NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Archaeology and the Book of Mormon

Since the introduction of the Book of Mormon in 1830, both Mormon and non-Mormon archaeologists have studied its claims in reference to known archaeological evidence. Latter Day Saints generally believe that the Book of Mormon describes historical events, however the existence of the civilizations and people described in the Book of Mormon is not accepted by mainstream historians or archaeologists. This article is about the history and use of the word Mormon. For information about the religious beliefs and culture of Mormons, see Mormonism. ... A Latter Day Saint (LDS) is a person who identifies with the Latter Day Saint movement and is a follower of Mormonism. ...

The Book of Mormon tells of three principal migrations of small groups of people who traveled, by boat, one circa 1000 B.C. and the other two circa 600 B.C. to what are now known as the Americas. These travelers and their descendants included the Jaredites, the Nephites and Lamanites, and the descendants of Mulek also known as Mulekites. The founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, Joseph Smith, taught that the Lamanites were the ancestors of the modern day American Indians. // The Book of Mormon [1] is one of the sacred texts of the Latter Day Saint movement. ... In the Book of Mormon, specifically the Book of Ether, the Jaredites are described as the descendants of Jared and his brother. ... In the Book of Mormon, the Nephites (BoM Arabic نافيين Nāfiyyīn) are a people descended from or associated with Nephi, a prophet who traveled with his family from Jerusalem to the Western Hemisphere circa 600 B.C. at the urging of God. ... In The Book of Mormon, a Lamanite (BoM Arabic لاماني Lāmānī) is a member of one of three main tribes described in the book. ... In Latter-day Saint theology, Mulek (BoM Arabic مولق Mūlaq) is the only surviving son of Zedekiah, the last King of Judah. ... The Latter Day Saint movement (a subset of Restorationism) is a group of religious denominations and adherents who follow at least some of the teachings and revelations of Joseph Smith, Jr. ... Joseph Smith most commonly refers to Joseph Smith, Jr. ... A Sioux in traditional dress including war bonnet, about 1908 Native Americans â€“ also Indians, American Indians, First Nations, First Peoples, Indigenous Peoples of America, Aboriginal Peoples, Aboriginal Americans, Amerindians, Amerind, Native Canadians (or of other nations) â€“ are those peoples indigenous to the Americas, living there prior to European colonization and...

There is a general consensus amongst members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that the people described in the Book of Mormon lived somewhere on either North or South America,^[1] but also that the purpose of the book is not to document the history of the people described within it.^[2] Authorities of the LDS Church emphasize that the Book of Mormon is primarily a religious record^[3], although they also claim that it is a historical work. The Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the largest attraction in the citys Temple Square. ... For other uses, see The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (disambiguation). ...

The Smithsonian Institution has stated that the Institute "considers the Book of Mormon a religious document and not a scientific guide," but also states that it "has found no archaeological evidence to support [the book's] claims."^[4]^[5] Similarly, the National Geographic Society has stated "Archaeologists and other scholars have long probed the hemisphere's past and the society does not know of anything found so far that has substantiated the Book of Mormon."^[6] The Smithsonian Institution Building or Castle on the National Mall serves as the Institutions headquarters. ... This article is about the organization. ...

State of archaeological research in reference to the Americas and the Book of Mormon

A great deal of data have been accumulated over more than two hundred years of American archaeological research.^{[citation needed]} While the completeness of this research suffers in comparison with Old World archaeology, substantial insights into pre-Columbian civilizations, technologies, movements, and history have been established. These include the Formative Mesoamerican civilizations such as the (Pre-Classic) Maya, Olmec and Zapotec, which flourished during the approximate period the events related in the Book of Mormon are said to have occurred. Mesoamerican chronology The chronology of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica is usually divided into the following eras: Paleo-Indian Period c. ... This article is about the culture area. ... This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... Monument 1, one of the four Olmec colossal heads at La Venta. ... Extent of the Zapotec civilization The Zapotec civilization was an indigenous pre-Columbian civilization that flourished in the Valley of Oaxaca of southern Mesoamerica. ...

The Book of Mormon describes three heavily populated, literate, technologically advanced^[7] civilizations. The record primarily deals with the Nephites and the Lamanites, who existed in the Americas from about 600 BC to AD 400. It also deals with the rise and fall of the Jaredite nation, which the Book of Mormon claims existed in the Americas starting at the time of the Tower of Babel (which many Biblical literalist scholars date to between 3100 BC and 2200 BC) until as late as 400 BC. Central New York City. ... World map showing the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere historically considered to consist of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ... In the Book of Mormon, specifically the Book of Ether, the Jaredites are described as the descendants of Jared and his brother. ... World map showing the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere historically considered to consist of the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ...

Mainstream historians and archaeologists do not recognise the existence of these people as historical fact, and it is noted that there have not been identified any specific archaeological artifacts that link to the "supposedly advanced and widespread Nephite civilization" described in the Book of Mormon.^[8] Evangelical lecturer and journalist Richard Abanes argues that aspects of the Book of Mormon narrative do not agree with modern archaeology and claims that archaeologists and anthropologists view the Book of Mormon as a work of fiction.^[9]^[10] According to David Persuitte, the following are accounts in the Book of Mormon which are not supported by modern science:^[11] Richard Abanes (b. ... A magnet levitating above a high-temperature superconductor demonstrates the Meissner effect. ...

Whites redirects here. ... Children reading. ... Hebrew redirects here. ... (Redirected from 1 Nephi) The First Book of Nephi (pronounced nee-fie) is the first book of the Book of Mormon, considered in Mormonism to be a work of scripture. ... Electric phosphate smelting furnace in a TVA chemical plant (1942) Chemical reduction, or smelting, is a form of extractive metallurgy. ... This article is about the instrument. ... For other uses, see Weapon (disambiguation). ... General Name, symbol, number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, period, block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Standard atomic weight 55. ... For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation). ... Brazen redirects here. ... The Book of Ether is part of the Book of Mormon, the major sacred text of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (members of which are often referred to as Mormons). ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... For general information about the genus, including other species of cattle, see Bos. ... The word horse is used in The Book of Mormon (a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement) in several passages. ... For other uses, see Chariot (disambiguation). ... The Book of Alma is one of the books that make up the Book of Mormon. ...

Organizational statements regarding the Book of Mormon

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution issued an official statement in 1996 and again in 1998 that it considered the Book of Mormon to be "a religious document and not a scientific guide", and hence it had not used it in archaeological research.^[12]

During the early 1980s, reports circulated in LDS culture that the Book of Mormon was being used by the Smithsonian to guide primary archaeological research. This rumor was brought to the attention of Smithsonian directors who, in 1996, sent a form letter to inquiring parties stating that the Smithsonian did not use the Book of Mormon to guide any research, and included a list of specific reasons Smithsonian archaeologists considered the Book of Mormon historically unlikely.^[13] In 1998, the Smithsonian revised the form letter they sent in response to this issue to take a less controversial stance,^[14] specifically replacing detailed allegations of the non-historicity of the Book of Mormon with a simple statement that the Book of Mormon has not been used by the Smithsonian in any form of archaeological research. Mormon scholars suggest this may have been because the 1996 letter contradicts some aspects of research published by Smithsonian staff members; Non-LDS scholars note that the Smithsonian has not retracted any of its previous statements, and feel that the response was toned down to avoid negative public relations with Mormons. Terryl Givens suggests that the change in the statement was "in all likelihood a product of controversy-avoidance."^[15] Some Mormon scholars speculate that the statement may have been revised because some of the reasons listed are considered controversial or even dubious (for reasons unrelated to the Book of Mormon) by some mainstream historians.^[14] The 1980s refers to the years from 1980 to 1989. ... Terryl Lynn Givens is professor of literature and religion at the University of Richmond where he holds the James A. Bostwick Chair in English. ...

National Geographic Society

The National Geographic Society, in a 1998 letter to the Institute for Religious Research, stated "Archaeologists and other scholars have long probed the hemisphere's past and the society does not know of anything found so far that has substantiated the Book of Mormon."^[16]

LDS efforts to establish Book of Mormon archaeology

Apologetics and archaeology

Many believing Book of Mormon researchers have in the late twentieth century shifted their focus from "apologetics" to "studies."^{[citation needed]} This has generally resulted in better scholarship among believers^{[original research?]} as researchers have focused more on real answers than on talking points, though ironically this shift of focus has provided better material for apologists^{[citation needed]}. In fact, a recent evangelical publication lamented the lack of serious scholarship responding to the "sophistication and erudition" of LDS apologetic scholarship.^[17] For Book of Mormon researchers "archaeology and The Book of Mormon" is no longer driven solely by the apologist/skeptic debate, but by a serious research interest in the Book of Mormon itself. Apologists are authors, writers, editors of scientific logs or academic journals, and leaders known for taking on the points in arguments, conflicts or positions that are either placed under popular scrutinies or viewed under persecutory examinations. ...

The following are some of the specific reasons most Mormon apologists do not place much emphasis on apologetics through archaeology:

Early attempts

Commencing in the early 1840s, Latter Day Saints sought to support the Book of Mormon with John Lloyd Stephens’ bestseller Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan. Stephens’ two volume work was promoted by well meaning church members, as an essential guide to the ruins of Book of Mormon cities. Archaeological endeavors stemming from this tradition have led to disappointment and confusion among the faithful. In the fall of 1842, a Mormon newspaper article appearing in Times and Seasons alleged that the ruins of Quirigua, discovered by Stephens, were the very ruins of Zarahemla or some other Book of Mormon city.^[20]It is now known that these Central American ruins date more recent than Book of Mormon times. Other articles followed, including one published shortly after the death of Joseph Smith. Every Latter-day Saint was encouraged to read Stephens' bestseller and to regard the stone ruins described in it, as relating to the Book of Mormon.^[21] Regardless of erroneous claims in these articles, the opinions inaugurated a romance which took the interests and imaginations of generations of Latter-day Saints thousands of miles away from the place where Joseph Smith said he obtained the Nephite record. John Lloyd Stephens in 1839 John Lloyd Stephens (November 28, 1805â€“October 13, 1852) was an American explorer, writer, and diplomat. ... The Times and Seasons was a nineteenth-century Latter Day Saint periodical published monthly or twice-monthly at Nauvoo, Illinois, from November 1839 to February 15, 1846. ... Quiriguá is an ancient Maya site in the Izabal department of Guatemala. ... Depiction of the Land of Zarahemla from the Latter-day Saint film The Testaments According to the Book of Mormon, the Land of Zarahemla (popularly attributed to Biblical Hebrew ×–Ö¶×¨Ö·×¢ ×—Ö¶×žÖ°×œÖ¸×” seed of compassion) was the Nephite capital for many years, and it was discovered by Mosiah sometime between 323 and 130... Joseph Smith most commonly refers to Joseph Smith, Jr. ...

Some Latter-day Saints have based their conclusions regarding archaeology and the Book of Mormon on fraudulent archaeological data.^[22] In recent years, this has caused LDS scholars to take a very critical approach to the work of other LDS researchers on the subject. Mormon scholar John Sorenson states that "LDS scholars themselves have attacked the same shoddy scholarship that makes Book of Mormon archaeology a playground for hobbyists."^[23]It should be noted, however, that even with LDS methods becoming more erudite, the Central American Zarahemla tradition, which is not clearly based on Mormon scripture, continues as a major LDS paradigm.

Modern approach

Several candidates considered likely by LDS researchers^[who?] have been proposed for the Middle Eastern sites mentioned in the Book of Mormon. However, fewer distinct landmarks are agreed upon relative to the Book of Mormon’s American setting. LDS scholars readily accept traditional biblical sites (e.g. “Carmel”^[24]), but there are those who are unwilling to accept the only New World Book of Mormon landmark, addressed in LDS scripture, (“Cumorah”^[25]), because it does not fit the popular Mesoamerican model. Not accepting this landmark, makes LDS study in the Western Hemisphere less definite - without a single fixed reference. Because of confusion brought about by attempts to establish a New World archaeology, most Mormon scholars now take a different approach: analyze archaeological findings for parallels and correlations with information found in the Book of Mormon. Although LDS scholars have found no indisputable proof of the book's historicity, they have accumulated a large amount of what they believe is supporting evidence. A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... The geographical western hemisphere of Earth, highlighted in yellow. ... Main article: Book of Mormon The question of whether the Book of Mormon is an actual historical work or a work of fiction has long been a source of contention between between members of the Latter Day Saint movement, who are likely to view the work as a history, and...

In addition to the search for supporting physical evidence, John L. Sorenson has attempted to apply a "flesh-and-blood" reality to the cultures in the Book of Mormon. This approach uses what the authors refer to as "contextual knowledge" in order to establish a plausible setting for the cultural events of the Book of Mormon within the context of known Mesoamerican historical settings. The goal is to determine places and times at which Book of Mormon events occurred that correlate with similar events in the Mesoamerican historical record.^[26]

From the mid-1950s onwards, the Church-owned Brigham Young University has sponsored (under the banner of the New World Archaeological Foundation, or NWAF) a large number of archaeological excavations in Mesoamerica, with a focus on the Mesoamerican time period known as the Preclassic (earlier than c. AD 200).^[27] The results of these and other investigations, while producing valuable archaeological data, have not led to any widespread acceptance by non-LDS archaeologists of the Book of Mormon account.^[28] They have, however, led to increased respect for LDS archaeological efforts in the field.^[29] , Brigham Young University (BYU), located in Provo, Utah, is a private coeducational school completely owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS or Mormon Church) and run under the auspices of its Church Educational System. ... This article is about the culture area. ... Mesoamerican chronology The chronology of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica is usually divided into the following eras: Paleo-Indian Period c. ...

LDS cultural belief regarding Book of Mormon archaeology

Traditional views of New World population

Most members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accept the historicity of the Book of Mormon claim that ancient Israelites traveled to the Americas. Some church members believe that the three groups mentioned in the Book of Mormon exclusively populated an empty North and South American Continent. This was the majority belief within the church from the founding of the religion until the twentieth century, and this view was incorporated by Orson Pratt into his footnotes for the 1879 edition of the Book of Mormon^{[citation needed]}. This view implies an essentially empty America into which the first of the three migrants, the Jaredites, came after leaving the Tower of Babel. However, the LDS Church never gave an official interpretation of the Book of Mormon geography^{[citation needed]}, and the geographical footnotes were removed from the 1920 and all subsequent editions of the Book of Mormon. Beginning in the early twentieth century, the traditional claim that the migrations described in the Book of Mormon were the means by which the Western Hemisphere was populated became less prevalent. Whereas early members of the church had used the terms "Lamanite" and "Indian" interchangeably, a 1938 church study guide asserted that "all the Book of Mormon text requires" is a "Hebrew origin for at least a part of Indian ancestry".^[30] In the mid-twentieth century Mormon scholar Hugh Nibley proposed that all pre-Columbian remains need not belong to Book of Mormon people, and that the notion that the "only people permitted in the hemisphere before Columbus were either descendants of Lehi or of Jared and his brother" was incorrect.^[31] John Sorenson demonstrated that the change from the traditional Mormon teaching to the more limited geographical interpretation continued to make headway, and that the majority of Mormon authors had come to believe in the new limited geographic interpretation by the mid-twentieth century.^[32] For other uses, see The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (disambiguation). ... Look up Israelite in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Orson Pratt Orson Pratt (September 19, 1811 â€“ October 3, 1881) was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. ... In the Book of Mormon, specifically the Book of Ether, the Jaredites are described as the descendants of Jared and his brother. ... This article is about the Biblical story. ... Hugh Winder Nibley (born March 27, 1910 in Portland, Oregon - died February 24, 2005) was one of Mormonisms most celebrated scholars. ... Look up columbus in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Lehi refers to: Lehi, a prophet in the Book of Mormon Lehi, a city in Utah Lehi, a Zionist paramilitary group in Palestine/Israel Lehi, a location in southwest Palestine/Israel Lehi, a traditionally Mormon agricultural neighborhood in northern Mesa, Arizona This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which... Template:Connor Burek Look up Jared in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Mahonri Moriancumer is the brother of Jared in the account in the Book of Ether, part of the Book of Mormon. ...

