Item Detail
-
28198
-
3
-
5
-
English
-
Thoughts on the Book of Abraham
-
No Weapon Shall Prosper : New Light on Sensitive Issues
-
Provo, UT
-
Religious Studies Center, BYU, in cooperation with Deseret Book Company
-
245-258
-
After eleven Joseph Smith papyri fragments were returned to the Church in 1967, critics concluded that Joseph Smith had fabricated the Book of Abraham. Why?
- The eleven fragments do not contain any text from the Book of Abraham but are part of an ancient Egyptian religious text.
- One fragment contains hieratic characters that match characters in the left-hand margin of three 1835 manuscripts opposite Book of Abraham text, suggesting Joseph Smith’s creative process.
- The same fragment was attached to the vignette that became Facsimile 1, suggesting that Abraham 1:12 refers to the characters on the fragment.
- The Egyptian in Facsimile 3 does not translate to Joseph Smith's explanation.
This chapter will deal with issues 2 and 3.