether this act was a consequence of the marriage of Herod Antipas and Herodias, as indicated in Matthew 14:4, or a pre-emptive measure by Herod which possibly took place before the marriage, as Josephus suggests in Ant 18.5.2.^{[96][97][98][99]} The exact year of the marriage of Herod Antipas and Herodias is subject to debate among scholars.^[88] In his analysis of Herod's life, Harold Hoehner estimates that John the Baptist's imprisonment probably occurred around AD 30-31.^[100] The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia estimates the death of the Baptist to have occurred about AD 31-32.^[89] The death of John the Baptist relates to the end of the major Galilean ministry of Jesus, just before the half way point in the gospel narratives, before the start of Jesus' final journey to Jerusalem through Judea.^{[101][102][102][103]}

Luke 3:23 states that at the start of his ministry Jesus was "about 30 years of age", but the other gospels do not mention a specific age. However, in John 8:57 the Jews exclaimed to Jesus: "Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?" suggesting that he was much less than 50 years old during his ministry.^[5] The length of the ministry is subject to debate, based on the fact that the synoptic gospels mention only one passover during Jesus' ministry, often interpreted as implying that the ministry lasted approximately one year, whereas the Gospel of John records multiple passovers, implying that his ministry may have lasted at least three years.^{[3][5][104][105]}

Year of death[link]

A 1466 copy of Antiquities of the Jews.

A number of approaches have been used to estimate the year of the death of Jesus, including information from the canonical gospels, the chronology of the life of Paul the Apostle in the New Testament correlated with historical events, as well as different astronomical models, as discussed below.

All four canonical gospels report that Jesus was crucified at Calvary during the prefecture of Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect who governed Judaea from 26 to 36 AD/CE. The late 1st century Jewish historian Josephus,^[62] writing in Antiquities of the Jews (c. 93 AD/CE), and the early 2nd century Roman historian Tacitus,^[63] writing in The Annals (c. 116 AD/CE), also state that Pilate ordered the execution of Jesus, though both writers use the title "procurator" instead of "prefect".^[64]

The estimation of the date of the conversion of Paul places the death of Jesus before this conversion, which is estimated at around 33-36 AD/CE.^{[4][106][107]} (Also see the estimation of the start of Jesus' ministry as a few years before this date above). The estimation of the year of Paul's conversion relies on a series of calculations working backwards from the well established date of his trial before Gallio in Achaea Greece (Acts 18:12-17) around 51-52 AD/CE, the meeting of Priscilla and Aquila which were expelled from Rome about 49 AD/CE and the 14-year period before returning to Jerusalem in Galatians 2:1.^{[4][106][107]} The remaining period is generally accounted for by Paul's missions (at times with Barnabas) such as those in Acts 11:25-26 and 2 Corinthians 11:23-33, resulting in the 33-36 AD/CE estimate.^{[4][106][107]}

For centuries, astronomers and scientists have used diverse computational methods to estimate the date of crucifixion, Isaac Newton being one of the first cases.^[65] Newton's method relied on the relative visibility of the crescent of the new moon and he suggested the date as Friday, April 23, 34 AD/CE.^[108] In 1990 astronomer Bradley E. Schaefer computed the date as Friday, April 3, 33 AD/CE.^[109] In 1991, John Pratt stated that Newton's method was sound, but included a minor error at the end. Pratt suggested the year 33 AD/CE as the answer.^[65] Using the completely different approach of a lunar eclipse model, Humphreys and Waddington arrived at the conclusion that Friday, April 3, 33 AD/CE was the date of the crucifixion.^{[66][110][111]}

Life and teachings in the New Testament[link]

Although the four canonical gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, are the main sources for the biography of Jesus’ life, other parts of the New Testament, such as the Pauline epistles which were likely written decades before them, also include references to key episodes in his life such as the Last Supper, as in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.^{[112][113][114]} The Acts of the Apostles (10:37-38 and 19:4) refers to the early ministry of Jesus and its anticipation by John the Baptist.^[115][116] And Acts 1:1-11 says more about the Ascension episode (also mentioned in 1 Timothy 3:16) than the canonical gospels.^[117][118]

According to the majority viewpoint, the Synoptic Gospels are the primary sources of historical information about Jesus.^[6][7][119] and of the religious movement he founded, but not everything contained in the gospels is considered to be historically reliable.^{[120][121][122][123][124]} Elements whose historical authenticity are disputed include the two accounts of the Nativity of Jesus, as well as the resurrection and certain details about the crucifixion.^{[125][126][127][128][129][130]} On one extreme, some Christian scholars maintain that the gospels are inerrant descriptions of the life of Jesus.^[131] On the other extreme, some scholars have concluded that the gospels provide no historical information about Jesus' life.^[132]

Canonical gospel accounts[link]

A 3rd century Greek papyrus of Luke.

