Book of Abraham Translation

What exactly is the Book of Abraham?

The Book of Abraham is a book of scripture included as part of the Pearl of Great Price. The Church upholds the text as "an inspired translation of the writings of Abraham."[BIO][1]

Where did the Book of Abraham come from?

Joseph Smith[BIO] produced the Book of Abraham after he acquired some Egyptian papyri and mummies in July 1835,[2] although the text was not published until March 1842.[3] The book purports to be an autobiographical text written by Abraham and preserved on an ancient Egyptian papyrus.[4]

How did these Egyptian records end up in Joseph Smith's possession?

In late June or early July 1835, a traveling antiquities showman named Michael H. Chandler[BIO] arrived in Kirtland, Ohio,[5] and exhibited a collection of mummies and papyrus rolls to Joseph Smith.[6]

Joseph, with the help of at least two other Church members,[7] purchased at least two rolls of papyrus and four mummies, among other fragments or pieces of papyrus from Chandler for $2,400.[8] Joseph pronounced that the scrolls contained the writings of Abraham and Joseph of Egypt.[BIO][9][10]

Do we know how Joseph Smith translated the papyri?

Not really, no. Joseph left no firsthand account explaining how he produced the text of the Book of Abraham, which he called a "translation."[11] Multiple sources, including a scribe who worked on the project, indicated that Joseph translated the papyri by revelation but did not elaborate on the precise method.[12] On at least one occasion Joseph himself called the text a "revelation,"[13] and contemporary non-Latter-day Saint sources also called it a revelation.[14]

Did Joseph use the Urim and Thummim in the translation?

Yes, probably. There are multiple sources that reported Joseph using the Urim and Thummim or "spectacles" to translate the papyri.[15] But it is unclear to what extent or how exactly Joseph used the Urim and Thummim in the translation.

Did Joseph use the seer stone in the translation?

Possibly. One of Joseph Smith's Nauvoo-era clerks, Howard Coray,[BIO] remembered seeing Joseph translate with the seer stone sometime in the early 1840s.[16] It's possible that this is referring to the translation of the Book of Abraham, which was published in early 1842.

Also, Joseph's mother, Lucy Mack Smith,[BIO] reportedly said that Joseph translated the papyri by looking into a hat.[17]

Read more in Seer Stones

Did Joseph believe the papyrus was literally written by Abraham himself?

Yes, probably. Joseph Smith seemed to indicate he believed Abraham himself physically wrote on the papyrus.[18] There are also secondhand sources that report this.[19]

Many Latter-day Saints also believed the Egyptian papyrus and the mummies accompanying them were as old as Abraham[20] or were written by Abraham and Joseph of Egypt directly,[21] so this assumption was probably widely held among Joseph Smith's contemporaries.[22]

Could the papyrus have been literally written by Abraham, as in, the ink on the papyrus was put there by Abraham himself?

No. Traditional biblical chronology puts the life of Abraham at around 2,000 BC,[23] but the papyri date to approximately the third-century BC to the first century AD.[24]

But doesn't it say that the Book of Abraham was "written by his own hand, upon papyrus"?

Yes. The header where that appears was probably written by Joseph Smith, who seemed to believe that Abraham literally wrote on the papyrus.[25] It's also possible that Joseph translated it as part of the text of the Book of Abraham. The phrase "by/with the hand" is a phrase found in ancient Egyptian writing that can denote authorship rather than the literal scribe of the text.[26]

Did Joseph Smith ever use the Book of Abraham in his teachings?

Yes. There are several documented instances where Joseph Smith used concepts or teachings from the Book of Abraham in his sermons and writings.[27]

Did Joseph translate or reveal more text than is currently published?

Possibly. Joseph intended to publish more Book of Abraham material,[28] and on one occasion, Joseph referenced concepts he claimed were from the "record of Abraham" that are not present in the published text.[29] One source also remembered spending two hours with Joseph reading from the "translations of the Book of Abraham" which may indicate the existence of additional material.[30]

What happened to the papyri after Joseph Smith's death?

