Facsimiles of the book abraham

Facsimiles 2 and 3, which have not survived, clearly demonstrate that other parts of the alleged book of abraham were actually from the book of breathings, the book of the dead, or. The church website has them, but they are only 400 pixels wide, which isnt very good. Cuts 1 and 3 are inaccurate copies of well known sce. Book of abraham and egyptian material the joseph smith papers. Lecture at the lds institute, utah valley state college, on june 14, 1995. The church conceded in its july 2014 translation and historicity of the book of abraham essay that josephs translations of the papyri and the facsimiles do not match whats in the book of abraham. The association of these facsimiles with the book of abraham might be explained as joseph smiths attempt to find illustrations from the papyri he owned that most closely matched what he had received in revelation when translating the book of abraham. A response december 2, 1983 by ben crowder abraham, anubis, apocalypse of abraham, bonwetsch, book of abraham, edward h. Thompson in the entry on the facsimiles from the book of abraham in the encyclo pedia ofmormonism we are told that the prophets explanations of each of.

There is much about the book of abraham and the facsimiles that is unconventional and not readily explained. Book of abrahamjoseph smith papyrifacsimilesfacsimile 1. Facsimile 1 published in the book of abraham is a common egyptian funerary scene. Of all the sacred texts of the mormon church, one of the most fascinating is the book of abraham, a fivechapter book that purportedly records the travels of abraham in egypt. Sometime between 1818 and 1822, antonio lebolo, who was working as superintendent of the archaeological excavations for bernardino drovetti in upper egypt, discovered many mummies in a tomb in thebes. The book of abraham by common consent, a mormon blog. Apologetics press facsimile 1 from the book of abraham. Explanations of the facsimiles other than those provided by the prophet joseph smith, which are printed with the facsimiles in the pearl of great price, are tentative and subject to revision by additional revelation and insight from modern prophets. Translation and historicity of the book of abraham university of. The idolatrous priest of elkenah attempting to offer up abraham as a sacrifice. The three facsimiles found in the book of abraham all derive from ancient egyptian papyri that joseph smith obtained in kirtland in 1835. The book of abraham was published in the churchs periodical times and.

A study guide to the facsimiles of the book of abraham. Book of abrahamjoseph smith papyrifacsimilesfacsimile 3. Additional insights on the book of abraham will appear in the future with. Mormon handbook the book of abraham facsimile 2 facsimile 2 is a common egyptian hypocephalus. Book of abraham and facsimiles, 1 march16 may 1842, page 0. A study guide to the facsimiles of the book of abraham allen j. Indeed, the transliterated text from the recovered papyri and facsimiles published in the book of abraham contain no direct references, either historical or textual, to abraham, and abraham s name does not appear anywhere in the papyri or the facsimiles.

Scriptural studies egyptology and the book of abraham. Smith said the papyri described abrahams early life, his travels to canaan and egypt, and his vision of the cosmos and its creation. Book of abraham joseph smith approved the facsimiles before they were published in the times and seasons. The book of abraham also helped clarify truths revealed in other books of scripture see 1 nephi. Facsimile 2, the hypocephalus, is also a late egyptian religious text. What about the association of facsimiles 1 and 3 with the hor book of breathings.

Printing plates of facsimiles of papyrus drawings, circa 23 february16 may 1842. The prophet joseph smiths explanations of the three facsimiles in the book of abraham are scripture and should be studied along with the rest of the book. In facsimile 1, he is the one being sacrificedand saved. Principal gathering place for saints following expulsion from missouri.

Three facsimiles are published with the text of the book of abraham in the pearl of great price. First, we must be clear that we do not know for sure that joseph smith authored the explanations of the facsimiles that were printed in the times and seasons, on the acquisition of the papyri and publication of the book of abraham, see column 2, which eventually became part of the pearl of great price. Accompanying the written portion of the book of abraham were three illustrations or facsimiles. According to smith, the book was a translation of some ancient records purporting to be the writings of abraham, while he was in egypt, called the book of abraham, written by his own hand, upon papyrus. The book of abraham issues translation problems mormonthink. As is made clear by the introduction to the book of abraham, the church maintains that, regardless of what the surviving facsimiles and scrolls indicate, the book of abraham is a sacred book of scripture and was written by the hand of abraham. A study guide to the facsimiles of the book of abraham by. As for josephs interpretation of figures from the hypocephalus facsimile 2, he was correct. Teaching the book of abraham facsimiles religious studies center. There is some evidence that josephs explanations should be taken seriously.