LDS academic views of New World population

LDS scholars, however, have long taken a more critical view regarding the assumption that no other people were present in the New World at the time of Lehi's arrival.

Hugh Winder Nibley (born March 27, 1910 in Portland, Oregon - died February 24, 2005) was one of Mormonisms most celebrated scholars. ... Ensign is an official magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ...

Genetic studies

The Book of Mormon narrative tells of three migrations of people from the Old World: Jaredites, an ancient civilization that was destroyed; Nephites and Lamanites, descended from the Israelite tribe of Joseph; and Mulekites, also descended from Israelites. Though the Book of Mormon itself makes no overt assertions regarding the migration or non-migration of other groups to America, an introductory paragraph added to the book identified the Lamanites as being "among the principal ancestors of the American Indians."^[39] Most mainstream Mormons believe that the Lamanites of the Book of Mormon are the ancestors of the Native Americans of North and South America^{[citation needed]}. This assertion and belief has caused some controversy as current genetic studies show that the principal ancestors of the Native Americans are Asian, not Israelite. These conclusions are disputed by Mormon scholars. (See Genetics and the Book of Mormon for a detailed discussion on this topic). The Book of Mormon, one of the four books of scripture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (see Standard Works), is purported to be an account of a number of Hebrew individuals who, as a small part of one of the Lost Ten Tribes, emigrated from... In the Book of Mormon, specifically the Book of Ether, the Jaredites are described as the descendants of Jared and his brother. ... In the Book of Mormon, the Nephites (BoM Arabic نافيين Nāfiyyīn) are a people descended from or associated with Nephi, a prophet who traveled with his family from Jerusalem to the Western Hemisphere circa 600 B.C. at the urging of God. ... In The Book of Mormon, a Lamanite (BoM Arabic لاماني Lāmānī) is a member of one of three main tribes described in the book. ... â€œThe Twelve Tribesâ€ redirects here. ... In Latter-day Saint theology, Mulek (BoM Arabic مولق Mūlaq) is the only surviving son of Zedekiah, the last King of Judah. ... In The Book of Mormon, a Lamanite (BoM Arabic لاماني Lāmānī) is a member of one of three main tribes described in the book. ... For other uses, see Native Americans (disambiguation). ... The Book of Mormon, one of the four books of scripture of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (see Standard Works), is purported to be an account of a number of Hebrew individuals who, as a small part of one of the Lost Ten Tribes, emigrated from...

Archaeological evidence of large populations

While the book does not state whether or not these three civilizations were the sole inhabitants of the ancient Americas, most LDS scholars have interpreted certain parts of the text as being indicative of the presence of and interactions with other groups of people whose origins are not stated.^[40] Though no complete population counts are given in the book, there are indications given of the number of people present in the Nephite civilization at various points in time. Four centuries after the arrival of Lehi's party, Zeniff's small Nephite colony is attacked by the Lamanites in a battle in which three thousand forty-three Lamanites are said to have died (Mosiah 9:18). In 87 B.C., a battle is said to have claimed the lives of over nineteen thousand Nephites and Lamanites. At one point in the history portrayed, some Mormon scholars estimate that the population described in these Book of Mormon civilization(s) ranged between 300,000 and 1.5 million people.^[41] For example, the Book of Mormon asserts specifically that in just one battle near the hill Cumorah about two hundred and thirty thousand soldiers were killed on one side alone (Mormon 6:12-15). By 385 A.D., the number of Nephite soldiers killed is estimated to be close to a quarter million people.^[42] The Jaredite civilization was likely much larger: the final war that destroyed the Jaredite civilization killed at least two million men ^[43]. The Hill Cumorah is a place from the Book of Mormon where the Nephites were destroyed in a final battle with the Lamanites, and according to Joseph Smith, it was a place where many Nephite records and other artifacts were kept in a cave. ...

The Book of Mormon states that there were pre-Columbian peoples that were white, literate, had knowledge of Old World languages, and possessed Old World derived writing systems.^[44] They smelted metal and made tools and weapons of iron, steel, and brass.^[45] They owned domesticated horses and cattle. They possessed chariots.^[46] The people covered the "entire land." The civilization described by these passages and scores of others in the Book of Mormon should yield certain types of discoveries in the pre-Columbian archaeological record.^[47] The lack of evidence of the Book of Mormon civilizations is problematic for the Book of Mormon. LDS scholars answer that there is a growing body of evidence of the book's authenticity. These evidences, however, are not accepted by mainstream archaeologists.^[48] This article is about metallic materials. ... This article is about the instrument. ... For other uses, see Weapon (disambiguation). ... General Name, symbol, number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, period, block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Standard atomic weight 55. ... For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation). ... Brazen redirects here. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ... For general information about the genus, including other species of cattle, see Bos. ... For other uses, see Chariot (disambiguation). ...

Based upon Book of Mormon population estimates, the civilizations described would be roughly the size of a few other archaeologically prominent civilizations—Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome and Maya—which also thrived at about the same time as putative Book of Mormon civilizations^{[original research?]}. These civilizations left numerous artifacts in the form of ruins, tombs, temples, pyramids, roads, arches, walls, frescos, statues, vases, coins, etc.^{[citation needed]} Skeptics argue that if large-scale and long-lived civilizations such as those mentioned in the Book of Mormon had existed in the New World, then solid physical evidence of their remains should appear in the archaeological record of the Americas. Mormon scholars^[who?] reply that evidence of these civilizations has indeed been found, and that it is simply not accepted as such by the mainstream archaeological community.^{[citation needed]} One LDS researcher points to settlement patterns that appear to correlate with those indicated in the Book of Mormon in both location and date.^[49] The pyramids are the most recognizable symbols of the civilization of ancient Egypt. ... The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... Central New York City. ... The Archeology of the Americas is the study of the archeology of North America, Central America (or Mesoamerica), South America and the Caribbean, which is to say, the pre-history and Pre-Columbian history of Native American peoples. ...

The challenge of determining a New World geographic location

There are no groups involved in primary research on Book of Mormon archaeology outside of the Mormon academic community. No archaeological finding, as yet, has been accepted by the non-Mormon archaeological community as indisputable evidence that the book has a historical connection to Native Americans.

The New World portion of the geographical record of the Book of Mormon does not conform to most of the settings proposed by LDS researchers. Many LDS scholars promote the Mesoamerican Tehuantapec setting, but this setting is not without significant difficulties. Non-LDS researchers suggest that there are few, if any, definitive indicators within the text itself to consistently place it within any real-world setting.^[50]

Similar to Old World archaeology, the archaeological record of the Americas is incomplete and faces many challenges. Of the thousands of pre-Columbian archaeological sites presently known across the continent, only a small number have been documented in exhaustive detail. In addition, some archaeological sites have been compromised and even destroyed outright by ongoing natural processes and the encroachment of urbanization and agricultural land-use. An example of this trend is the Early and Preclassic Mayan archaeological site of Kaminaljuyu. Of the hundreds of temple mounds that once existed there, most have been destroyed by the expansion of Guatemala City.^[51] The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents. ... An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been investigated using the discipline of archaeology. ... Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants, animals and other life forms. ... Kaminaljuyu is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization, in highland Guatemala, now within modern Guatemala City. ... Guatemala City (in full, La Nueva Guatemala de la AsunciÃ³n; locally known as Guatemala or Guate) is the capital and largest city of the nation of Guatemala. ...

Much of North American prehistory is generally misunderstood because of common misperceptions, stereotypes, and lack of preservation. For example, many are not aware of the existence of stone and mortar Maya cities in Mexico, structured stone and clay mortar pueblos of the Ancient Pueblo Peoples of the Southwest, or complex centers of flat-topped platform mounds of the Mississippian culture in the Eastern United States.^[52] Despite the existence of these complex cultures in North America, many indiscriminately identify the majority of Native Americans as migratory (hunters/gatherers and tepee or wigwam dwellers). This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... Mortar holding weathered bricks. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Pueblo Indians . ... Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde National Park White House Ruins, Canyon de Chelly National Monument Ancient Pueblo People or Ancestral Puebloans were a prehistoric Native American culture centered around the present-day Four Corners area of the Southwest United States, noted for their distinctive pottery and dwelling construction styles. ... A Platform Mound is any earthwork intended to support a structure or activity. ... The Mississippian culture was a mound-building Native American culture that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 to 1500 A.D., varying regionally. ... Categories: Stub | Buildings and structures | Survival skills ... Apache wickiup, by Edward S. Curtis, 1903 A wigwam or wickiup is a domed single-room dwelling used by certain Native American tribes. ...

Book of Mormon compared to Biblical archaeology

Both LDS and non-LDS scholars compare the state of Book of Mormon archaeology with Biblical archaeology, with both groups acknowledging that the number of locatable places in the Book of Mormon pales when compared to the number found in the Bible. The advantage that Biblical archaeology has is that the geographical setting for the Bible is already known, or at least is presumed endemically by tradition. LDS scholars point out that one challenge for establishing Book of Mormon archaeology in the New World is that ancient location names in the proposed Mesoamerican setting do not seem to have carried over to the present day, making the proposed Book of Mormon setting difficult to verify.^[53] Biblical archaeology involves the recovery and scientific investigation of the material remains of past cultures that can illuminate the periods and descriptions in the Bible. ...

Existing ancient records of the New World

Similar to frequent and massive losses of ancient writings in the Old World (in deliberate or accidental fires, in wars, earthquakes, floods, etc), much of the literature of the Pre-Columbian Maya was also destroyed during the Spanish conquest in the 1500s.^[54] On this point, Michael Coe noted: This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... The decade of years from 1500 to 1509, inclusive. ...

However, in addition to the four surviving pre-Columbian Maya codices mentioned by Coe, there are also a number of documents dating from the 16th century conquest and shortly after, in which indigenous scribes or Spanish interlocutors recorded facets of Maya (and other) historical accounts and beliefs.^{[citation needed]} The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents. ... Page 9 of the Dresden Codex (from the 1880 FÃ¶rstermann edition) Maya codices (singular codex) are folding books stemming from the pre-Columbian Maya civilization, written in Maya hieroglyphic script on Mesoamerican paper, made from the inner bark of certain trees, the main being the wild fig tree or...

The Maya civilization also left behind a vast corpus of inscriptions (upwards of ten thousand are known^[56]) written in the Maya script, the earliest of which date from around the 3rd century BC with the majority written in the Classic Period (c. 250 - 900 AD).^[57] Mayanist scholarship is now able to decipher a large number of these inscriptions. These inscriptions are mainly concerned with the activities of Mayan rulers and the commemoration of significant events, with the oldest known Long Count date corresponding to December 7, 36 B.C. being recorded on Chiapa de Corzo Stela 2 in central Chiapas.^[58] It has been claimed that none of these inscriptions make contact with events, places, rulers or timeline of Book of Mormon.^[59] Maya glyphs in stucco at the Museo de sitio in Palenque, Mexico The Maya script, commonly known as Maya hieroglyphs, was the writing system of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization of Mesoamerica, presently the only deciphered script of the Mesoamerican writing systems. ... Mayanist is a term which has been in widespread use from the late 19th century onwards, to refer to scholars who have specialised in research and study of the Central American pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ...

One LDS researcher uses as supporting evidence ancient Mesoamerican accounts that appear to parallel events recorded in the Book of Mormon.^[60]

Joseph Smith's statements regarding Book of Mormon geography

It is not certain that Joseph Smith placed Book of Mormon lands in Central America. His published statements indicate that Book of Mormon peoples or their descendants, migrated from “the lake country of America” (near Lake Ontario) to Mexico and Central America^[61]. In 1841 Joseph Smith read Stephens’ Incidents of Travel in Central America. Smith held Stephens’ work in high regard and recommended it.^[62] However, Stephens’ bestseller did not change Smith’s position that Book of Mormon events took place in northern America, in lands occupied by the United States. In his “AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES” editorial of July, 1842, Joseph Smith corroborates wars described in the Book of Mormon with archaeological finds in northern America. Joseph Smith quotes Josiah Priest’s American Antiquities as follows:

Editor Joseph Smith then proceeds to comment (in the “American Antiquities” Times and Seasons article) that “The Book of Mormon speaks of ores, swords, cities, armies, &c.…In regards to there being great wars, the following will shew [show]:” Joseph Smith then quotes from the Book of Mormon the account of the battle of Coriantumr and Shiz (found in Ether 15:12-16 of the current edition) and concludes with the following remarks:

Joseph Smith associates earth, timber and metal works found in northern America (presumably artifacts of mound builder societies) with implements and constructions described in the Book of Mormon.^[65]As much as Joseph Smith approved of Stephens’ work, he only makes minor mention of it, and then only to conclude in his “American Antiquities” editorial, that the peoples of Central America are tied historically to the Book of Mormon. Regarding the peoples of Central America, Joseph Smith exact words are, “the Book of Mormen [Mormon] unfolds their history"^[66] Smith does not actually say that Book of Mormon lands are to be found in Central America. This assertion came later in several unsigned newspaper articles, published in the fall of 1842. These articles were likely written by other church members for Joseph Smith was not publicly present to oversee their publication. One of the articles in question mentions “Joseph Smith” in the third person. This same article alleges that Lehi “landed a little south of the Isthmus of Darien” which would place Lehi’s landing on a western shore of South America^[67]. The 1842 Times and Seasons editorials, written by Joseph Smith, are readily identified as they end with his “ED”^[68]. Joseph Smith had found it necessary to go into hiding for much of the fall that year^[69]. Though he was still official editor of the Times and Seasons, it is doubtful that he was acting editor at the time in as much as he was in hiding as Doctrine and Covenants 127:1 and 128:1 attest. LDS Church History Scholars believe that John Taylor may have served as “the acting editor for the Times and Seasons” in Joseph's absence^[70]. In November of 1842, Joseph Smith officially resigned as editor, explaining that, “The multiplicity of other business that daily devolves upon me, renders it impossible for me to do justice to a paper so widely circulated as the Times and Seasons.” John Taylor was then made official editor of the newspaper^[71].

Published in the same issue as the unsigned “ZARAHEMLA” article (October 1842) with its anachronistic claims about the ruins of Quirigua, is a signed epistle to the church from the Mormon prophet in hiding. In Joseph Smith’s letter (canonized as the 128th section of the Doctrine and Covenants) the Book of Mormon land Cumorah is referenced among other locations of significance near the Finger Lakes.^[72] Quiriguá is an ancient Maya site in the Izabal department of Guatemala. ... The Finger Lakes, a major tourist destination in the west-central section of Upstate New York, are actually eleven in number, but only seven of the largest are commonly identified as such. ...