Some of the papyri ended up in the Chicago Museum and were presumably burned up in the Chicago fire of 1871.[31] Some of the papyri ended up at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and was transferred to the Church in 1967.[32]

Before he died on June 27, 1844, Joseph gave the papyri and mummies to his mother, Lucy Mack Smith.[33] After her death on May 14, 1856, ownership transferred to Emma Smith[BIO] and her new husband Lewis Bidamon,[BIO] who promptly sold the collection to a man named Abel Combs[BIO] just twelve days later on May 26, 1856.[34]

Part of Combs' collection ended up in the St. Louis Museum just weeks after their sale.[35] This portion of the collection wound up in the Wood's Museum (also known simply as the Chicago Museum) in Chicago by 1863,[36] and perished in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.[37]

The other portion of the papyri was retained by Combs and passed to his housekeeper Charlotte Beneke Weaver[BIO] after he died in 1892.[38] Charlotte Beneke died in 1915 and Charlotte's daughter Alice Combs Weaver[BIO] then took possession of the papyri.[39]

In 1918, Alice showed the papyri fragments to scholars at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, but no sale was transacted at that time.[40] It was not until 1947 that the papyri fragments were finally were sold to the Met by Alice's surviving husband Edward Heusser.[BIO][41] Twenty years later, on November 27, 1967, these fragments of the Joseph Smith Papyri were returned to the Church.[42]

This table lists the custodial chain of the papyri up until 1856 at which time the papyri was divided into two portions.

Date	Custodian	Transferred To	Location
July 1835[43]	Michael Chandler	Joseph Smith	Kirtland, OH
Circa 1842[44]	Joseph Smith	Lucy Mack Smith	Nauvoo, IL
May 14, 1856[45]	Lucy Mack Smith	Emma and Lewis Bidamon	Nauvoo, IL
May 26, 1856[46]	Emma and Lewis Bidamon	Abel Combs	Nauvoo, IL
June 1856[47]	Abel Combs	St. Louis Museum	St. Louis, MO
Circa 1863[48]	St. Louis Museum	Woods Museum (Chicago Museum)	Chicago, IL
October 8–10, 1871[49]	Woods Museum	Destroyed	Chicago, IL

This table lists the custodial chain of the second portion of the papyri which the Church took possession of in 1967.

Date	Custodian	Transferred To	Location
May 26, 1856[50]	Emma and Lewis Bidamon	Abel Combs	Nauvoo, IL
July 5, 1892[51]	Abel Combs	Charlotte Beneke Weaver	Philadelphia, PA
March 21, 1915[52]	Charlotte Beneke Weaver	Alice Combs Weaver	New York, NY
June 9, 1941[53]	Alice Combs Weaver	Edward Heusser	New York, NY
1947[54]	Edward Heusser	Metropolitan Museum of Art	New York, NY
November 27, 1967[55]	Metropolitan Museum of Art	The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints	Salt Lake City, UT

Do any of the surviving fragments of the Joseph Smith Papyri translate as the Book of Abraham?

No. Both Latter-day Saint and non-Latter-day Saint Egyptologists have translated these fragments, and the fragments don't contain the English text of the Book of Abraham.[56] The recovered papyri fragments contain copies of ancient funerary texts known today as the Book (or Document) of Breathings[57] and the Book of the Dead.[58]

Has the Church ever tried to suppress the discovery of the papyri fragments after they were discovered in 1967?

No. The Church announced the acquisition in both the Deseret News and the Church News as soon as the transfer from the Metropolitan Museum was finalized on November 27, 1967.[59] Articles and reprints of the papyri were then published in Church publications.[60]

Has the Church ever tried to hide the fact that the text on the papyri doesn't match the Book of Abraham?

No. When they received the papyri, the Church indicated that the papyri appeared to include common funerary texts.[61] Since then, other Church publications have noted the same.[62]

Hugh Nibley[BIO] also published a translation of the Book of Breathings (found among the Joseph Smith papyri) in 1975 through Deseret Book.[63] And in 2002 and 2010, a Latter-day Saint Egyptologist published translations of all the papyri fragments through Brigham Young University.[64]

Didn't the Church admit in 2014 that the Book of Abraham is false?

No. The Church published an essay on July 8, 2014,[65] entitled "Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham," which stated, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints embraces the book of Abraham as scripture."[66]

The essay acknowledged that the surviving Egyptian papyri fragments date centuries after Abraham's lifetime and do not contain any text published by Joseph Smith.[67]

So if the papyri aren't from Abraham's lifetime, and the translation of the papyri done by Egyptologists doesn't match the Book of Abraham, isn't this a problem?

Possibly. If the recovered 1967 papyri fragments were the source for a literal translation of the text as opposed to an inspired revelation, it could be a problem.

