Real People: Demetrius the Silversmith
'Testing Luke' #19
What's in the series? Previous: Artemis in Ephesus Next: The Riot in Ephesus
The temple of Artemis in Ephesus brought in significant trade for local craftsmen making shrines and statues.
Paul the apostle spent more than two years in Ephesus between 53 and 56 AD. During this time, many people became followers of Christ. This harmed the business of the craftsmen. One of them - a sliversmith called Demetrius - stirred them up, leading to a riot.
Archaeologists have found an inscription about someone called Demetrius, who was a warden of the temple of Artemis in the year 57 AD - that is, just after Paul was there.
Was this the same person mentioned in the Bible? It could be, but 'Demetrius' was a common name, so we can not be sure. But even if it is not the same person, the evidence of archaeology supports Luke's account overall – the temple of Artemis, and the making of shrines.
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