Pontius Pilate Pilate was "astonished". Pilate appears to have been reluctant to allow the crucifixion of Jesus, finding no fault with him. According to Matthew 27:19, even Pilate's wife spoke to him on Jesus' behalf. According to the gospels, it was the custom of the Roman governor to release one prisoner at Passover, and Pilate brought out Barabbas, identified by Matthew as a "notorious prisoner" and by Mark as a murderer, and told the crowd to choose between releasing Barabbas or Jesus as per the custom, in the hopes of getting them to request the release of Jesus. However, the crowd demanded
Pontius Pilate of a krater, a common Jewish motive in the given time in Judaea. Altogether, it seems possible that the ring would have belonged to Pilate, or rather to somebody in his administration, either Jewish or pagan. Pilatus was an extremely unusual name in first-century Judaea, which makes at least some connection to the governor quite likely. Pontius Pilate's title was traditionally thought to have been procurator, since Tacitus speaks of him as such. However, the inscription on the so-called Pilate Stone refers to Pilate as "Prefect of Judaea". The title used by the governors of the region varied over the