Several earlier statements by Joseph Smith, indicate that events described in the Book of Mormon took place in lands occupied by the United States of America. In an 1833 letter to N.C. Saxton, Smith wrote:

The expression, “our western tribes of Indians” refers to Indian tribes who lived west, or were pushed west from the east coast of the United States by European expansion. LDS missionaries were sent to these peoples in the early days of the Church. Latter-day scripture refers to these peoples as “Lamanites”^[74]. Several passages in LDS scripture associate these native peoples with peoples of the Book of Mormon^[75]. LDS scripture teaches that the land of their Book of Mormon ancestors (now occupied by the United States of America) was ordained to become a land “free unto all…”^[76]. The ancient land of their inheritance is, according to LDS scripture, associated with the land of “New Jerusalem.”^[77]. New Jerusalem, “the city of Zion” is, according to LDS scripture to be built in northern America ^[78].

On June 4, 1834, during the Zion's Camp trek through Illinois, Joseph Smith stated that the group was "wandering over the plains of the Nephites, recounting occasionally the history of the Book of Mormon, roving over the mounds of that once beloved people of the Lord, picking up their skulls & their bones, as proof of its divine authenticity…"^[79] Joseph Smith came to believe that the Maya ruins on the Yucatán Peninsula discovered in the late 1830s, offered evidence in support of the Book of Mormon's authenticity. After reading about the accounts, he proclaimed the ruins were likely Nephite or belonging to “the ancient inhabitants of America treated of in the Book of Mormon”.^[80]In view of the position that ancient peoples migrated from the north into Mexico and Central America, Joseph Smith’s linking of Mesoamerican artifacts with “ancient inhabitants …of …the Book of Mormon” is not inconsistent with his statements placing Book of Mormon lands in northern America. Just prior to publishing the AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES editorial (citing northern American evidence of Book of Mormon history), Joseph Smith recorded: is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1834 (MDCCCXXXIV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Zions Camp is the name given to an important group of early Latter Day Saints or Mormons. ... The YucatÃ¡n peninsula as seen from space The YucatÃ¡n Peninsula, in Southeastern Mexico, separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico. ...

Stephens brought to New York hundreds of artifacts from Mayan sites. Among these were sculptures and architectural remnants. Shortly after arriving in New York, most of these relics were lost when the building that housed them was destroyed by fire.^[82] According to Mormon 6:5, Nephite civilization came to an end near the year 384 A.D. Copan, Quirigua and sites in the Yucatan visited by Stephens and Catherwood, contain artifacts that date more recent than Book of Mormon times. It has not been shown that any of Stephens’ artifacts, referred to by Joseph Smith, date to Book of Mormon times, and Joseph Smith does not actually make this assertion. The Pre-Columbian city of Cop n is a locale in extreme western Honduras, in the Cop Department, near to the Guatemalan border. ... Quiriguá is an ancient Maya site in the Izabal department of Guatemala. ... The Yucatán Peninsula separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico. ...

The first history of the Church was written in 1834 and 1835 by Oliver Cowdery, as a series of articles published serially in the Church's Messenger and Advocate. In this history, Cowdery stated that the final battle between the Nephites and the Lamanites occurred at the "Hill Cumorah," the very same Hill Cumorah in New York, where Joseph Smith said he obtained golden plates and other artifacts which were used to translate the Book of Mormon. These plates and artifacts were shown to only a few witnesses and never to the general public. The plates were later claimed to have been removed via divine means. Cowdery also identified the Jaredites' final battle as occurring in the same area as the Nephite/Lamanite final battle. Since Smith was an editor of the Messenger and Advocate and approved the history, all but proponents of limited South American and Mesoamerican geography theories believe it conclusively demonstrated Joseph Smith’s belief as well. In any case, evidence appears to show that Smith did not subscribe to the limited Mesoamerican and South American geography theories promoted by some LDS today.^[83]Joseph Smith clearly advocated a northern American setting (near the Finger Lakes) for the Book of Mormon land Cumorah, hence Doctrine and Covenants 128:20. An 1841 engraving of Cumorah (looking south), where Joseph Smith said he was given Golden Plates by an angel named Moroni, on the west side, near the peak. ...

Lucy Mack Smith, Joseph Smith’s mother, in her account of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, says that the divine messenger called the hill where the plates were deposited the “hill of Cumorah” meaning “hill of” the Book of Mormon land “Cumorah”. In another account, Mother Smith says that young Joseph, referred to the hill using this description.^[84] Joseph Smith’s preeminence as an authority on the Book of Mormon is evinced by the following account given by his mother:

Efforts to associate Joseph Smith with the geographic notions of his contemporaries remain speculative. A note in the handwriting of Frederick G. Williams, one of Joseph Smith's counselors and scribes, asserts that Lehi's people landed in South America at thirty degrees south latitude.^[86]Early LDS church leader, Orson Pratt also speculated that the Nephite landing site was on the coast of Chile near Valparaiso, but Pratt indicated that this hypothesis was arrived at by supposition, not divine revelation^[87] There is no proof that William’s unsigned, undated writing represents a revelation given to Joseph Smith. An official statement by the LDS Church discourages Church members from making too much of the William’s document.^[88] Frederick Granger Williams (1787â€“1842) (commonly known as Frederick G. Williams) was a leader in the Latter Day Saint and served in the First Presidency as Second Counselor to President Joseph Smith, Jr. ... Orson Pratt Orson Pratt (September 19, 1811 â€“ October 3, 1881) was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. ... Valparaiso is the name of at least three cities and a village: Valparaíso, Chile Valparaiso, Florida Valparaiso, Indiana Valparaiso, Nebraska This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Proposed Book of Mormon geographical setting

As with Bible studies, considerable effort in Book of Mormon studies has been focused on establishing a credible real world setting for the narrative. The Book of Mormon narrative begins at Jerusalem and follows a straightforward route along the Gulf of Suez, then across the Arabian Peninsula eastward, then apparently across the Pacific Ocean to the New World. Joseph Smith said he acquired the Book of Mormon in the state of New York. Between these two bookends, the setting for the main Book of Mormon narrative (and the sub-narrative of the Jaredites as told in the Book of Ether) is not obvious. There are two major divisions of Book of Mormon archaeology: The Old World and the New World. This article is about the state. ... The Jaredites are a people written of in the Book of Mormon, principally in the Book of Ether. ...

Old World setting

The Old World narrative portion has proven much more fruitful for Mormon scholars where there are only two separate, but overlapping theories on the sites described in Lehi's journey to the Ocean, and the identification of locations, such as Nahom, that most Mormon scholars consider to be a confirmed location.^[89] Image File history File links Size of this preview: 750 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1280 Ã— 1024 pixel, file size: 357 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 750 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1280 Ã— 1024 pixel, file size: 357 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation... Nahom is a place referenced in the Book of Mormon where Ishmael is laid to rest. ...

Recent trends in Book of Mormon archaeology have focused on the Arabian peninsula in the Middle East as the early accounts in the Book of Mormon do describe actual locations. Many Mormon researchers are confident that evidence found in Yemen and Oman correlates with the account of Lehi's family's journey southward from Jerusalem to a place on the Arabian peninsula called "Bountiful" by Lehi, where they built ships to come to the Americas.^[90] Bountiful (Book of Mormon) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Another Old World connection to the Book of Mormon occurred in 1997 when an ancient Judean stamp seal was identified as bearing the Hebrew form of the name "Malchiah son of Hammelech".^[91] It is argued that this ancient Judean stamp seal belongs to Mulek, a man who is mentioned in the Bible and briefly identified in the Book of Mormon as the only surviving son of Zedekiah, king of Judah.^[92] In Latter-day Saint theology, Mulek (BoM Arabic مولق Mūlaq) is the only surviving son of Zedekiah, the last King of Judah. ...

Lehi's Arabian journey

The Book of Mormon describes a 600 B.C. journey of two families from Jerusalem along the east side of the Red Sea, then east across the Arabian Peninsula from 600 B.C. to 592 B.C. The details and locations encountered on this journey are very clearly described in the text.^[93] Through most of the twentieth century, no information was available to confirm the narrative of an encampment at a continually running stream (River of Laman) in a valley (of Lemuel) at the "fount of the Red Sea," of a burial at a place "called Nahom," of a "Bountiful" place on the east side of the Arabian Peninsula where multiple narrative details occur, or of any other detail of Lehi's Arabian journey. In the late twentieth and the early twenty-first centuries, LDS researchers have located plausible candidates for each of these places that they believe correlate with the route of Lehi's journey. Field studies and research on these and other locations related to this subject are ongoing. Jerusalem (Modern Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם Yerushaláyim, Biblical and trad. ... Location of the Red Sea The Red Sea is an inlet of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Asia. ... Nahom is a place referenced in the Book of Mormon where Ishmael is laid to rest. ...

Based on extensive text analysis and field work in Arabia, a number of LDS researchers have concluded that plausible locations exist for every important Arabian site mentioned along the route of Lehi's journey. These include, the 'borders near and nearer' the Red Sea, Shazer (where they stopped to hunt), the most fertile parts, the trees from which Nephi made his bow, Nahom, Nephi’s eastwardly trail to Bountiful, and Bountiful.^[94] Shazer is a place on the Arabian peninsula referenced in the Book of Mormon as one of the stops on the Old World segment of Lehis journey (1 Nephi 16:13). ... Nahom is a place referenced in the Book of Mormon where Ishmael is laid to rest. ...

Most Mormon scholars believe that Lehi and his family interacted with locals during their travels, and even taught the gospel to those they came in contact with.^[95] Some scholars even suggest that Lehi's group might have been in bondage to others in the area for a period of time.^[96] Lehi is a prophet in the Book of Mormon. ...

Lehi's Ancient home

Some speculate^[who?] that Khirbet Beit Lei ("Ruin of the House of Lei") may have been a place where Lehi lived. In the area, there is a cave with ancient Hebrew writing that can be dated to the 6th Century B.C., and local legend holds that an ancient prophet named "Lei" lived and judged the people in the village at a time corresponding to the Book of Mormon narrative.^{[citation needed]} Khirbet Beit Lei is a Palestinian village in the area known as Judea, or the southern West Bank. ...

Some LDS historians^[who?] believe this cave could have been the location where Lehi's sons stayed while trying to retrieve the Brass Plates, based on prophecies written on the walls of the cave. While there are some striking similarities and circumstantial evidence to support this view, there is no concrete evidence that "Lehi" and "Lei" are connected. Because the evidence is circumstantial, FARMS has offered caution against tying the two together.^[97] The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) is an informal collaboration of academics devoted to Mormon apologetics. ...

People of Lihy

A tribe called the Lihyanites (“People of Lihy”) came into existence between the 6th and 4th century B.C. in the area of al-Bad on the Arabian peninsula, and left behinds ruins, including a temple, a ceremonial font and inscriptions.^[98]. Lynn and Hope Hilton have speculated that the passage of Lehi through this area around 600 B.C. had an influence upon an existing tribe, and that they adopted his name.^[99] LDS scholars caution, however, that "far too little is yet known about early Arabia to strengthen a link with the historical Lehi, and other explanations are readily available for every point advanced, attractive and intriguing as they may be to Latter-day Saints."^[100] Lihyan (Arabic:Ù„ØÙŠØ§Ù† ) is an ancient Arab kingdom, it was located northwestern Arabia, and it is known for its Old North Arabian inscriptions dating to ca. ... Lehi refers to: Lehi, a prophet in the Book of Mormon Lehi, a city in Utah Lehi, a Zionist paramilitary group in Palestine/Israel Lehi, a location in southwest Palestine/Israel Lehi, a traditionally Mormon agricultural neighborhood in northern Mesa, Arizona This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which...

Valley of Lemuel/River of Laman

The Wadi Tayyib al-Ism, 72 miles by trail from Aqaba, is considered to be a plausible location for the River of Laman by some LDS researchers.^[101] Another LDS researcher, citing problems with the proposed Wadi Tayyib al-Ism location, indicates that there are a number of other sites along the Gulf of Eilat's eastern shoreline that meet the requirements for this location, such as one of the wadis near the shore at Bir Marsha.^[102]

Nahom

The Book of Mormon states that Ishmael, the patriarch of the family that left with Lehi's, was buried "in the place which was called Nahom" early in the journey from Jerusalem to Bountiful. It was also at Nahom that the travelers made a significant change in the direction of their travel from "south-southeast" to "nearly eastward." It is significant that "Nahom" is one of the few places mentioned in the Book of Mormon that was not named by Lehi, thus suggesting that this was a pre-existing place name. This Nahom has been equated by a number of LDS scholars with a location in Yemen referred to as "NHM" (Vowels in ancient Hebrew are spoken but not always written^[103]). The name NHM is referred to in inscriptions found on altars dated to about 600 B.C.E.. The altars were found in a location consistent with the location at which Lehi's party would have had to change their route toward the east. The modern name of the location is "Nihm" and it is known as an ancient burial site and is south-southeast of Jerusalem. A turn nearly due east at this location (as described in the Book of Mormon) would bring Lehi's group to the place Bountiful on the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula".^[104]^[105] Nahom is a place referenced in the Book of Mormon where Ishmael is laid to rest. ... Nahom is a place referenced in the Book of Mormon where Ishmael is laid to rest. ... Bountiful may refer to: Bountiful, a city described in the Book of Mormon Bountiful, Utah, a city in the United States that was named after it Bountiful, British Columbia, Canada This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

There are a variety of challenges to the claim that Nahom correlates with NHM. Some claim that Joseph Smith might have learned of NHM from existing 19th century sources.^[106] Some suggest that either the vowels or consonants between the word Nahom and various derivatives of the root NHM do not represent an accurate correlation.^[107]

Bountiful

LDS scholars believe they have located several plausible locations for the land Bountiful, as well as the place Bountiful where the Book of Mormon says Lehi camped and the harbour where it says Nephi built his ship for the purpose of crossing the ocean to come to the Americas. The location of Salalah was proposed by Hugh Nibley and is supported by Lynn and Hope Hilton.^[108] The location at Khor Rori is supported by Potter and Wellington of the Nephi Project.^[109] The location of Wadi Sayq (west of Salalah near the border of Yemen) and it's associated harbor Khor Kharfot is supported by Warren Aston.^[110] Bountiful (Book of Mormon) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Bountiful (Book of Mormon) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Salalah from space, November 2004 Classification City Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said Area ?,???kmÂ² [1] Population - Total (2005) - Density - Oman calculated rank 178,447[2] ???.??/kmÂ² 2nd Timezone: (UTC) +4 Latitude Longitude 17. ... Hugh Winder Nibley (born March 27, 1910 in Portland, Oregon - died February 24, 2005) was one of Mormonisms most celebrated scholars. ...

New World setting

The New World setting for the Book of Mormon narrative has been placed everywhere from South and Central America to the Finger Lakes region in New York (possibly referring to the Mound Builders), which some equate to the fortifications described in the Book of Mormon. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 750 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1280 Ã— 1024 pixel, file size: 371 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I myself created this map. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 750 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1280 Ã— 1024 pixel, file size: 371 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I myself created this map. ... The Finger Lakes, a major tourist destination in the west-central section of Upstate New York, are actually eleven in number, but only seven of the largest are commonly identified as such. ... This article is about the state. ... For other uses, see Mound builder (disambiguation). ...