Are there explanations for the translation of the 1967 papyri not matching the Book of Abraham?

Yes. There are two primary theories. The "missing scroll" theory and the "catalyst" theory.

The "missing scroll" theory is that the Book of Abraham was translated from the portion of the papyri that were presumably burned up in the Chicago fire in 1871.[68]

The "catalyst" theory is that the papyri were just a device used to inspire Joseph Smith to receive revelation.[69]

Is there evidence for the "missing scroll" theory?

Yes. Many historical sources describe the papyri differently, including some that refer to a "scroll" or "roll" with the writings of Abraham.[70] Whereas the 1967 fragments were mounted on backing paper and framed in glass sometime in the late 1830s or early 1840s.[71]

This table lists all known historical records that refer to the mummies and papyri (scroll, rolls, etc.) acquired by Joseph Smith.

What was purchased or owned by Joseph Smith	Number of Mummies	Number of Texts	Source
". . . four human figures, together with some two or more rolls of papyrus, covered with Hierogliphic, figures and devices."	4	2 or more rolls	Joseph Smith Manuscript History (ca. 1843; entry for July 3, 1835)[72]
". . . four Egyptian mummies . . . With them were two papyrus rolls, besides some other ancient Egyptian writings."	4	2 scrolls and some writings	William W. Phelps letter (July 1835)[73]
". . . four Egyptian Mummies . . . also some r[e]cords"	4	some records	John Whitmer history (ca. 1838; entry for July 1835)[74]
". . . three of the mummies [owned by Chandler] . . ."	3	-	Cleveland Whig (August 1835)[75]
". . . four Egyptian mummies, and a hieroglyphic bundle of characters . . ."	4	bundle of characters	Joseph Bradley (August 1835)[76]
". . . Three mummies . . ."	3	-	Albany Journal (August 1835)[77]
". . . two or three mummies . . ."	2 or 3	-	Painesville Telegraph (September 1835)[78]
". . . four Egyptian mummi[e]s . . . also an ancient record . . ."	4	a record	Albert Brown (November 1835)[79]
". . . two rolls [of papyrus] . . . a small quantity of papyrus . . . . [and] the remaining four [mummies in Chandler's collection]."	4	2 rolls and a quantity of papyrus	Oliver Cowdery (December 1835)[80]
". . . four Egyptian mummies."	4	-	Truman Coe (August 1836)[81]
". . . two females and one male [mummy]. . . papyrus, or an ancient Egyptian paper . . . on which is a splendid specimen of Egyptian Hieroglyphics."	3	a paper	Ohio Watchman & Liberal Enquirer (September 1836)[82]
". . . four Egyptian Mu[m]mies."	4	-	Wilford Woodruff (November 1836)[83]
". . . four mummies, and a quantity of records, written on papyrus, in Egyptian hieroglyphics . . ."	4	a quantity of records	William West (1837)[84]
". . . three or four Egyptian Mummies, with an ancient Egyptian record, written on papyrus . . ."	3 or 4	a record	John Corrill (1839)[85]
". . . four [mummies] . . . the Papyrus . . ."	4	the papyrus	Sentinel of Freedom (June 1840)[86]
". . . several Egyptian Mummies . . . numerous fragments of Egyptian papyrus . . ."	several	numerous fragments	Alexandria Gazette (1840)[87]
". . . two mummies . . ."	2	-	Tyler Parsons (1841)[88]
". . . four mummies, one male and three females . . . [a] Roll of Papyrus . . ."	4	a roll	William Appleby (1841/1847)[89]
". . . the Egyptian mummies, of which he has four . . ."	4	-	New-York Tribune (September 1841)[90]
". . . some mummies . . . a roll of manuscripts . . ."	some	a roll	American Advocate (October 1841)[91]