Three of the four canonical gospels, namely Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are known as the synoptic Gospels, from the Greek σύν (syn "together") and ὄψις (opsis "view"), given that they display a high degree of similarity in content, narrative arrangement, language and paragraph structure.^{[133][134][135]} The presentation in the fourth canonical gospel, i.e. John, differs from these three in that it has more of a thematic nature rather than a narrative format.^[136][137] Scholars generally agree that it is impossible to find any direct literary relationship between the synoptic gospels and the Gospel of John.^[136]

However, in general, the authors of the New Testament showed little interest in an absolute chronology of Jesus or in synchronizing the episodes of his life with the secular history of the age.^[138] The gospels were primarily written as theological documents in the context of early Christianity with the chronological timelines as a secondary consideration.^[139] One manifestation of the gospels being theological documents rather than historical chronicles is that they devote about one third of their text to just seven days, namely the last week of the life of Jesus in Jerusalem.^[140]

Although the gospels do not provide enough details to satisfy the demands of modern historians regarding exact dates, it is possible to draw from them a general picture of the life story of Jesus.^{[138][139][141]} However, as stated in John 21:25 the gospels do not claim to provide an exhaustive list of the events in the life of Jesus.^[142]

Gospel sources, similarities and differences[link]

Scholars have debated the sources for the gospels for millennia, and have proposed various hypotheses of how the synoptic gospels were written and how they influenced each other, going back to the Augustinian hypothesis in the 5th century.^[143] In the 20th and 21st centuries hypotheses such as the two-source, four-source, Farrer or the Markan priority hypothesis have been debated.^{[143][144][145]} Each hypothesis assumes a specific order in which the gospels were written, or that other as yet unknown and hypothetical documents such as the Q source or the M source influenced various gospels in various ways. Each hypotheses has had support among some scholars, while problems with and weaknesses in it have been pointed out by opponents.^{[143][144][145][146]}

Since the 2nd century attempts have been made to harmonize the gospel accounts into a single narrative; Tatian's Diatesseron perhaps being the first harmony and other works such as Augustine' book Harmony of the Gospels followed.^[147][148] A number of different approaches to gospel harmony have been proposed in the 20th century, but no single and unique harmony can be constructed.^[149] While some scholars argue that combining the four gospel stories into one story is tantamount to creating a fifth story different from each original, others see the gospels as blending together to give an overall and comprehensive picture of Jesus' teaching and ministry.^{[148][150][151][152]} Although there are differences in specific temporal sequences, and in the parables and miracles listed in each gospel, the flow of the key events such as Baptism, Transfiguration and Crucifixion and interactions with people such as the Apostles are shared among the gospel narratives.^{[138][139][153][154]}

Key elements and the five major milestones[link]

The five major milestones in the gospel narrative of the life of Jesus are his Baptism, Transfiguration, Crucifixion, Resurrection and Ascension.^{[155][156][157]} These are usually bracketed by two other episodes: his Nativity at the beginning and the sending of the Holy Spirit at the end.^[155][157] The gospel accounts of the teachings of Jesus are often presented in terms of specific categories involving his "works and words", e.g. his ministry, parables and miracles.^[158][159]

The gospels include a number discourses by Jesus on specific occasions, e.g. the Sermon on the Mount or the Farewell Discourse, and also include over 30 parables, spread throughout the narrative, often with themes that relate to the sermons.^[160] Parables represent a major component of the teachings of Jesus in the gospels, forming approximately one third of his recorded teachings, and John 14:10 positions them as the revelations of God the Father.^[161][162] The gospel episodes that include descriptions of the miracle of Jesus also often include teachings, providing an intertwining of his "words and works" in the gospels.^[159][163]

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  Nativity

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  Baptism

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  Temptation

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  Disciples and Apostles

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  Ministry

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  Teachings and Sermons

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  Parables

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  Miracles

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  Last Supper and Betrayal

• Decani.jpg

  Passion and Crucifixion

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  Resurrection and Appearances

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  Ascension

Genealogy and Nativity[link]