Hemispheric Geography Model

LDS scripture indicates that early church members did not exhibit great attention to Book of Mormon detail ^[111]. An exaggerated, two-continent geography for the Book of Mormon satisfied the minds of many Latter-day Saints. The hemispheric model is readily arrived at by cursorily reading the Book of Mormon in view of maps of the Western Hemisphere. In as much as there is no firsthand statement by Joseph Smith espousing a hemispheric setting for the Book of Mormon, it is not definite that he held this view. From first hand statements we find Joseph Smith relating the history of the Book of Mormon to “the aboriginal inhabitants of this country…” (North America) The peoples that survived the fall of the Nephite nation are according to Smith “the Indians that now inhabit this country.” Smith said that he was divinely “…informed concerning the aboriginal inhabitants of this country, and shown who they were, and from whence they came; a brief sketch of their origin, progress, civilization, laws, government, of their righteousness and iniquity, and the blessings of God being finally withdrawn from them as a people was made known to me.” ^[112] Joseph Smith at the very least, taught that certain lands of the Book of Mormon were in his country.^[113] Various associates of Joseph Smith held divergent opinions regarding the location of Book of Mormon lands and sites.^[114] The opinion, for instance, that Lehi landed in Chile, as far south of the equator as Jerusalem is north, is inconsistent with the notion that Lehi landed a little south of the Isthmus of Darien. These South American settings are inconsistent with the idea that Zarahemla is in Guatemala, and all are incompatible with the Book of Mormon land and city of Manti placed in the United States^[115]. Only Joseph Smith’s reference to the Finger Lakes location of Cumorah is canonical (Doctrine and Covenants 128:20). Along with the assumption that the New World Book of Mormon’s setting encompasses all of the Americas, has been the tradition that the Lamanites are the "principal ancestors of the American Indians."^[116] The original text of the Book of Mormon makes no such generalization^[117] The Book of Mormon speaks of a narrow neck of land, and many readers, with the entire Western Hemisphere in mind, have presumed that the Isthmus of Panama, or even all of Central America fits this requirement.^[118] The Isthmus of Panama. ... For other uses, see Central America (disambiguation). ...

Limited Geography Model

The Limited Geography Model, formally proposed by LDS scholars in 1984, states that the text of the Book of Mormon narrative itself supports a limited region only hundreds of miles in dimension and that other people were present in the New World at the time of Lehi's arrival.^[119] One book compiled by prominent Mormon scholar John Sorenson has more than 400 pages of possible location theories placing Book of Mormon events everywhere from the Finger Lakes region of the Northeast United States to Chile.^[120] The fact remains that aside from the Finger Lakes location of Cumorah (disregarded by some) there are no landmarks defined in LDS scripture, that will unambiguously identify New World Book of Mormon places. The Limited Geography Model for the Book of Mormon suggests that the text of the narrative correlates with a limited geographical region of several hundred square miles. ... The Limited Geography Model for the Book of Mormon suggests that the text of the narrative correlates with a limited geographical region of several hundred square miles. ...

After constructing an internal geographical model for the Book of Mormon and then comparing it to other proposed geographical regions, some LDS scholars assert that there is only a single plausible match with the geography in Mesoamerica centered around the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. This area includes the area of current day Guatemala, the southern Mexico States of Tabasco, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, and the surrounding area.^[121]This region was first proposed as the location of Zarahemla (ruins of Quirigua) in the anonymous newspaper article of October 1, 1842 (Times and Seasons). The Isthmus of Tehuantepec is an isthmus in Mexico. ... This article is about the Mexican state of Tabasco. ... Location within Mexico Municipalities of Chiapas Country Mexico Capital Municipalities 118 Largest City Tuxtla GutiÃ©rrez Government - Governor Juan JosÃ© Sabines Guerrero ( PRD) - Federal Deputies PRI: 7 PRD: 5 - Federal Senators PRI: 1 PRD: 1 PVEM: 1 Area Ranked 8th - Total 74,211 kmÂ² (28,653 sq mi) Population (2005... Catedral de Santo Domingo The Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca or simply Oaxaca is one of the 31 states of Mexico, located in the southern part of Mexico, west of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. ... Location within Mexico Country Capital Municipalities 212 Largest City Veracruz Government - Governor Fidel Herrera BeltrÃ¡n (PRI) - Federal Deputies PRI: 6 PAN: 11 PRD: 2 Convergencia: 2 - Federal Senators PRD: 1 PAN: 1 Convergencia: 1 Area Ranked 11th - Total 71,699 kmÂ² (27,683. ... is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

With Zarahemla posited in Guatemala, the pick of isthmuses to label as the “small neck” becomes rather limited. The lateral Isthmus of Tehuantepec is as wide as Florida, and its northern and southern seas are a problematic fit for “the sea, on the west and on the east” of the “narrow pass” (Alma 50:34). Curiously, the only Isthmus mentioned in the Times and Seasons “ZARAHEMNLA” article is the Isthmus of Darien. The writer(s) of the newspaper article cite Alma 20:32 (pages 280-81 in the Book of Mormon 3rd edition). The “narrow strip of wilderness” south of Zarahemla (verse 27), is easily confused with “the small neck of land” north of Zarahemla (verse 32). The article clearly blunders in attributing the description of a “large stone …with engravings on it” to Mosiah, when in fact it was Amaleki son of Abinadom who described the stone (Omni 1:20). There is nothing in the 1842 article leading readers to place Cumorah in southern Mexico.

The Limited Mesoamerican Geography Model has been critiqued by a number of scholars, who suggest that it is not an adequate explanation for Book of Mormon geography and that the locations, events, flora and fauna described in it do not precisely match.^[122]^[123] In response to one of these critiques in 1994, Sorenson reaffirmed his proposal for a limited Mesoamerican geographical setting.^[124]

A limited geographical setting for the Book of Mormon has been suggested by many church leaders, including Joseph Smith, Orson Pratt, Parley P. Pratt, and B. H. Roberts.^[125] Orson Pratt Orson Pratt (September 19, 1811 â€“ October 3, 1881) was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles. ... Parley P. Pratt Statue of Parley P. Pratt facing Parleys Canyon at sunrise. ... Brigham Henry Roberts (March 13, 1857 _ September 27, 1933) was born in Warrington, a manufacturing town of Lancashire, England. ...

Scholar and author Venice Priddis speculated that the geographical setting of the Book of Mormon could be in South America.^[126]Author Phyllis Carol Olive cogently defends a limited geography setting based on scriptural Cumorah of the Finger Lakes^[127]

Alternative settings

Some Latter Day Saint scholars have suggested that it is possible that the events recorded in the Book of Mormon took place somewhere other than the Western Hemisphere. For example, one scholar has suggested that many Book of Mormon events could plausibly be placed in the Malay Peninsula.^[128] This author has acknowledged that consideration of his "Malay hypothesis" by LDS scholars would require Book of Mormon archaeology to "undergo a radical paradigm shift—one that many would consider quite far-fetched."^[128] The geographical western hemisphere of Earth, highlighted in yellow. ... The Malay Peninsula (Malay: Semenanjung Tanah Melayu) is a major peninsula located in Southeast Asia. ...

Efforts to correlate Book of Mormon cultures with New World cultures

LDS scholars have used the Mesoamerican geographical model to correlate Book of Mormon cultures with known cultures in the region. While such comparisons are performed in order to determine the plausibility of these correlations, it should be noted that neither the text of the Book of Mormon nor the scholars who support it make any definitive claim that the Book of Mormon describes the Olmec or Mayan civilizations.

The Jaredites and the Olmec

Many LDS scholars^[who?] believe that the Olmec civilization matches the appropriate time and place to be identified with the Jaredite civilization in The Book of Mormon^{[citation needed]}^{[original research?]}. The Book of Mormon places the Jaredite civilization in the new world at the time of the Tower of Babel (estimated to be between 3100 BC and 2200 BC). The specific date of arrival in the New World is not identified. The Jaredite civilization in the American covenant land, is said to have been completely destroyed as the result of a civil war at the approximate time that Lehi's party is said to have arrived in the New World (approximately 590 B.C.). Jaredite civilization concentrated in “the land northward” according to the Book of Mormon. The land south of “the narrow neck” was preserved by the Jaredites as “a wilderness to get game”^[129]. Unlike the broad, lateral Isthmus of Tehuantepec, "the narrow pass" which led into the Book of Mormon "land northward" is described as having water on the west and on the east of it^[130]. Olmec civilization spread to both the east and west sides of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec^[131]. The Olmec civilization flourished in Mesoamerica during the Preclassic period, dating from 1200 BC to about 400 BC. The Olmec civilization suddenly disintegrated for unknown reasons, although archaeological evidence clearly indicates a definite Olmec influence within the Maya civilization that followed^{[citation needed]}. Although the Olmec civilization ended, there are indications that some of the Olmec people survived and interacted with other cultures.^[132] A jade Olmec mask. ... Monument 1, one of the four Olmec colossal heads at La Venta. ... // The Book of Mormon [1] is one of the sacred texts of the Latter Day Saint movement. ...

The Lamanites and The Maya

The Maya civilization has been suggested as the Lamanite culture depicted in the Book of Mormon^{[citation needed]}. There is substantial debate about whether the material and linguistic culture of these civilizations corresponds to the descriptions in the Book of Mormon^{[citation needed]}. This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... According to the The Book of Mormon, a Lamanite is a member of one of four main groups described in the book. ...

Establishing connections between ruins of the Mayan civilization (for example, Quirigua, Kaminaljuyu, and Tikal in Guatemala, and Copán in Honduras, and Palenque in Mexico) and the cities and civilizations mentioned in the Book of Mormon has been difficult for LDS scholars on a number of fronts. Perhaps the most significant issue is the dating. By Old-World standards, the Mayan ruins are relatively recent; conventional archaeology places the pinnacle of Mayan civilization several centuries after the final events in the Book of Mormon supposedly occurred. LDS scholars^[who?] suggest that the Book of Mormon record follows the Nephite civilization until its destruction, but the Lamanite civilization remained^{[citation needed]} (possibly the Maya^{[original research?]}). This would explain the more modern ruins that are from a much later time period^{[original research?]}. Quiriguá is an ancient Maya site in the Izabal department of Guatemala. ... Kaminaljuyu is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization, in highland Guatemala, now within modern Guatemala City. ... For other uses, see Tikal (disambiguation). ... Location of CopÃ¡n The Pre-Columbian city now known as CopÃ¡n is a locale in extreme western Honduras, in the CopÃ¡n Department, near to the Guatemalan border. ... The Palace, Ruins of Palenque Palenque is a Maya archeological site near the Usumacinta River in the Mexican state of Chiapas, located at about 130 km south of Ciudad del Carmen (see map). ...

The standard construction practice employed by the Maya was to build new structures on top of older structures. Many older structures are either contained within or their rubble is buried under the structures which were built later.^[133]

The Nephites

No civilization has been identified as correlating with the Nephite culture, and it is postulated by some LDS scholars^[who?] that the Nephite culture was probably characterized by unpretentious Christian discipleship inconsistent with impressive monuments and stone artisanship^{[citation needed]}. As such, LDS scholars^[who?] have postulated several views, one view holds that a Nephite culture may have existed within the greater Lamanite (usually Maya) culture^{[original research?]}. The Book of Mormon, however, makes no mention of Lamanites erecting impressive works of hewn stone as did the Maya. Another view holds that the events surrounding most of the Book of Mormon may have occurred in the Great Lakes region in ancient times^[134]. The Golden Plates were reported to have been found near this general area.

The Book of Mormon mentions that Nephite infrastructure included “high ways”^[135]. Bradley T Lepper argues that the ancient peoples of Ohio constructed the Great Hopewell Road which is estimated to have been 90 kilometers long and 40 meters wide, and is believed to have connected present day Newark and Chillicothe, Ohio, in a straight line^[136]. Works of earth and timber are mentioned repeatedly in the Book of Mormon^[137]. In their heyday the earth and timber works of certain mound builder societies were very impressive. Some of these constructions are known to be older than the stone works of the Maya, Aztecs and Incas^[138].

According to the Book of Mormon, an altered form of the Hebrew language existed among the Nephites^[139]. This does not mean that all the names or language used in the Book of Mormon to describe for instance, Messiah (Meshiach, Anointed One) derive from Hebrew.^[140] Hebraic fragments and roots seem discernible in Nephite / Mulekite names like "Zarahemla".^[141] The Book of Mormon name “Mosiah” is similar to the Hebrew word “moshia” (מוֹשִׁיעַ) meaning “savior” ^[142], Masoretic Text, Hebrew-Aramaic Lexicon).^[143] Numerous seemingly Semitic Book of Mormon names have been pointed out.^[144] Book of Mormon names such as “Jacob”, “Jerusalem”, “Boaz”, “Gilgal”, to name only a few, are definitely Hebraic, being also found in the Hebrew Bible. The Semitic etymologies of these Book of Mormon names can be referenced in any reliable Hebrew-Aramaic Lexicon. The Masoretic Text (MT) is the Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible (Tanakh). ...

Nephite civilization was severely damaged at the time of Christ, with many major cities being completely destroyed. There is a 300 year period in the Book of Mormon after Christ’s arrival for which few details about Nephite civilization are recorded. The Book of Mormon indicates that damaged cities were rebuilt^[145]. Distant migrations may have also occurred^[146].

LDS scripture indicates that Nephite civilization situated near the Great Lakes / Finger Lakes region^[147]. LDS authors John L. Sorenson and David A. Palmer, on the other hand, propose a Mesoamerican setting for the Book of Mormon^[148]. According to 3 Nephi 8:5-19, Book of Mormon lands were subjected to three days of profound darkness, preceded by a period of electrical storms and earth quakes. The account of this destruction and particularly the palpable darkness, has led Sorenson and Palmer to speculate that local volcanism was involved^[149]. It is known that volcanic tephra including ash, can travel thousands of miles from an eruption^[150]. LDS theorists Sorenson and Palmer, however, conclude that Book of Mormon lands must reside in a volcanic zone ^[151]. There is no explicit mention of a volcano or volcanism in the Nephite record, and it has not been demonstrated that volcanism is the only mechanism capable of accounting for cloudy darkness described in LDS scripture. Plural “whirlwinds” (tornados), “lightnings”, “fire” and “smoke” are explicitly described^[152]. Tephra refers to air-fall material produced by a volcanic eruption regardless of composition or fragment size. ... This article is about the weather phenomenon. ...

According to Joseph Smith the golden plates, the interpreters and breast plate were sealed in a cemented stone box near Lake Ontario and the Finger Lakes^[153]. Limited Mesoamerican and South American geography theorist must, out of necessity, argue that these artifacts were carried to the Finger Lakes region by a Mesoamerican or else South American Moroni, who journeyed thousands of miles, trying to escape from seemingly ever present Lamanites. It is evident from the Book of Mormon, however, that Moroni was still hiding from the Lamanites (Book of Mormon peoples) and robbers in Book of Mormon lands many years after the destruction of the Nephites ^[154]. He was still in Book of Mormon “north country” when he began his abridgement of the record of Ether. This is evident from his introductory remarks to the abridged Book of Ether, which mention “…the ancient inhabitants [Jaredites] who were destroyed…upon the face of this north country” ^[155]. Before completing the abridgement in his own language, Moroni sealed up the interpreters ^[156], Ether 5:1), and was still in Lamanite held territory (not thousands of miles away) after completing the Ether abridgement^[157]. He specifically mentions his intent to seal up the plates (the interpreters had already been sealed up) after concluding some remarks to the Lamanites (his brethren^[158].