". . . a number of glazed slides, like picture frames, containing sheets of papyrus, with Egyptian inscriptions and hieroglyphics. . . . four mummies . . ."	4	a number of sheets	Henry Caswall (1842)[92]
". . . four mummies . . . together with the records . . ."	4	records	Joseph Smith (1842)[93]
". . . the record together with some or all of the mummies [owned by Chandler]. . ."	some	record	Parley P. Pratt (1842)[94]
". . . four Egyptian mummies . . . papyrus rolls in which they were enveloped . . ."	4	papyrus rolls	Dublin University Magazine (March 1843)[95]
". . . half a dozen mummies . . . a long roll of manuscript . . ."	6	a long roll	Charlotte Haven (March 1843)[96]
". . . three mummies, and the writings and hieroglyphics which were found rolled up and preserved on the breast of one . . ."	3	writings	H. A. Graves (August 1843)[97]
". . . ancient records found with a number of mummies in good preservation. . ."	a number	records	Millennial Star (December 1843)[98]
". . . four mummies . . . the writing of Abraham . . ."	4	writing	LaFayette Knight (December 1843)[99]
". . . four mummies . . . some hieroglyphics . . ."	4	some hieroglyphics	Boston Evening Transcript (January 1844)[100]
". . . four Egyptian mummies . . . a chart or manuscript . . ."	4	a manuscript	Charles Francis Adams, Sr. (May 1844)[101]
". . . four Egyptian Mummies . . . bundles of papyri . . ."	4	bundles of papyri	Buffalo Daily Courier and Economist (June 1844)[102]
". . . two mummy kings and their queens . . . and a number of sheets of hieroglyphics . . ."	4	a number of sheets	Ladies' Magazine and Album (June 1848)[103]
". . . the mummies five in number . . . Parchment or Papyrus . . . The parchment appeared to be made of fine linen cloth starched or sised with some kind of gum then Ironed smooth and written on in characters figures Hyroglyphics &c conveying the Egyptian language these sheets were about as large as the page of this book when open [8x12 inches]."	5	parchment	Luman Andros Shurtliff (ca. 1852–1876; event described transpired circa December 1837)[104]
". . . half a dozen Egyptian mummies . . . a large number of framed sheets of papyrus covered with hieroglyphics . . ."	6	sheets	Buffalo Daily Courier (October 1852)[105]
". . . three mummies . . . three pieces of hieroglpyhic writing upon parchment of a very antique appearance."	3	3	Josiah Quincy (January 1854)[106]
". . . four Egyptian mummies . . . records . . ."	4	records	Emma Hale Smith (May 1856)[107]
"four mummies . . . records which . . . were some kind of parchment or papyrus, and it contained writing in red and black."	4	parchment	Robert Horne (1883)[108]
". . . rolls of Papyrus . . ."	-	rolls	Foster W. Jones (1897)[109]
". . . a roll with some Egyptian mummies, pasted on either paper or linen and put into a small case of flat drawers, some dozen or sixteen in number . . . with two cases of mummies containing five persons . . ."	5	a roll	Joseph Smith III (October 1898)[110]
". . . three Egyptian mummies . . ."	3	-	Catherine Hulet Winget (1905)[111]
" . . . an interminable roll of sere cloth said to have been taken from a mummy, which was covered with hieroglyphics . . ."	-	a roll	Cora Agnes Bennison (1909)[112]
". . . three mummies . . . the roll of papyrus from which our prophet translated the Book of Abraham."	3	a roll	Jerusha Walker Blanchard (1922)[113]
" . . . the mummies, four in number . . . with them were two rolls of papyrus containing, among other writings, the book of Abraham, which the Prophet translated. . ."	4	two rolls of papyrus	Solomon H. Hale (1938)[114]

