P52 papyrus Recreation. Real papyrus from Egypt. Fragment of the Gospel of John. The oldest known manuscript of the New Testament dated between 125-150 AD from Egypt. Writtten in Greek on papyrus, and found in 1920. John 18:31-33 "Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. The Jews therefore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death: That the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled, which he spake, signifying what death he should die. Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews?"