Annas ben Seth (also called Ananus Hebrew: חָנָן, Ḥānān; Koine Greek: Ἅννας, Hánnas) was High Priest of Judaea from 6 AD to 15 AD.

He was appointed by the Roman legate Quirinius just after the Romans had deposed Archelaus, Ethnarch of Judaea, thereby putting Judaea directly under Roman rule.

Annas appears in the Gospels and Passion plays as a High Priest before whom Jesus is brought for judgment, prior to being brought before Pontius Pilate.

Annas, his five sons, and his son-in-law Caiaphas, were all appointed as High Priest at some time in their lives. The terms of the seven men were as follows;

Annas served officially as High Priest for ten years (AD 6–15), and was then deposed by the procurator Valerius Gratus. Yet while having been officially removed from office, he remained as one of the nation's most influential political and social individuals, aided greatly by the fact that his five sons and his son-in-law Caiaphas all served at sometime as High Priests. His death is unrecorded. His son Annas the Younger, also known as Ananus the son of Ananus, was assassinated in AD 66 for advocating peace with Rome.

After Valerius Gratus deposed Ishmael ben Fabus from the high priesthood, he installed Eleazar ben Ananus, (15—16), a descendant of John Hyrcanus. It was a time of turbulence in Jewish politics, with the role of the high priesthood being contended for by several priestly families. Eleazar was likewise deposed by Gratus, who gave the office to Simon ben Camithus (17-18).

Caiaphas was married to the daughter of Annas (John 18:13). Gratus made him high priest after depriving Simon ben Camithus of the office. The comparatively long eighteen-year tenure of Caiaphas suggests he had established a good working relationship with the Roman authorities. Gratus' successor Pontius Pilate retained him as high priest.

Jonathan ben Ananus was the only family member to become High Priest twice. After his retirement he was murdered after publicly criticizing the Roman procurator, Antonius Felix.