Nephite scripture informs us that “the Lord God, will give unto him [Joseph Smith] power, that he may whisper concerning them [the righteous dead of the Book of Mormon] , even as it were out of the ground; and their speech shall whisper out of the dust.” The process of translating the words of the Book of Mormon (in the vicinity of the Finger Lakes) was therefore likened to the voice of the dead speaking out of the ground^[159]. Mormon 8:23-26 indicates that the voice from the dust, concomitant with the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, would figuratively proceed from the ground of the book’s ancient dead, that is, from the land which the saints of the Book of Mormon possessed in life, and not from ground thousands of miles away (i.e. Central or South America).

Systems of measuring time (calendars)

All of the dates given in the Book of Mormon are stated in terms of the Nephite calendar. The system of dates used by the Lamanites is not stated. The highest numbered month mentioned is the eleventh, and the highest numbered day is the twelfth, but the total number of months in a year and the number of days in a month is not specified.^[160]

Most North American tribes relied upon a calendar of 13 months, since there are 13 distinct cycles of the moon each year. Seasonal Rounds and ceremonies were performed each moon. Months were counted in the days between phase cycles of the moon itself. Calendar Systems in use in North America during this historical period relied on this simple system.^[161]

One of the more distinctive features shared among pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilizations is the use of an extensive system of inter-related calendars. The epigraphic and archaeological record for this practice dates back at least 2,500 years, by which time it appears to have been well-established.^[162] The most widespread and significant of these calendars was the 260-day calendar, formed by combining 20 named days with 13 numerals in successive sequence (13 × 20 = 260).^[163] Another system of perhaps equal antiquity is the 365-day calendar, approximating the solar year, formed from 18 'months' × 20 named days + 5 additional days. These systems and others are found in societies of that era such as the Olmec, Zapotec, Mixe-Zoque, Mixtec and Maya (whose system of Maya calendars are widely regarded as the most intricate and complex among them) reflected the vigesimal (base 20) numeral system and other numbers, such as 13 and 9. The Pre-Columbian people of Mesoamerica kept track of time with calendars which had ritual and religious meaning. ... The Rosetta Stone in the British Museum. ... Solar year The period of time required for the earth to make one complete revolution around the sun, measured from one vernal equinox to the next. ... Monument 1, one of the four Olmec colossal heads at La Venta. ... Extent of the Zapotec civilization The Zapotec civilization was an indigenous pre-Columbian civilization that flourished in the Valley of Oaxaca of southern Mesoamerica. ... Jade mask found in Tomb 7, Monte Alban, c. ... This article is about the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. ... The Maya calendar is a system of distinct calendars and almanacs used by the Maya civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, and by some modern Maya communities in highland Guatemala. ... The vigesimal or base-20 numeral system is based on twenty (in the same way in which the ordinary decimal numeral system is based on ten). ... This article is about different methods of expressing numbers with symbols. ...

Although the number 7 is a co-factor in some Mesoamerican calendars (such as the Mayan 819-day calendar, formed from 13 × 9 × 7 days), none of the known calendar systems used a 7-day count as an exclusive or prominent base^{[citation needed]}.

Many North American Cultures considered the numbers 7 and 13 to be particularly sacred. 13 was associated with the earth itself because it represented the cycles of the moon each year, and the number 7 was the lunar cycle midpoint between the seasons of summer and winter^{[citation needed]}. North American Tribes experienced yearly fluctations in the availability of various food sources throughout the year, and the number 7 corresponded in MesoAmerican and North American Cultures with the ripening of Maize crops, since the cultivars of Zea Mays (corn) grown by these cultures matured in the 7th lunar cycle of each seasonal round (year). This article is about the maize plant. ...

Warfare

LDS scholar Hugh Nibley stated that approximately one-third of the content of the Book of Mormon deals with matters related to warfare^[164] LDS researchers also suggest that the Book of Mormon's account of large-scale warfare has been confirmed by findings in ancient Mesoamerica^[clarify].^[165] These conclusions are disputed by critics, who note that these findings are based on the Limited Geography Model, and claim that no evidence of the cataclysmic battles that ended the Jaredites and the Nephites have been found, including the hundreds of thousands of metal swords that are lacking in the area of the hill Cumorah in New York.^{[citation needed]}. Hugh Winder Nibley (born March 27, 1910 in Portland, Oregon - died February 24, 2005) was one of Mormonisms most celebrated scholars. ...

Military fortifications

There are ten instances in the Book of Mormon in which cities are described as having defensive fortifications. For example, Alma 52:2 describes how the Lamanites "sought protection in their fortifications" in the city of Mulek^[166].

One archaeologist has noted the existence of ancient Mesoamerican defensive fortifications.^[167] According to one article in the Ensign, military fortifying berms are found in the Yucatan Peninsula,^[168]^[169] in the region appropriate to where LDS scholars^[who?] suggest that the wars described in the Book of Mormon could plausibly have occurred.

Efforts to correlate ruins and artifacts

Artifacts

Izapa Stela 5

In the early 1950s, M. Wells Jakeman of the BYU Department of Archaeology suggested that a complicated scene carved on Stela 5 in Izapa was a depiction of a Book of Mormon event called Lehi's dream, which features a vision of the tree of life.^[170] This interpretation is disputed by other Mormon and non-Mormon scholars.^[171] Julia Guernsey Kappelman, author of a definitive work on Izapan culture, finds that Jakeman's research "belies an obvious religious agenda that ignored Izapa Stela 5's heritage".^[172] Izapa Stela 5 is one of a number of large, carved stelae found in the ancient Mesoamerican city of Izapa in 1941 by Smithsonian archaeologist Matthew W. Stirling. ... Izapa Stela 5 is one of a number of large, carved stelae found in the ancient Mesoamerican city of Izapa in 1941 by Smithsonian archaeologist Matthew W. Stirling. ... // Overview Izapa was a very large pre-Columbian site located in Chiapas, Mexico, often placed in the Late Formative period. ...

Other artifacts

LDS researcher John Sorenson claims that one artifact, La Venta Stela 3, depicts a person with Semitic features ("striking beard and beaked nose").^[173] LDS researchers^[who?] have claimed that Copan Stela B depicts elephants; others claim it depicts macaws.^[174]^[175]

Flora and fauna

Animals

Horses

Horses are mentioned fourteen times in the Book of Mormon. Three of these references are contained within prophetic statements (such as those of Isaiah) which do not directly describe events related to Book of Mormon people. There are four instances in which horses and chariots are mentioned in the same verse.^[176] No specific mention is made of what the horses were used for, or if they were used with the chariots in some manner. It has been speculated by some LDS scholars that horses may have been used for food.^[177] The use of horses for food is also implied from the context of 3 Nephi 4:4, which lists horses along with other food animals^{[original research?]}:"[t]he Nephites...having reserved for themselves provisions, and horses and cattle, and flocks of every kind, that they might subsist for the space of seven years." This conclusion has been called into question^{[citation needed]}^{[original research?]} based on a reference to the preceding chapter, 3 Nephi 3:22, where it groups horses and chariots together:"and they had taken their horses, and their chariots, and their cattle, and all their flocks, and their herds, and their grain, and all their substance." Image File history File links Mergefrom. ... The word horse is used in The Book of Mormon (a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement) in several passages. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The horse (Equus caballus, sometimes seen as a subspecies of the Wild Horse, Equus ferus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the genus Equus. ...

Despite depictions by LDS artists and assumptions by some authors, horses are never mentioned as being ridden or used in battle. Words such as “ride,” “saddle,” and “horseman” (and their variants) do not appear in the Book of Mormon, leaving some people^[who?] to speculate that these animals are something other than what we call “horses” today^{[original research?]} (see Horses in the Book of Mormon). However, in the King James version of the Bible, saddle is only used with reference to an ass, and never with a horse^{[citation needed]}. The word horse is used in The Book of Mormon (a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement) in several passages. ...

Horses evolved in the Americas (see Evolution of the horse), and evidence has been found showing that pre-historic horses were hunted by the Paleo-Indian Clovis culture who appeared in North America approximately 13,500 years ago.^[178]^[179] These horses co-existed among the other Pleistocene megafauna, including the various species of mammoths, which are a genus of the elephant family, and the mastodon which is a more distant relative of the elephant. The pre-historic species of New World horses became extinct at the end of the last Ice Age, along with the mammoths and 70% of the large mammal species in North America (see New World Pleistocene Extinctions). The dates of regional extinctions vary between approximately 10,000^[180] and 12,500^[181] years ago. Horses were not re-introduced to Americas until they were brought to the Caribbean by Christopher Columbus on his second journey to the New World in 1493.^[182] Horses were first brought by the Cortés expedition to the North American continent, to areas of present-day Mexico and New Mexico, in 1519.^[183] Reconstruction, left forefoot skeleton (third digit emphasized yellow) and longitudinal section of molars of selected prehistoric horses The evolution of the horse involves the gradual development of the modern horse from the fox-sized, forest-dwelling Hyracotherium. ... Paleo-Indians is an English term used to refer to the ancient peoples of America who were present at the end of the last Ice Age. ... The Clovis culture (sometimes referred to as the Llano culture[1]) is a prehistoric Paleoindian culture that first appears in the archaeological record of North America around 11,500 rcbp radiocarbon years ago, at the end of the last glacial period. ... It has been suggested that New World Pleistocene extinctions be merged into this article or section. ... This article is about the genus Mammuthus. ... This article is about the prehistoric elephant-like animal. ... In biology and ecology, extinction is the ceasing of existence of a species or group of species. ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ... Introduction Eighteen thousand years ago at the height of the last ice age in North America the land not ice covered looks like a park with mixed trees and grass There are mastodons and mammoths whose young are being killed by massive lions and sabertooth cats. ... West Indies redirects here. ... 1493 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... HernÃ¡n(do) CortÃ©s Pizarro, 1st MarquÃ©s del Valle de Oaxaca (1485â€“December 2, 1547) was the conquistador who became famous for leading the military expedition that initiated the Spanish Conquest of Mexico. ... Aztec empire The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire was one of the most important campaigns in the Spanish colonization of America. ... Official language(s) None Spoken language(s) English 68. ... Events March 4 - HernÃ¡n CortÃ©s lands in Mexico. ...

Elephants

Elephants are mentioned twice in a single verse in the Book of Ether.^[184] The time period corresponding to this verse would be approximately 2500 B.C. Scholars agree that mastadons and mammoths once lived in the New World, but that they became extinct roughly 5000 years prior to the time period where they are mentioned. As such, critics of the Book of Mormon consider this to be an anachronism. The main point of contention is how late these animals were present before becoming extinct.^[185] Genera and Species Loxodonta Loxodonta cyclotis Loxodonta africana Elephas Elephas maximus Elephas antiquus â€ Elephas beyeri â€ Elephas celebensis â€ Elephas cypriotes â€ Elephas ekorensis â€ Elephas falconeri â€ Elephas iolensis â€ Elephas planifrons â€ Elephas platycephalus â€ Elephas recki â€ Stegodon â€ Mammuthus â€ Elephantidae (the elephants) is a family of pachyderm, and the only remaining family in the order Proboscidea... The Book of Ether is one of books that make up the Book of Mormon. ... This article is about the prehistoric elephant-like animal. ... This article is about the extinct mammal. ... Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

There are instances of stories preserved orally by Native Americans which some LDS scholars^[who?] believe may describe elephants. One such story is related by the Naskapi Indian Tribe, located in Canada. The story concerns a monster from the Naskapi tradition called Katcheetohuskw, which is described as being very large, with large ears, teeth and a long nose.^[186] Similar versions of "monster" legends related by other tribes refer to a monster called Ursida, which is described as more of a large, stiff-legged bear rather than a mammoth. The story of the "monster bear" is considered by some scholars to be purely mythical.^[187] The Innu are the indigenous inhabitants of an area they refer to as Nitassinan, which comprises most of the Quebec-Labrador peninsula in Eastern Canada. ...

Cattle

References to cattle are made seven times in the Book of Mormon, with several instances referring to cattle being among the possessions of the Nephites, and one instance noting cattle was used for food among the Jaredites.^[188]

There has been no evidence recovered that Old World cattle (members of the genus Bos) ever inhabited the New World until European contact in the sixteenth century AD. As such, the word cattle is considered by critics to be an anachronism. Apologists counter that in King James English, which is ostensibly the language the Book of Mormon was translated into, "cattle" meant "any domesticated quadruped"^[189] or, in other words, "livestock".^{[original research?]} Species B. acutifrons â€ B. aegyptiacus â€ B. frontalis B. gaurus B. grunniens B. javanicus B. planifrons â€ B. primigenius â€ B. sauveli B. taurus Bos is the genus of wild and domestic cattle or oxen. ... Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Sheep are commonly bred as livestock. ...

Swine

Swine are referred to twice in the Book of Mormon. One of these instances^[190] specifically mentions swine as being "useful for the food of man." There have not been any remains, references, artwork, tools, or any other evidence suggesting that swine were ever present in the pre-entrada New World. As a result, the term "swine" is considered by critics to be an anachronism. Apologists counter^[who?], that ancient authors would not be familiar with modern classification and could easily have applied the category to a related New World animal (such as the peccary).^{[original research?]} Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Species Tayassu Tayassu tajacu Tayassu pecari Catagonus Catagonus wagneri The peccaries (also known by its Spanish name, javelina or pecarÃ) are medium-sized mammals of the family Tayassuidae. ...

Plants

Grains

Grains are mentioned twenty-eight times in the Book of Mormon, including corn, barley, and wheat.^[191] The introduction of domesticated modern barley and wheat to the New World was made by Europeans sometime after 1492, many centuries after the text of the Book of Mormon was written. As such, critics of the Book of Mormon consider the word "barley" to be an anachronism. Binomial name L. Corn (Zea mays L. ssp. ... For other uses, see Barley (disambiguation). ... Species T. aestivum T. boeoticum T. dicoccoides T. dicoccon T. durum T. monococcum T. spelta T. sphaerococcum T. timopheevii References: ITIS 42236 2002-09-22 Wheat Wheat For the indie rock group, see Wheat (band). ... Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

LDS scholars believe that archaeological evidence^[clarify] discovered on the North American continent in Arizona, Illinois and Oklahoma shows that a variety of pre-Columbian barley existed and was cultivated in the New World.^[192] No evidence of pre-Columbian barley has been discovered in Mesoamerica.

Technology

Wheeled vehicles

The Book of Mormon mentions the use of chariots as a mode of transportation five times.^[193] Image File history File links Size of this preview: 658 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1662 Ã— 1515 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 658 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (1662 Ã— 1515 pixel, file size: 1. ... Mesoamerican chronology The chronology of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica is usually divided into the following eras: Paleo-Indian Period c. ... For other uses, see Chariot (disambiguation). ...