Teaching the book of abraham facsimiles religious studies. The altar for sacrifice by the idolatrous priests, standing before the gods of elkenah, libnah, mahmackrah, korash, and pharaoh. Beginning in 1839, church of jesus christ of latterday saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of commerce and planned settlement of. Iconotropy and the js abraham facsimiles this post was originally written and published online by bill hamblin at mormon scripture explorations on april 7, 20, and is reproduced here without alteration except for slight formatting changes, courtesy of professor hamblin.

There are numerous examples of egyptian papyri that have more than one text on them, and thus there could have been a copy of the book of abraham on the same papyrus as the hor book of breathings. All are similar to egyptian illustrations known from other sources. Teaching the book of abraham facsimiles 117 questions raised by the papyri these egyptian documents can be reliably dated to somewhere between 220 and 150 b. Kevin barney on the other hand has posited the existence of an original hebrew text derived from abraham that is reflected in the papyri that joseph smith possessed. You have read his article and so you can judge the persuasiveness of his view for yourself. Book of abraham and facsimiles, 1 march16 may 1842, page 703. Only facsimile 1 corresponds with the published text of the book of abraham. Representations similar to facsimile 1 abound in egyptian religious texts. Asterisk denotes a featured version, which includes an introduction and annotation book of abraham and facsimiles, 1 march16 may 1842 times and seasons, 1 march 1842 times and seasons, 15 march 1842 times and seasons, 16 may 1842 history, 18381856, volume c1 2 november 183831 july 1842 history, 18381856, volume c1 2.

A few years ago i tried to track down a highresolution version of the facsimiles from the book of abraham. Thus, these statements in the text seem to be nineteenthcentury additions approved by, if not made by, joseph smith. Two more videos on the facsimiles and the translation of the book of abraham are planned for release later this year. The book of abraham actually reads smoothly without these additions. Additional insights on the book of abraham will appear in the future with the advancement of scholarship and the publication of new research. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints the. According to joseph smiths introductory comments in the translation, abraham wrote the book himself, by his own hand, upon papyrus smith, 1842, 93. The above donut chart shows percentages of the book of abraham section of letter to a ces director that fairmormon is in agreement, disagreement, and neutral on if one assumes that fairmormons undisputed silence is acceptance of the facts, fairmormon agrees with 90.

Here, theodule deveria, an egyptologist at the museum, had the opportunity to examine the facsimiles, which he recognized as common egyptian funerary documents, of which he had examined hundreds. That is the connection between the facsimiles and the book of abraham. The papyri were believed to have been destroyed until they were rediscovered in 1966. The writings of abraham while he was in egypt, called the book of abraham, written by his own hand, upon papyrus. Book of abraham, which included letters from eight egyptologists and semitists who had responded to his inquiry concerning the interpretations of the three facsimiles published with the book of abraham text. Scriptural studies egyptology and the book of abraham stephen e. It is evident that the writings of abraham while he was in egypt, of which our printed book of abraham is a copy, must of necessity be older than. The pearl of great price is one of the canonized scriptures of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. The book itself is well bound with plenty of illustrations to aid in the reading. The use of the facsimiles as illustrations of the book of abraham is dependent on the text of the book of abraham. Facsimiles from the book of abraham introduces the ancient egyptian illustrations that are currently published with the work and assesses their relationship to the text.

The book of abraham is a book of lds scripture that joseph smith translated from a collection of ancient egyptian papyri the church purchased. Mormon handbook the book of abraham since abraham lived before moses, who authored the torah the first five books of the old testament, it would make the papyrus older than the book of genesis. The purpose of this paper is to lay foundation for a study of that possibility by introducing and analyzing certain areas of disputed restorations on facsimiles i and 2 of the book of abraham and drawing what conclusions are possible from the evidence. The book of abraham is a work produced between 1835 and 1842 by joseph smith based, he said, on egyptian papyri purchased from a traveling mummy exhibition. Aug 22, 2019 according to smith, the book was a translation of some ancient records. A study guide to the facsimiles of the book of abraham shows the meaning of every character in the facsimiles and helps readers comprehend their great value. Approaching the facsimiles pearl of great price central. Beginning in 1839, church of jesus christ of latterday saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of commerce and planned settlement of commerce city, as well as. The published text of the book of abraham is accompanied by three woodcut. The three facsimiles that are in every copy of the book of abraham in the pearl of great price. Facsimile 3 published in the book of abraham is a scene from the ancient egyptian book of the dead. According to smith, the book was a translation of some ancient records. The book of abraham comprises five chapters of text and three facsimiles of vignettes from the papyri collection, together with josephs proffered explanations.

