Pictures from Europe.

[Mari]

Very nice shots! Looks like a great time =)

[Blaggut]

I highly, HIGHLY doubt that is the actual crib Jesus was born in, or even an accurate representation.

[James Gryphon]

According to Wikipedia, the Catholic Church doesn't claim that the gold/silver artifact (it's called a reliquary) is the actual crib; it's said to contain wooden boards from it, though.

[The Skarzs]

You went to Chartres!

I spent a couple weeks there on two different exchange trips I did in high school. Such a cool city! The cathedral was my favorite. The belfries dominate the entire landscape and you can usually see it from several miles out. It dwarfs pretty much everything within a 10 or 20 mile radius

Looks like a fun trip!

It was great! If you want, I can send you some more photos of it.

I highly, HIGHLY doubt that is the actual crib Jesus was born in, or even an accurate representation.

I already said that the wood was inside.

[Jetthebinturong]

I imagine wood that old would have rotted before it could ever be retrieved.

[The Skarzs]

Well, there are wooden artifacts from Egypt which are much older, so it's not unthinkable.

[Jetthebinturong]

Fair enough.

[Captain Tammo]

I imagine wood that old would have rotted before it could ever be retrieved.

Well it's certainly not unreasonable to think that. That's like when people said they found the spot of Noah's ark (assuming that they believe Noah's ark was something that existed). Like.... how?

But at the same time, Jesus is kind of a big deal. Weather you are a Christian or not, there's no denying he's had an enormous influence on the world. I wouldn't put it past some people to have gone and collected artifacts like these and kept them in good condition throughout the ages, passing them from bishop to bishop and such. Wood can last a surprisingly long time if you take care of it. And it's not like these particular pieces would be put under a whole lot of stress, you know?

[Jetthebinturong]

Oh I don't doubt that wood can survive that long, provided it's cared for properly, but I'm not entirely sure that could have happened with Jesus' crib. He wasn't incredibly important until after he died, so it would be very difficult to track down artifacts relating to him and I assume that the crib would have rotted before it could be found. I could be wrong, but that's what I feel is most likely.