There is no archaeological evidence to support the use of wheeled vehicles in Mesoamerica. Many parts of ancient Mesoamerica were not suitable for wheeled transport, although there is evidence that Mesoamericans had knowledge of the wheel, as shown by the discovery of wheeled toys left in tombs.^[194]

One LDS researcher responds to the lack of evidence with a comparison to Biblical archaeology, suggesting that though there are no archaeological evidences that any of the numerous ancient American civilizations used wheeled transportation, few chariot fragments have been found in the Middle East dating to Biblical times^[195] (apart from the disassembled chariots found in Tutankhamun's tomb. Although few fragments of chariots have been found in the Middle East, there are many images of ancient chariots on pottery and frescos and in many sculptures of Mediterranean origin, thus confirming their existence in those societies. The complete absence of these images among the hundreds of frescoes, hundreds of thousands of pieces of decorated pottery and pre-Columbian artwork found in the New World does not support the existence of Old World style chariots in the New World. The pharaohs solid gold funerary mask was laid to rest with him in KV62 The wall decorations in KV62s burial chamber are modest in comparison to other tombs in the Valley Tomb KV62 in Egypts Valley of the Kings is the Tomb of Tutankhamun, famous the world...

Referencing the discovery of wheeled chariot "toys" in Mayan funerary settings, Mormon scholar William J. Hamblin has suggested that the chariots mentioned in the Book of Mormon might refer to mythic or cultic wheeled vehicles.^[196]

Recording records on metal plates

In addition to the golden plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated, the narrative itself mentions other writings recorded on metal plates. The difficulty of creating records on metal plates is referenced in the Book of Mormon narrative itself, in which Jacob states: "[A]nd I cannot write but a little of my words, because of the difficulty of engraving our words upon plates."^[197] An 1893 engraving depicting Joseph Smiths description of receiving artifacts from the angel Moroni. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (2272 Ã— 1704 pixel, file size: 905 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 Ã— 600 pixelsFull resolution (2272 Ã— 1704 pixel, file size: 905 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... The Pyrgi Tablets, found in an excavation of a sanctuary of that town in Italy, a port of the southern Etruscan town of Caere, are three golden leaves that record a dedication made around 500 BC by Thefarie Velianas, king of Caere, to the Phoenician goddess â€˜Ashtart. ...

Recent discoveries have provided some evidence that this was an established method for recording information considered important.^[198] As a point of comparison, the oldest known Biblical verses preserved in archaeology are three verses from the Book of Numbers, chapter 6, verses 24-26, that were on a pair of small silver amulets found by Israeli archaeologist Gabriel Barkay at Ketef Hinnom and dated to the 6th century BC, during the same time period the Book of Mormon events are purported to have taken place.^[199] However, no records have been found on metal plates to date which approach the size of the record in the Book of Mormon and no such records have been found on the American continents. The Book of Numbers is the fourth of the books of the Pentateuch, called in the Hebrew ba-midbar ×‘×ž×“×‘×¨, i. ... The Priestly Blessing, (in Hebrew: Birkat Kohanim, ×‘×¨×›×ª ×›×”× ×™×) is a Jewish ceremony and prayer recited during certain specific Jewish services. ... One of a series of rock-hewn burial caves at Ketef Hinnom (shoulder of Hinnom) near Jerusalem is the archaeological site in Israel that is most famous for the recovery in 1979 of two silver scrolls that were used as amulets, bearing in inscribed the well-known apotropaic priestlyblessings of...

Discussion of the metal plates and their use in recent years has involved the weight and type of metal that these plates would have been made of.^{[citation needed]}^{[original research?]}

Metals

Steel

The Book of Mormon states that metals, including iron and steel (an iron alloy with carbon), were produced and used among the Book of Mormon peoples. It has been pointed out that there is no evidence of steel production in North, Central, or South America. General Name, symbol, number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, period, block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Standard atomic weight 55. ... For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation). ... An alloy is a homogeneous hybrid of two or more elements, at least one of which is a metal, and where the resulting material has metallic properties. ...

LDS scholars^[who?] contend that the word steel could have been an approximate translation, actually referring to another type of metal entirely for which there would have been no word in 19th century America (see Tumbaga and similar copper and iron based metals)^{[original research?]}. Steel is mentioned in four verses ^[200] in the Book of Mormon, all before 360 B.C. (by the book's chronology) and could have referred to an Old-World pyrometallurgy technology that was lost or forgotten in the Americas^{[original research?]}, though no Mormon apologist has yet offered an explanation as to why so valuable a technology would be lost, or where the steel artifacts themselves would have gone. Iron and steel are mentioned together in the Bible.^[201] A pectoral of tumbaga, of the Quimbaya culture; 300-1600 AD. Tumbaga was the name given by Spaniards to a non-specific alloy of gold and copper which they found in widespread use in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. ...

Iron

Studies in the availability of iron in ancient Americas are growing^{[citation needed]}. In February 2008, multiple scientific journals ran stories that an 2000 year old iron ore mine was discovered near Nasca, Peru^{[citation needed]}. The discovery, by a Purdue University archaeologist, demonstrates how civilizations before the Inca Empire mined and used iron. Kevin J. Vaughn, who led the research, said that "This discovery demonstrates that iron ores were important to ancient Andean civilizations." ^[202].

Other researchers^[who?] note that iron may have been produced in prehistoric North America, covering sites in the East, and also provides a small amount of evidence that may indicate that Anasazi or Hohokam cultures in the Southwest performed iron smelting^{[citation needed]}^{[original research?]}. Ancient Pueblo People, or Ancestral Puebloans is the preferred term for the group of peoples often known as Anasazi who are the ancestors of the modern Pueblo peoples. ... Hohokam is the name applied to one of the four major prehistoric archaeological traditions of the American Southwest. ...

Swords

The Book of Mormon makes numerous references to swords and their use in battle^[203] and when the remnants of the Jaredite's final battle were discovered, the Book of Mormon narrative states that "the blades thereof were cankered with rust."^[204] Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1009x457, 229 KB) Summary Copy of painting from Florentine Codex, page IX, F, 5v; see article for further info Licensing The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1009x457, 229 KB) Summary Copy of painting from Florentine Codex, page IX, F, 5v; see article for further info Licensing The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in... Page 51 of Book IX from the Florentine Codex. ...

Warriors in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica are known to have used wooden clubs with blade-like obsidian flakes.^[205], which being stone cannot rust. This article is about a type of volcanic glass. ...

Systems of exchange

The Book of Mormon describes a system of exchange based on measures of precious metals. The overall use of metal in ancient America seems to have been extremely limited. A more common exchange medium in Mesoamerica were cacao beans.^[206] For the town in French Guiana, see Cacao, French Guiana. ...

In the critical video Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith, a statement is made that Book of Mormon coins "were noted as being common in Joseph’s writings."^[207] Search for the Truth (also known by the name Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith in its DVD form) is an anti-Mormon video produced by Tri-Grace Ministries. ...

Silk

The Book of Mormon mentions the use of silk six times, with two of these instances referring to things seen in a vision by Nephi. The term silk as used in the Old World context designates a material that is created from the cocoon of the Asian moth Bombyx mori. Critics believe that the word silk is an anachronism in the Book of Mormon. Binomial name Bombyx mori Linnaeus, 1758 â€œSilkwormâ€ redirects here. ... Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In juxtaposition, Mormon scholar Sorenson believes that there are several materials which were used in Mesoamerica which the Spanish called "silk" upon their arrival.^[208] The inhabitants of Mexico are known to have used the fiber spun by a wild silkworm to create a fabric.^[209]

Legends

Creation of the world

Existing documents (such as the Popol Vuh documents of the Quiché people) provide some further historical insights into the creation accounts of Mesoamerican peoples (by three feathered serpents). Coe's description of the creation account in the Popol Vuh describes the creation of the K'iche' Maya by the forefather gods Tepew and Q'ukumatz. These gods are said to have "brought forth the earth from a watery void," after which they placed plants and animals upon it. The gods then created "man-like" creatures from mud, but these creatures did not endure. Wooden creatures later appeared but were destroyed by the Gods, and were replaced by men made of flesh. The account describes how these men of flesh "turned to wickedness and were annihilated as black rains fell and a great flood swept the earth." Sometime after this destruction, the true K'iche' Maya were created from maize dough, becoming the ancestors of the Maya that we know today.^[210] The Popol Vuh (QuichÃ© for Council Book or Book of the Community; Popol Wuj in modern spelling) is the book of scripture of the QuichÃ©, a kingdom of the post classic Maya civilization in highland Guatemala. ... The Kiche (or QuichÃ© in Spanish spelling), are a Native American people, one of the Maya ethnic groups. ... Mesoamerican creation accounts are the collection of origin beliefs attributed or documented for the various cultures and civilizations of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. ... For other uses, see Snake (disambiguation). ... The Kiche (or QuichÃ© in Spanish spelling), are a Native American people, part of the Maya ethnic group. ...

Some argue that these accounts fail to resemble the creation account version offered in the Bible^{[citation needed]}.

Another document of the Quiché, the Title of the Lords of Totonicapán, significantly resembles the Biblical story of creation. This document has obvious influence from Spanish Catholicism,^{[citation needed]} but its differences to both the Popol Vuh and the Biblical story are intriguing. In the first day, God created the great light. On the second day, the nine levels of the sky received life. In the third day God created all the mountains and plains, the trees and the rocks. And so on. One interesting point is made when Lucifer, "combined with his sinful companions", rebel against God. God then sees necessary to cast them out of "the house of the sky". God then creates man from the materials of the earth. The man refers to God as "Mother and Father". The man is also sent two comforters. Following a detailed description of Cain and Abel, the Flood, and the Exodus, the Quiché state specifically that they are "descendants of the Israelites, of Moses. Of the tribes of Israel from where our grandparents and parents left. They came from where the sun leaves [from the West], there in Babyolonia where they celebrated rituals with the lord Nacxit; such was the origin of our lineage". The rest of the proceeding story is similar in many regards to the account of the Popol Vuh. In several instances, the Quiché regarding themselves specifically as Israelites.

Ancient American culture heroes

There are many legends of ancient "culture heroes" appearing in the New World. American historian and ethnologist Hubert Howe Bancroft lists some of these in his 1875 work The Native Races of the Pacific States of North America (Vol. 5): Quetzalcoatl in Cholula, Votan in Chiapas, Wixepecocha in Oajaca, Cukulcan in Yucatan, Gukumatz in Guatemala, Yiracocha in Peru, Sume and Paye-Tome in Brazil, and Bochica in Colombia.^[211] According to Bancroft: This article needs to be updated. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ... In Maya mythology, Gukumatz (feathered serpent) was a feathered snake god, one of all three groups of gods who created Earth and humanity. ...

Quetzalcoatl

The ancient Mesoamerican legend of Quetzalcoatl, depicted in some versions as "the bearded white god", is interpreted by some Latter-day Saints as a depiction of the actual visit of Jesus to the Americas as related and foretold 600 years before his coming in the Book of Mormon.^{[citation needed]} Other students of ancient Mesoamerica do not accept this claim for several reasons: Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent deity, is depicted in Mesoamerican art dated several centuries before Jesus. The King Quetzalcoatl who promised to return to Mexico dated almost 1,000 years after the life of Jesus.^[213] LDS scholars^[who?] point out that part of the reason Hernan Cortes so easily conquered the Aztecs was that he fit the pre-existent Aztec conception of Quetzalcoatl, and thus the Aztecs hesitated to resist. It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ...

