For centuries, skeptics cited John 5:2 as proof the Gospel was written by someone unfamiliar with Jerusalem — no such pool with five porticoes was known. Excavations beginning in the 1880s, completed in the 20th century, uncovered a twin-basin pool with porticoes on the four sides plus one across the dividing wall: five porticoes, exactly as John describes.
Why this matters
A textbook case of an archaeological discovery vindicating a Gospel detail dismissed as fictional. John's author knew pre-70 AD Jerusalem firsthand — including a pool buried under rubble for centuries afterward.
Scripture references
John 5:1-15
Location
Jerusalem