Some evidence indicates that the papyri containing the facsimiles of the book of abraham were already damaged when joseph smith obtained them. Source note book of abraham and facsimiles, nauvoo principal gathering place for saints following expulsion from missouri. The book of abraham translated from the papyrus, by joseph smith a translation of some ancient records, that have fallen into our hands from the catacombs of egypt. The illustration represented by facsimile 2 is a hypocephalus, a disc made of linen, papyrus, or. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Book of abraham and facsimiles, 1 march16 may 1842, page 784. Facsimiles from the book of abraham and narration of chapter. The facsimiles of the book of abraham are a part of the pearl of great price. For details and some intriguing answers, see some puzzles from the joseph smith papyri by dr. However, facsimile 3 also shows anubis, yet smith made him out to be a tinyheaded, racist caricature of an african slave. I say nothing about the catalyst theory and i reject hauglids attempted framing of runnells states that the catalyst theory is a concession to. Arthur mace, assistant curator for the department of egyptian art of the metropolitan museum of art in new york. The book of abraham, it is hardly necessary to say, is a pure fabrication.

Critical appraisal of the book of abraham wikipedia. As translated by the prophet joseph smith, they bear witness of the gospel as had by adam, noah, and other ancient patriarchs. Abraham offering sacrifices upon an altar while in egypt. Did joseph smith correctly translate facsimile 2 in the. On january 31, 2020, pearl of great price central published its fortieth insight related to the book of abraham.

This time it is abraham offering sacrifices upon an alter. The book contains three facsimiles from the original papyri and joseph smiths translations of their images and characters. I have shown that the extant papyrus was deemed by joseph smith to be, in the very least, the beginning of the book of abraham. Latterday saint egyptologist kerry muhlestein discusses josephs involvement with the interpretation of the facsimiles in the book of abraham. Facsimiles from the book of abraham and narration of. In the twentieth century there were two events that put the authenticity of the book of abraham as an ancient text and not a modern pseudepigraphon in doubt.

Joseph smith consistently identifies the libation table with abraham in egypt in facsimiles 1 and 3. Later that same year, a pamphlet containing the book of abraham s facsimiles was sent to the louvre. The mormon god and a phallic god could be considered one and the same. As we discuss all of the facsimiles, we must keep in mind what i wrote about challenge two. The book of abraham has with uncanny skill anticipated the trends of modern scholarship. Facsimiles with explanations authored by joseph smith himself.

Debunking fairmormon letter to a ces director book of abraham. Joseph smith and the lds church for over 170 years have claimed that the book of abraham is a translation of a portion of the papyri scrolls purchased by the church in 1835 kirtland, ohio, and that this portion contains the writings of abraham written by abrahams own hand. Smiths detailed explanations for the individual egyptian characters on these two facsimiles in the book of abraham have been thoroughly discredited by egyptologists. Book of abrahamjoseph smith papyrifacsimilesfacsimile 2. A similar argument proposed by michael rhodes is that the facsimiles that are found in the book of abraham represent a corrupted version of a document originally written by abraham, and smith gave the interpretation of the original document. So, this gives us more explanation for what abraham in egypt is. Translation and publication of the book of abraham. It is the facsimiles from which joseph made his translation of the book of abraham, just as an ancient scribe would have done. An examination of the smith papyri shows that portions were torn and missing. Book of abraham and facsimiles, 1 march16 may 1842. An egyptian book of the dead was a corrupted mishmash of original teachings from adam down to subsequent patriarchs, such as abraham. Facsimiles 2 and 3, which have not survived, clearly demonstrate that other parts of the alleged book of abraham were actually from the book of breathings, the book of the dead, or just part of egyptian burial practices. The book of abraham was canonized in 1880 and is part of the pearl of great price.

Book of abraham facsimile number 2 wikimedia commons. I am aware that many members of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints mormon doubt the veracity of joseph smith juniors translation from egyptian hieroglyphs, including the facsimiles found in the book of abraham. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the creative commons cc0 license. Fairs apologetics regarding the book of abraham offends intellect.