See also

Notes

^ This has been an implicit consensus among all major LDS scholars since the publication of the Book of Mormon. For a general statement involving the major theories and their history see a summary from BYU's website
^ Faust 1983
^ Faust 1983 Faust states, "It is important to know what the Book of Mormon is not. It is not primarily a history, although much of what it contains is historical ... George Q. Cannon stated that 'the Book of Mormon is not a geographical primer. It was not written to teach geographical truths. What is told us of the situation of the various lands or cities … is usually simply an incidental remark connected with the doctrinal or historical portions of the work.' (Juvenile Instructor, January 1890, p. 18.) What, then, is the Book of Mormon? It is confirming evidence of the birth, life, and crucifixion of Jesus and of his work as the Messiah and the Redeemer. Nephi writes about the Book of Mormon: 'All ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ.'" (2 Ne. 33:10.)
^ Credibility of the Book of Mormon. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
^ Smithsonian statement on Book of Mormon archaeology. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
^ National Geographic Letter on the Book of Mormon. Retrieved on 2007-11-28.
^ See for example Jarom 1:8 discussing advanced machinery, Mosiah 8:5 and Mosiah 25:5 discussing semi-literateness of the Nephites] and Helaman 3:8 and 16 that discusses the heavy population of the Lehite peoples. Similar references may be found about the Jaredites, for which the reader is referred to the Book of Ether [1]
^ Krakauer, Jon (2003). Under the Banner of Heaven. Doubleday, 68. ISBN 0-385-50951-0.
^ Abanes, Richard (2003). One Nation Under Gods: A History of the Mormon Church. Thunder's Mouth Press, 74-77. ISBN 1568582838.
^ Wolverton, Susan (2004). Having Visions: The Book of Mormon : Translated and Exposed in Plain English. Algora, 84-85. ISBN 0875863108.
^ Persuitte, David (2000). Joseph Smith and the Origins of the Book of Mormon (2nd Edition). McFarland & Company, 102. ISBN 078640826X.
^ Smithsonian Issues Statement regarding Book of Mormon http://www.irr.org/mit/smithson.html
^ Information from the National Museum of Natural History. Retrieved on 2006-05-11.
^ ^a ^b The Smithsonian Institution's 1996 "Statement Regarding the Book of Mormon". Retrieved on 2006-05-11.
^ Givens 2002, p. 132
^ National Geographic Letter on the Book of Mormon. Retrieved on 2007-11-28.
^ 1998 "Trinity Journal," an article entitled "Mormon Scholarship, Apologetics, and Evangelical Neglect: Losing the Battle and Not Knowing It?"
^ LDS.org - Ensign Article - A Testimony Vibrant and True
^ Sorenson 1992
^ ”ZARAHEMLA”, Times and Seasons, October 1, 1842, Volume 3, Number 23, p. 927.
^ ” STEPHEN’S [STEPHENS’] WORKS ON CENTRAL AMERICA”, Times and Seasons, October 1, 1843, Volume 4, Number 22, p. 346; See also Times and Seasons, April 1, 1845, Volume 6, Number 6, pg 855
^ Gardner, Brant. "Too Good to be True: Questionable Archaeology and the Book of Mormon" (PDF). The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research. Retrieved on 2007-01-09.
^ Givens 2002, p. 146
^ Doctrine and Covenants 128:19
^ Doctrine and Covenants 128:20
^ Smith 1997, p. 259-260
^ New World Archaeological Foundation, online collections at BYU.
^ Citing the lack of specific New World geographic locations to search, Michael D. Coe, a prominent Mesoamerican archaeologist and Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at Yale University, writes (in a 1973 volume of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought): "As far as I know there is not one professionally trained archaeologist, who is not a Mormon, who sees any scientific justification for believing [the historicity of The Book of Mormon], and I would like to state that there are quite a few Mormon archaeologists who join this group".
^ Coe, Michael D (Summer 1973). "Mormons and Archaeology: An Outside View". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought: 41-46. Michael Coe notes, "There can be no question that the BYU sponsored New World Archaeological Foundation's program has been an unqualified success. Its twenty years of excavations and exploration in Chiapas have put that state on the archaeological map and have established one of the longest and best archaeological sequences for any part of the New World. Credit for this goes to the foresight of [Thomas Stewart] Ferguson and the original directors, but especially to the first-class [LDS] archaeologists who have carried out the program. First and foremost among them, I would name Gareth W. Lowe, who has been field director for a number of years and who has established himself as the outstanding expert in the field of Formative Mesoamerica. And full praise must be given to the generosity and wisdom of the [LDS] Church leadership in providing financial backing for the foundation. 'Mormon archaeology' is no longer something that brings chuckles in Gentile circles."
^ Berrett, William E; Hunter, Milton R., et al (1938). A Guide to the Study of the Book of Mormon. Salt Lake City: Department of Education of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 53.
^ Nibley, Hugh W (1980). The Book of Mormon and the Ruins: The Main Issues. Provo, Utah: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies.
^ Smith 1997, p. 262
^ Smith 1997, p. 263;Sjodahl, Janne M. "An Introduction to the Study of the Book of Mormon", Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1927. Sjodahl also suggested that the Jaredite population may not have been completely destroyed.
^ Smith 1997, p. 263;Berrett, William E; Hunter, Milton R., et al (1938). A Guide to the Study of the Book of Mormon. Salt Lake City: Department of Education of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 48.
^ Smith 1997, p. 263; Nibley, Hugh W (1980). The Book of Mormon and the Ruins: The Main Issues. Provo, Utah: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies.
^ Smith 1997, p. 264
^ Sorenson September 1984
^ Sorenson 1985
^ See the Introduction to the Book of Mormon
^ Sorenson 1992
^ Smith 1997, p. 280
^ Givens 2002, p. 139
^ Ether 15:2
^ E.g. 1 Nephi 13:23 et. seq.
^ E.g. Ether 7:9, 10:23
^ E.g. Alma 18:9-12
^ Southerton 2004, p. 156
^ Coe, Michael D (Summer 1973). "Mormons and Archaeology: An Outside View". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought.
^ Sorenson 1985, pp. 96-137
^ Tanner & Tanner 1969
^ Coe 2002, p. 50-52
^ entry on "American Indians", Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VII (orig. pub. 1910); on-line at New Advent
^ Archaeology “proves” Bible not Book of Mormon, Michael R. Ash
^ Laughton, Timothy (1998). The Maya. London: Duncan Baird Publishers, p. 26. ISBN 1-84483-016-0. "In the late 1560s the Spanish bishop of Yucatan, Fray Diego de Landa, wrote of the Maya: 'These people also made use of certain characters or letters, with which they wrote in their books of ancient matters and sciences. We found a large number of books written in these characters and, as they contained nothing in which there was not superstition and lies of the devil, we burned them all...'"
^ Coe 2002, p. 199-200
^ Kettunen, Harri and Helmke, Christophe (2005). Introduction to Maya Hieroglyphs (pdf), Wayeb and Leiden University, p.6.
^ Ibid.
^ Coe 2002, p. 62
^ Hougey, Hal (1983). Archaeology and The Book of Mormon. Concord, CA: Pacific Publishing.
^ Hemingway, Donald (2000). Ancient America Rediscovered as recorded by Mariano Veytia (1720-1778). Bonneville Books. ISBN 1-55517-479-5. Among some of the myths recorded by Veytia are that seven families traveled across the ocean to northern American near the time of the confusion of tongues, and thereafter migrated to Central America (pp. 40, 49-50, 192), the belief that there was a great flood (p. 44), an account of a solar eclipse coincident with a tremendous earthquake which resulted in no human fatalities (p. 148), the arrival of Quetzalcoatl in the company of other bearded men as many as thirty years after the earthquake and eclipse (pp. 152, 154, 164), and the presence of giants in New Spain (pp. 140-141).
^ ”Traits of the Mosaic History Found Among the Aztaeca Nations”, Joseph Smith, Editor, Times and Seasons, June 15, 1842, Volume 3, Number 16, pp 818-820.
^ Letter to John Bernhisel, 16 November 1841, Personal Writing of Joseph Smith, compiled and edited by Dean C. Jessee, p. 533
^ “American Antiquities”, Times and Seasons, July 15, 1842, Volume 3, number 18, p. 859-60.
^ “American Antiquities”, Times and Seasons, July 15, 1842, Volume 3, number 18, p. 860
^ “AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES”, Joseph Smith, Editor, Times and Seasons, July 15, 1842, Vol. 3, No 18, p. 858.
^ Times and Seasons, July 15, 1842, Vol. 3, No 18, p.860
^ “FACTS ARE STUBORN THING.”, Times and Seasons, September 15, 1842, Vol. 3, No 22, p.922.
^ Prior to his going into hiding in the fall of 1842, Joseph Smith Published several editorials pertaining to the subjects of archaeology and Book of Mormon geography. As both official and acting editor, all of the following Times and Seasons editorials end with his official “ED”:

“A CATACOMB OF MUMMIES FOUND IN KENTUCKY”, Vol. 3, No 13, May 2, 1842, p. 781

“Traits of the Mosaic History, Found Among the Aztaeca Nations”, Vol. 3, No 16, June 15, 1842, p. 818

“AMERICAN ANTIQUITIES”, Vol. 3, No 18, July 15, 1842, p. 858

This short selection does not include other articles on other subjects which also bear the editor’s “ED”
^ Doctrine and Covenants 127:1
^ See for example: Matthew Roper, “Limited Geography and the Book of Mormon: Historical Antecedents and Early Interpretations, section titled “John Taylor’s View”, BYU Maxwell Institute, 2004, pp. 225-76
^ “VALEDICTORY”, Times and Seasons, November 15, 1842, Vol. 4, No 1
^ The following quotes from LDS General Authorities, demonstate the fact that the Finger Lakes location of Cumorah has been taught as official Church doctrine. On the subject of a Mesoamerican Cumorah, Apostle Joseph Fielding Smith said: “…This modernist theory of necessity, in order to be consistent, must place the waters of Ripliancum and the Hill Cumorah some place within the restricted territory of Central America, not withstanding the teachings of the Church to the contrary for upwards of 100 years…” “It is known that the Hill Cumorah where the Nephites were destroyed is the hill where the Jaredites were also destroyed. This hill was known to the Jaredites as Ramah. It was approximately near to the waters of Ripliancum, which the Book of Ether says, ‘by interpretation, is large or to exceed all.’…It must be conceded that this description fits perfectly the land of Cumorah in New York…for the hill is in the proximity of the Great Lakes, and also in the land of many rivers and fountains…” (Doctrines of Salvation, Volume 3, pp. 233-234) Apostle Bruce R. McConkie, who was also aware of the Mesoamerican Cumorah theory, stated that: “Both the Nephite and the Jaredite civilizations fought their final great wars of extinction at and near the Hill Cumorah (or Ramah as the Jaredites termed it)…Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, and many early brethren, who were familiar with the circumstances attending the coming forth of the Book of Mormon in this dispensation, have left us pointed testimony as to the identity and location of Cumorah or Ramah.” (Mormon Doctrine; CUMORAH, pg 175) In April Conference, Mark E. Peterson of the Quorum of the Twelve stated: “…I do not believe that there were two Cumorahs, one in Central America, and the other in New York, for the convenience of the Prophet Joseph Smith, so that the poor boy would not have to walk clear to Central America to get the gold plates. I do not believe we can be good Latter-day Saints and question the integrity of Joseph Smith.” (The Improvement Era, 143 Annual Conference of the Church, April 4-6, 1953; pp. 83-84
^ Hill 1995, p. 33"Sir, Considering the Liberal Principles," Joseph Smith to N.C. Saxton, editor, American Revivalist, and Rochester Observer, 4 January 1833 (from Times and Seasons [Nauvoo, Illinois] 5 [15 November 1844], 21:705-707)
^ Doctrine and Covenants 28:8-9
^ Doctrine and Covenants 19:27, Doctrine and Covenants 57:4, 2 Nephi 30:4
^ Doctrine and Covenants 10:45-52, 1 Nephi 14:1-2
^ 3 Nephi 20:22, 3 Nephi 21:22-23, Ether 13:2-8
^ Doctrine and Covenants 57:1-4, Doctrine and Covenants 84:2-3
^ Jessee 1984, p. 324(See also Zelph)
^ "Did the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1842 Locate Book of Mormon Lands in Middle America?", by V. Garth Norman
^ History of the Church Volume 5, pg 44.
^ Roberts, Jennifer, The Art Bulletin, “Landscapes of Indifference; Robert Smithson and John Lloyd Stephens in Yucatan”, September 1, 2000. Roberts states that:

Stephens extracted hundreds of artifacts from the Maya sites, returning to New York with sculptural and architectural remnants that were to form the core collection of his Museum of American Antiquities. But his museum was never built; tragically, he installed the artifacts in Catherwood's new panorama building downtown, only to see the structure and all of its contents destroyed by fire a few weeks later. [47] The only comfort in this incalculable misfortune was the fact that a few large stone pieces had yet to arrive by steamer and thus escaped the conflagration. Stephens gave these to his friend John Church Cruger, who proceeded to install them on his personal island in the Hudson River among faux-Gothic, Desolation-style ruins that he had constructed in emulation of a Thomas Cole painting. [48] Here the artifacts remained for some eighty years, reduced to anachronistic details in a picturesque folly, until in 1919 the American Museum of Natural History in New York learned of their existence and acquired t hem from one of Cruger's octogenarian daughters. There, in the museum, they were prominently displayed in the collections of Mexican and Central American antiquities (Fig. 7), and it was there, in the 1940s, that the young Robert Smithson would first have seen them, on one of his many boyhood visits to what was (and would continue to be) his favorite museum. [49] The Juvenile Instructor was an official periodical of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints between 1901 and 1930. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 293rd day of the year (294th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 293rd day of the year (294th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 332nd day of the year (333rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Book of Ether is one of books that make up the Book of Mormon. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 131st day of the year (132nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 131st day of the year (132nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 332nd day of the year (333rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 274th day of the year (275th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1843 (MDCCCXLIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 9th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... (Redirected from 1 Nephi) The First Book of Nephi (pronounced nee-fie) is the first book of the Book of Mormon, considered in Mormonism to be a work of scripture. ... The Book of Ether is part of the Book of Mormon, the major sacred text of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (members of which are often referred to as Mormons). ... The Book of Alma is one of the books that make up the Book of Mormon. ... is the 166th day of the year (167th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 258th day of the year (259th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 122nd day of the year (123rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 166th day of the year (167th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 196th day of the year (197th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Zelph is a minor figure in Mormon history. ... is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...

Roberts gives the following references:

“(47.) Catherwood owned and operated a panorama rotunda in New York, which he had built in 1838, immediately before embarking for Central America. Stephen Oettermann, The Panorama: History of a Mass Medium, trans. Deborah Lucas Schneider (New York: Zone Books, 1997), 317-23. For information on the fire, see Von Hagen (as in n. 11), 82-84. Stephens bemoans the loss of artifacts in Stephens, 1843, vol. 1, 103: "their loss cannot be replaced; for, being first on the ground, and having all at my choice, I of course selected only those objects which were most curious and valuable; and if I were to go over the whole ground again, I could not find others equal to the

“(11.) Catherwood also published his own folio edition of twenty-five lithographs: Views of Ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan (London, 1844). The images and text of Views have been reprinted (if poorly) in Victor Wolfgang Von Hagen, Frederick Catherwood Architect (New York: Oxford University Press, 1950).”

“(48.) The Cole painting in question was Moonlight, 1833-34. On the tenure of the Maya artifacts on Cruger's Island and their eventual acquisition by the American Museum of Natural History, New York, see Phil Santora, "Trip to Yucatan on the Hudson," New York Sunday News, Sept. 5, 1971, 12-14 (American Museum of Natural History, Special Collections Files); Herbert J. Spinden, "The Stephens Sculptures from Yucatan," Natural History 20 (Sept.- Oct. 1920): 379-87; Carl C. Dauterman, "The Strange Story of the Stephens Stones," Natural History 44 (Dec. 1939): 288-96; Von Hagen (as in n. 8), 231-32; Brooks (as in n. 9), 481; Carl Carmer, The Hudson (New York: Fordham University Press, 1989), 158,181,281.”

