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More Photographic Evidence for the Authenticity of The Book of Mormon (Page 2!)

By Mike Sageloff

The original Photos Page on this site has become so popular that I've decided to add another page to it. I have to admit that I've been hoarding quite a lot of really great photos and other evidences, which have not been posted to this website, mainly because they will be used in my upcoming book, "Easy Answers to the Hard Questions About the Book of Mormon." But in the interest of fairness, I'll share some of the more fascinating things I've come across lately here! If you like this page, please feel free to send this page to a friend by clicking here!

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The Critics:

The Picture:

Commentary:

Skin Problems?
Critics of the Book of Mormon like to say that there is "no evidence" that during the Book of Mormon times in Meso-America, that anyone's skin changed color, or that there was ever a history of conflict between peoples of different skin coloration.

Recently Discovered Mayan Mural Found in Guatemala in 2001
(Click to enlarge photo)
Photo by William A. Saturno (top)
Drawing by Heather Hurst (bottom)

After decades of Anti-Mormon propaganda to the contrary, Maya murals are surfacing which clearly depict dark skinned and light skinned people. Here, a dark skinned person stands before a kneeling white skinned person. Archeologists attempt to explain this away by saying (1) that the Mayans must have been smearing soot on their skins to make themselves black, or (2) the Mayans are wearing the discolored skins of killed enemies, or (3) they are wearing monkey skins.

Evidence of Christianity in Meso-America?
BoM nay-sayers often claim that if there really were Christians in the Pre-Columbian Americas, there ought to be some evidence of their existence, and of their rituals, art, and worship. Unfortunately, whenever such evidence surfaces, it is written off as an "anomoly," "coincidence," or a misdated post-Columbian artifact.

The Aztec Cross
Palenque, Mexico
(Click to enlarge photo)

In "The History of the Cross" we are told that, "In Palenque, in Mexico, are the remains of an ancient Aztec temple. At the back of one of the altars in that temple is a bas- relief cross some ten feet high. It is a superb design, rich in symbolic carving. Above the cross perches the figure of a bird.... The Mayans and Aztecs of Meso-America and the Nazca, Ica, Moche, and Inca civilizations of ancient Peru [all] used crosses."

Transatlantic Contact:
"Where's the evidence?" Critics say that if settlers from the Old World had colonized Meso-America, there would surely be some artifacts left behind that would identify them as such.

Bearded Ceramic Head
Veracruz, Mexico ca. 300 AD
(Click to enlarge illustration)

This ceramic bust of a bearded man with distinctly Old World features was found in Veracruz, Mexico, and has been dated to 300 AD or earlier. Beards were (and still are) almost non-existent among most indiginous Meso-American tribes.

Elephants in the New World?
The critics point out the fact that "everyone knows" there are no elephants in the Americas... a fact that Joseph Smith should have known as well. So why would he go out on a limb and mention elephants in the Book of Mormon? Perhaps because contrary to the accepted conventional wisdom, there were small pockets of elephant-like animals (surviving Mammoths, perhaps) in the Americas?

Elephant Headress
Copan, Honduras

This photograph shows an interesting Mayan elephant-motif headress being worn by a human carved into a stone stela at Copan, Honduras. The carvings have been dated to approximately 756 AD.

The Wheel
The Book of Mormon mentions "chariots," which sets the critics into a lather, since it is a generally accepted belief that ancient Meso-Americans never developed the use of the wheel. Actually, hundreds of wheeled artifacts have been discovered in ancient Mayan and other Meso-American archeological sites.

Wheeled Pull Toy
Tres Zapotes, Veracruz
Mexico, ca. 100-200 AD
(Click to enlarge photo)

Check out this wheeled deer from 600-800 AD, for example, or this wheeled toy dated 100-200 AD, which resembles a dog. And for you cat people, here's one that resembles a wheeled cat from 550-950 AD. The real question is, how can anyone think these people were so stupid that they couldn't figure out how to use the wheel for anything other than toys?

Cement in Meso-America
When the Book of Mormon mentioned cement, the critics thought they'd caught Joseph Smith in another blunder. After all, it was common knowledge that ancient Meso-Americans did not use cement in their architecture.

Teotihuacan, Mexico
(Click to see full photo)

This first century BC city, now an ancient ruin, can be found 30 miles northeast of Mexico City. Teotihuacan, literally translated from the Nahuatl, means "place where men become gods." Teotihuacan had already been deserted for 600 years when the Aztecs found it. Cement and stucco are found in great quantities at this site.

Writing on Metal Plates?
When Joseph Smith described the metal plates from which he translated the Book of Mormon, people scoffed. The Book of Momron also described the Brass Plates of Laban, taken from the Old World to the new one. Who ever heard of ancient scriptures written on metal plates? The very idea was considered absurd!

Copper Scroll
of the Dead Sea Scrolls
(Click to see full photo)

When the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, among them was perhaps the most intriguing scroll of all - the Copper Scroll. It was found in 1952 in Cave 3 at Khirbet Qumran on the shores of the Dead Sea. Since then, several other ancient scriptural texts have been found on metal plates or scrolls. More on the Copper Scroll at West Semitic Research Project, U.S.C.

Books Written on Gold?
Bound With Metal Rings?
Joseph Smith was roundly criticized for describing the Book of Mormon in this way. After all, everyone knows that no ancient cultures kept their records on gold plates, bound in such a way. Rediculous!

2500 Year-Old Book
Written on Golden Plates
(Click to see full photo)

This 2500 year-old Etruscan artifact was discovered 60 years ago in a tomb uncovered during digging for a canal along the Strouma river in south-western Bulgaria. It contains six bound sheets of 24 carat gold, with illustrations of a horse-rider, a mermaid, a harp and soldiers. The Etruscans were wiped out in the 4th century BC. Read more on this story.

Abridgements
Okay, this isn't a photo, but this graphic has been requested so often, I felt I should include it here. It shows the abridgement process the Book of Mormon went through while being written, abridged, compiled, and translated.

Abridgement
of the Book of Mormon
(Click to see full chart)

One of the most pervasive anti-Mormon claims about the Book of Mormon concerns the so-called "thousands of changes" to the text of the Book of Mormon. But what they are usually referring to were changes to the Printer's manuscript, (which was a handwritten copy of the original) made to bring the published book in line with the original manuscript.