“(49.) On the collection as it was installed in 1944, see Harry L. Shapiro, "Middle American Culture on Review: Treasures from the Past Dramatically Exhibited in a New Hall of Mexican and Central American Archaeology," Natural History 53 (Mar. 1944): 100-118. For Smithson's relationship to the American Museum of Natural History, see Ann M. Reynolds, "Reproducing Nature: The Museum of Natural History as Nonsite," October 45 (Summer 1988): 109-27.”
^ Oliver Cowdery, "Letter Seven," Messenger and Advocate, July 1835
^ The Revised and Enhanced History of Joseph Smith By His Mother, Edited by Scot Facer Proctor and Maurine Jensen Proctor, Bookcraft, 1996, p. 107 n. 14; See also History of Joseph Smith by His Mother Lucy Mack Smith, p. 100
^ History of Joseph Smith by His Mother Lucy Mack Smith, pg 83
^ U.A.S. Newsletter (Provo, Utah: University Archaeological Society at Brigham Young University) January 30, 1963, p. 7.
^ Orson Pratt, Journal of Discourses (London, England: Albert Carrington, 1869), vol. 12; p. 342; Volume 14, p. 325, 1872
^ Frederick J. Pack (Chairman of the Gospel Doctrine Committee of the Church), The Instructor, 1918 issue, pg 386.
^ See, for example, the documentary Journey of Faith produced by the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies; see also S. Kent Brown, "New Light from Arabia on Lehi's Trail," in Evidences and Echoes of the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry, Daniel C. Peterson, and John W. Welch [Provo, Utah: FARMS, 2002], 55–125, especially 81–85, 88–90
^ Nephi Project Research Discoveries
^ See Nahman Avigad and Benjamin Sass, Corpus of West Semitic Stamp Seals (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 1997), 55, item no. 15.
^ Chadwick, Jeffrey R. (2003). "Has the Seal of Mulek Been Found?". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 12 (2): pp. 72-83. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-4-07.
^ Southerton 2004, p. 5 "The clarity with which this journey is described has led Mormons, scholars included, to believe that the group traveled south across the Arabian Peninsula to modern-day Yemen or Oman."
^ Nephi Project Research Discoveries
^ There is textual evidence in the Doctrine and Covenants and Book of Mormon that Nephi was involved in missionary work during his travels from Jerusalem to the New World. For example, Doctrine and Covenants 33:8 states "Open your mouths and they shall be filled, and you shall become even as Nephi of old who journeyed from Jerusalem in the wilderness."
^ Brown, S. Kent (1997). "A Case for Lehi's Bondage in Arabia". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 6 (2): pp. 205-217. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-11.
^ Berrett 1999
^ Hilton & Hilton 1996, p. 75
^ Hilton & Hilton 1996, p. 47
^ Aston, Warren (1997). "Review of "Discovering Lehi: New Evidence of Lehi and Nephi in Arabia"". Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-02-22.
^ Potter, George (1999). "A New Candidate in Arabia for the "Valley of Lemuel"". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 8 (1): pp. 54-63. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-09. This claim was made by George Potter and Craig Thorsted of the Nephi Project on 11 May 1995.Nephi Project
^ Chadwick, Jeffery R (2005). "The Wrong Place for Lehi's Trail and the Valley of Lemuel". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 17 (2): 197-215. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-08.
^ Ancient Hebrew Research Center
^ Jeff Lindsay
^ Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies
^ Brown, S.K.. On Nahom/NHM. Retrieved on 2006-12-21.
^ Tanner, Jerald; Tanner, Sandra (1996). Answering Mormon Scholars: A Response to Criticism Raised by Mormon Defenders. Utah Lighthouse Ministry, p. 183.
^ Hilton & Hilton 1996
^ Book of Mormon Explorers Claim Discoveries, Nephi Project
^ Aston, Warren P. and Michaela Knoth (1994). In the Footsteps of Lehi: New Evidence for Lehi's Journey across Arabia to Bountiful. Deseret Book Company. ISBN 0-87579-847-0.
^ Doctrine and Covenants 84:54-57
^ CHURCH HISTORY in the March 1, 1842 issue of the Times and Seasons
^ Millennial Star “History of Joseph Smith,” May 13, 1854, Volume 16, p. 296. See also the September 25, 1838, journal entry of Samuel D. Tyler. Note that if the original Book of Mormon land of Manti was located in northern America (as several church members interpreted Joseph Smith as saying), the original land of Zarahemla (north of Manti) could not be located in Central or South America
^ Matthew Roper, “Limited Geography and the Book of Mormon: Historical Antecedents and Early Interpretations”, BYU Maxwell Institute, 2004, 225-75.
^ On Lehi landing a little south of Panama, see “FACTS ARE STUBORN THING.”, Times and Seasons, September 15, 1842, Vol. 3, No 22, p.922. On Orson Pratt’s speculative South American landing site, see Journal of Discourses (London, England: Albert Carrington, 1869), Vol. 12; p. 342; Vol. 14, p. 325, 1872. On the controversial Williams document placing Lehi’s landing site in Chile, see Frederick J. Pack (Chairman of the Gospel Doctrine Committee of the Church), The Instructor, 1918 issue, p. 386. On Zarahemla presumably located in Guatemala, see "ZARAHEMLA", Times and Seasons', October 1, 1842, Vol. 3, No 23 , p. 927. On Manti located in the United States, see Millennial Star “History of Joseph Smith,” May 13, 1854, Volume 16, p. 296, and the September 25, 1838, journal entry of Samuel D. Tyler
^ Introduction to the Book of Mormon by Bruce R. McConkie prior to 2008. See for instace 1979 edition
^ Southerton 2004, p. 42 "For many Mormons, this is as deep as their awareness of the origin of Native Americans extends. They remain oblivious to the large volume of research that has revealed continuous, widespread human occupation of the Americas for the last 14,000 years. Such research conflicts with erroneous LDS interpretations and oral traditions and unfortunately has, until recently, been ignored."
^ Southerton 2004, p. 155. Published while Joseph Smith was in hiding, the anonymous, front page, Incidents of Travel in Central America “EXTRACT” article (Times and Seasons, September 15, 1842, Volume 3, Number 22, pp 911-915) seems to allege that all of Central America is the “narrow neck of land”. In the same issue another exuberant though anonymous article alleges that Lehi landed “a little south of the Isthmus of Darien” (Panama), making a Guatemalan Zarahmela quite impossible! This article incidentally, mentions Joseph Smith in the third person, indicating that Smith did not write the article. Unfortunately a portion of the article has been included in Teaching of the Prophet Joseph Smith, compiled with the assistance of Church’s Historian’s Office.
^ Sorenson 1985, pp. 1-48
^ Sorenson, John L., compiler. The Geography of Book of Mormon Events: A Source Book Provo: FARMS, 1992. ASIN: B0006QHZWE. The book is a compilation of hundreds of proposed locations, some problematic without major climate changes, others have many convincing elements.
^ Sorenson 1985, pp. 35-36
^ Wunderli, Earl M (Fall 2002). "Critique of a Limited Geography for Book of Mormon Events". Dialog: A Journal of Mormon Thought 35 (3): 161-197. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
^ Matheny, Deanne G; Metcalfe, Brent Lee (ed) (1994). "Does the Shoe Fit? A Critique of the Limited Tehuantepec Geography". New Approaches to the Book of Mormon: Explorations in Critical Methodology.
^ Sorenson, John L (1994). "Viva Zapato! Hurray for the Shoe!". FARMS Review of Books 6 (1): 297-361. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
^ Roper, Matthew (2004). "Limited Geography and the Book of Mormon: Historical Antecedents and Early Interpretations". FARMS Review 16 (2): 225-76. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
^ Venice Priddis, The Book and the Map (Salt Lake City, Utah, USA: Bookcraft, Inc.) 1975, p. 9, 16, 17
^ Book of Mormon lands and geography in western New York
^ ^a ^b Ralph A. Olsen, "A Malay Site for Book of Mormon Events", Sunstone Magazine, March 2004, 30.
^ Ether 10:20-21
^ Alma 50:34
^ Charles C. Mann, 1491 New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus, pp. 236-38. The "Beyond the heartland" section of Wikipedia's Olmec article also contains information on the spread of Olmec culture
^ Coe 2002, p. 13 Coe states that "much of complex culture in Mesoamerica has an Olmec Origin" and states that an "active interchange of ideas" occurred.
^ "Because the Maya had a habit of putting new buildings directly on top of older structures, Preclassic remains are few and far between at sites like Homul and Tikal that were occupied during the Classic period." David F. Salisbury, "Pushing back Maya origins" taken from [2]
^ (Olive 2000)
^ See Helaman 7:10 and 3 Nephi 8:13
^ Lepper, Bradley T (1995). "Tracking Ohio's Great Hopewell Road". Archaeology 48 (6): 52-56. Retrieved on 2008-04-13.
^ Alma 49:2-22
^ “Searching for the Great Hopewell Road” produced by Pangea Productions Ltd. in collaboration with Algonquin Archaeological Consultants, Inc
^ Mormon 9:33
^ Hugh Nibley, Since Cumorah, pp. 167-68, discusses the origin, interchangeability, and translated use of the terms “Messiah” and “Christ” as they appear in scripture. Dr. Nibley points out that the Arabic word al-masih, for instance, could be translated using the Hebrew term “Messiah” or the New Testament term “Christ” depending on the context and translator. See also “Meshiach” (מָשִׁיחַ), “anointed”, Hebrew-Aramaic Lexicon
^ Milton R Hunter and Thomas Stewart Ferguson, Ancient America and the Book of Mormon, pp. 151-52, offer a possible Hebraic derivation: “zara-hamullah”
^ Isaiah 19:20
^ The meaning and transliteration of Biblical Hebrew and Greek can be resourced using the LDS CD-ROM Resource Edition of The Scriptures
^ Since Cumorah, pp. 171, Nibley discusses non-biblical Hebrew names present in the Book of Mormon
^ 4 Nephi 1:7-9
^ 4 Nephi 1:23
^ Doctrine and Covenants 128:20, Mormon 6:4. Additionally, Doctrine and Covenants section 10 contains a revelation received at Harmony Pennsylvania (less than a hundred miles from the Finger Lakes) in the summer of 1828. Verses 48 through 52 read as follows: “48 Yea, and this was their [ancient saints of the Book of Mormon] faith—that my gospel, which I gave unto them that they might preach in their days, might come unto their brethren the Lamanites, and also all that had become Lamanites because of their dissensions. 49 Now, this is not all—their faith in their prayers was that this gospel should be made known also, if it were possible that other nations should possess this land; 50 And thus they did leave a blessing upon this land in their prayers, that whosoever should believe in this gospel in this land might have eternal life; 51 Yea, that it might be free unto all of whatsoever nation, kindred, tongue, or people they may be. 52 And now, behold, according to their faith in their prayers will I bring this part of my gospel to the knowledge of my people. Behold, I do not bring it to destroy that which they have received, but to build it up.”
^ (Sorenson 1985)
^ 3 Nephi 8:20
^ According to the Wikipedia article on tephra volcanic ash can transport thousands of miles from an eruption site. According to Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History website: ( http://www.volcano.si.edu ) under the topic “Summary Data Criteria” section “latitude and Longitude”, fine material ejected from a volcano can be distributed globally
^ (Sorenson 1985, p. 321), David A. Palmer presumes the need for Book of Mormon lands to be located in a volcanic zone, In Search of Cumorah, p. 53
^ 3 Nephi 10:12-14, 2 Nephi 26:4-6, 1 Nephi 12:4-5
^ Joseph Smith History 1:52
^ Mormon 8:1-9
^ Ether 1:1-2
^ Ether 4:4-5
^ Moroni 1:1-4
^ Moroni 10:1-2
^ 2 Nephi 26:14-16
^ Sorenson, John L; Thorne, Melvin J. (ed) (1991). "Seasons of War, Seasons of Peace". Rediscovering the Book of Mormon: 250. Deseret Book Company and FARMS. ISBN 0-87579-387-8.
^ 13 Moons On the Turtles Back. A Native American Year of Moons, ISBN 0-698-11584-8, Putnam and Grossnet Group, 199
^ Marcus, Joyce (1991). "[http://muweb.millersville.edu/~columbus/data/ant/MARCUS01.ANT First Dates: The Maya calendar and writing system were not the only ones in Mesoamerica--or even the earliest]". Natural History April: pp. 22-25.
^ Coe 2002, p. 59
^ Nibley, Hugh (1988). Since Cumorah. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book and FARMS, 291.
^ Sorenson, John L (2000). "Last-Ditch Warfare in Ancient Mesoamerica Recalls the Book of Mormon". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 9 (2): pp. 44-53. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-12.
^ Alma 52:2
^ Coe 2002, p. 100"Bekan in the Chenes region just north of the Peten, which was completely surrounded by massive defensive earthworks some time between the second and fourth centuries B.C. These consist of a ditch and inner rampart, with a total height of 38 ft (11.6 m), and would have been formidable...if the rampart had been surmounted by a palisade."
^ Ensign September 1984, p. 28.
^ Becán: Aerial Photo 1
^ Jakeman, M. Wells (1953). "An Unusual Tree-of-Life Sculpture from Ancient Central America". University Archaeological Society Newsletter: 26–49.
^ Clark, John E (1999). "A New Artistic Rendering of Izapa Stela 5: A Step toward Improved Interpretation". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 8 (1): 22-33. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
^ Guernsey, p. 53.
^ Sorenson, John (1990). "The Mulekites". BYU Studies 30 (3).
^ Smith 1925
^ Tozzer & Allen 2006, p. 343
^ Instances in which horses and chariots are mentioned: Alma 18: 9 "And they said unto him: Behold, he is feeding thy horses. Now the king had commanded his servants...that they should prepare his horses and chariots"; Alma 18: 12 "And it came to pass that when Ammon had made ready the horses and the chariots for the king and his servants..."; Alma 20: 6 "Now when Lamoni had heard this he caused that his servants should make ready his horses and his chariots." 3 Ne. 3: 22 "[A]nd they had taken their horses, and their chariots..."
^ Hamblin, William J. "Basic Methodological Problems with the Anti-Mormon Approach to the Geography and Archaeology of the Book of Mormon". Featured Papers. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-16.
^ Kooyman, Brian; Newman, Margaret E.; Cluney, Christine; Lobb, Murray; Tolman, Shayne; McNeil, Paul; Hills, L.V. (October 2001). "Identification of Horse Exploitation by Clovis Hunters Based on Protein Analysis". American Antiquity 66: 686-691.
^ Mayell, Hillary (11 May 2001). "Remains Show Ancient Horses Were Hunted for Their Meat". National Geographic News.
^ Baker, Barry W.; Collins, Michael B., Bousman, C. Britt. Late Pleistocene Horse (Equus sp.) from the Wilson-Leonard Archaeological Site, Central Texas. Retrieved on 2006-12-10.
^ Guthrie, R. Dale. Rapid body size decline in Alaskan Pleistocene horses before extinction. Nature. Retrieved on 2006-12-10.
^ Kirkpatrick, Jay F.; Fazio, Patricia M.. Wild Horses as Native North American Wildlife. Retrieved on 2006-12-10.
^ Singer, Ben. A brief history of the horse in America; Horse phylogeny and evolution. Canadian Geographic Magazine. Retrieved on 2006-12-10.
^ Ether 9:19 "And they also had horses, and asses, and there were elephants..."
^ Sorenson 1985, p. 297
^ Johnson, Ludwell H III (October 1952). "Men and Elephants in America". Scientific Monthly: 215-21. Johnson states that the stories claimed that the monster was "very large, had a big head, large ears and teeth, and a long nose with which he hit people."
^ Siebert, F. T. Jr (October-December 1937). "Mammoth or "Stiff-Legged Bear"". American Anthropologist 39 (4): 721-25.
^ Ether 9:18
^ See and Strong's Concordance
^ Ether 9:8
^ "Barley and Wheat in the Book Mormon" . Featured Papers. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-19.
^ "Barley and Wheat in the Book Mormon" . Featured Papers. Maxwell Institute.
^ Alma 18:9-10,12, Alma 20:6, 3 Nephi 3:22
^ Phillips, Charles; Jones, David M (2005). Aztec & Maya: Life in an Ancient Civilization. London: Hermes House, 65.
^ Sorenson, p. 59
^ See [http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/display.php?table=review&id=68 Pre-Columbian Contact with the Americas across the Oceans: An Annotated Bibliography
^ Jacob 4:1
^ While the Book of Mormon would be the longest such record engraved on plates found to date, such engraving is a documented ancient method of preservation Lehi's Jerusalem and Writing on Metal Plates
^ Adams, William J (1994). "Lehi's Jerusalem and Writing on Metal Plates". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 3 (1): 204-06. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-18.
^ 1 Nephi 16:18, 2 Nephi 5:15, Jarom 1:8, Ether 7:9
^ Jeremiah 15:12: "Can iron break steel from the north?"
^ Archaeologist 'Strikes Gold' With Finds Of Ancient Nasca Iron Ore Mine In Peru
^ 2 Nephi 5:14
^ Mosiah 8:11
^ Roper, Matthew (1999). "Swords and "Cimeters" in the Book of Mormon". Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 8 (1): pp. 34-43. Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-11. "Spaniards who faced native Mesoamerican swords in battle were deeply impressed by their deadly cutting power and razorlike sharpness."
^ Coe 2002, p. 132 "[W]ell into Colonial times the beans served as a form of money in regional markets."
^ Jesus Christ/Joseph Smith Video, Tri-Grace Ministries, distributed 2007. See segment on "Archaeological Evidence." The specific writings of Joseph Smith in which coins are said to be discussed as being "common" are not identified in the video.
^ Sorenson 1985, p. 232 "The Spanish reported several kinds of “silk.” One kind of silk was spun from the hair of rabbit’s bellies, another may have come from a wild silkworm, and yet a third came from the pod of the ceiba tree. Spanish chronicles report that types of “silk” were spun and woven in Mesoamerica before their arrival."
^ Sorenson, John L. "A New Evaluation of the Smithsonian Institution "Statement regarding the Book of Mormon"" (HTTP). Maxwell Institute. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
^ Coe 2002, p. 41
^ Bancroft, Hubert Howe (1875). The native races of the Pacific states of North America 5, 23-4. Retrieved on 2007-02-06.
^ Bancroft, 1875, p 23
^ "Quetzalcoatl the Myth", University of California, San Diego undergrad. project

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References

I dont know anything! ... James E. Faust James Esdras Faust (July 31, 1920 â€“ August 10, 2007) was an American religious leader, lawyer, and politician. ... Jerald D. Tanner (June 1, 1938â€”October 1, 2006) and Sandra McGee Tanner have been prominent critics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). ...

Contents

State of archaeological research in reference to the Americas and the Book of Mormon GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");