But didn't Joseph Smith believe the Book of Abraham came from the 1967 fragments?

Possibly. Joseph didn't give any firsthand indication of which portion of the papyri he was translating. There are some secondhand accounts from people who say that Joseph Smith identified the fragments mounted on backing paper as the source of the Book of Abraham.[115]

Don't the original Book of Abraham manuscripts indicate that Joseph was working off of the 1967 fragments?

Possibly. The Kirtland-era Book of Abraham manuscripts contained Egyptian characters in the left margin.[116] Most of these characters are from the 1967 fragment of papyrus, which would indicate a relationship between the 1967 fragments and the translation of the Book of Abraham.[117]

Is there evidence to support the "catalyst" theory?

Yes. Joseph Smith[118] and several sources close to him[119] referred to the Book of Abraham as being received by "direct inspiration of heaven" or as being a "revelation." Orson Pratt understood the translations of the Book of Mormon, the Book of Abraham, and the "parchment of John" (Doctrine and Covenants 7) as all stemming from the same "gift of translation" that God gave Joseph.[120]

Does the Church teach either of these two theories, the "missing scroll" theory or the "catalyst" theory, as its own official position?

No. The Church does not have an official position on how Joseph Smith translated the Book of Abraham other than he did so by the gift and power of God.[121] However, the Church has offered both the "missing scroll" theory as well as the "catalyst" theory as possible explanations for the origins of the Book of Abraham that are in harmony with its position that the text is inspired scripture.[122]

The Facts

Joseph Smith came into the possession of some Egyptian papyri and mummies in July 1835.
Joseph Smith said the papyri contained the writings of Abraham and Joseph of Egypt.
The Urim and Thummim (and possibly the seer stone) were likely used in the translation process.
After Joseph's death, the papyri were divided into two portions in 1856.
The first portion was likely destroyed in the Chicago fire in 1871.
The second portion was returned to the Church in 1967.
The surviving fragments do not translate as the Book of Abraham but instead as common Egyptian funerary texts.
The Church has openly acknowledged this ever since 1967 and has never attempted to conceal this.
The Church accepts the Book of Abraham as inspired scripture.
The Church leaves both the "missing scroll" theory as well as the "catalyst" theory as possibilities to explain the mismatch between the 1967 papyri fragments and the Book of Abraham.

Our Take

The Church and the Restored Gospel hinges on the validity of Joseph Smith as a prophet. Joseph’s validity hinges on his works, which included bringing forth new scripture. One such scripture, the Book of Abraham, has a complicated history. The issues surrounding the Book of Abraham can feel overwhelming.

There's much we still don't know about when it comes to precisely how Joseph Smith translated the Book of Abraham. A bunch of papyri is missing. The 1967 papyri doesn't match the Book of Abraham. One explanation could be that Joseph Smith wasn't a prophet. However, there are other evidence-based explanations for the Book of Abraham.

There are two reasonable theories. The "missing papyrus" theory is that Joseph translated the papyri that burned in the Chicago fire. The "catalyst" theory is that the Book of Abraham text was revealed to Joseph with the papyri acting as a source of divine inspiration.

The text of the Book of Abraham offers insights into the nature of God, the Plan of Salvation, and other gospel themes. But the messy history may still feel weird or uncomfortable. While we don't know the details of the translation, we rely on a spiritual witness and faith that the Book of Abraham was revealed and Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.

What's Your Take?

Lenny
“The BoA is one of my favorite books of scripture. Nibley did a lot to provide context. Without a doubt, it is historical and true. Especially when compared to the Apocalypse of Abraham and other writings that JS didn't have. Most importantly- God can testify of its truthfulness!”
Julie P
“I appreciate learning more about the ancient records and Egyptian mummies that Joseph Smith acquired. I believe that The Pearl of Great Price is inspired of God and gifted to us by Revelation. Like The Book of Mormon, a person will need to read and pray with faith for answers.”
Joe
“The evidence supports: The missing scroll theory, but the catalyst theory is an option. That MS A-C are copies, and the characters in the margins a retrofit attempt. Eyewitnesses, leading faithful scholars and leading BoA critics agree: the GAEL was not for translating the BoA.”
Michael
“God speaks to men in their weakness and understanding. Joseph Smith, like many of his contemporaries, viewed ancient Egyptian writings as having a mystical nature. They acted as a catalyst. Or the missing scroll theory is right. Either way, it’s revelation.”
Jon W
“Even IF the remaining fragments are exactly what Joseph Smith translated and even IF they don’t match, and even IF Joseph claimed to directly translate the fragments, he still could see things as a seer that scholars don’t see. That’s where faith comes in.”

Read More Difficult Questions

323 Primary Sources

Footnotes

BIOAbraham
Abraham (c. nineteenth century BCE) was born in Ur and was a central figure in biblical history. He was the first of the patriarchs whom God entered into a covenant to inherit a promised land for his descendants. Abraham spent much of his life as a nomad in the Levant, staying for a while in Egypt (Genesis 11:27–Genesis 12:20). He had two sons with his wife Sarah, Ishmael and Isaac. Abraham had children with Hagar and Katurah as well. Abraham was told to sacrifice his son Isaac but was stopped by an angel and told to sacrifice a ram instead (Genesis 22).
BIOJoseph Smith, Jr.
Joseph Smith (1805–1844) organized The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Born in Sharon, Vermont, he began to experience visions of deity and angels at a young age. One vision featured the Angel Moroni, who revealed the location of gold plates with an account of ancient Americans. He translated this record and published it as The Book of Mormon. He continued to receive revelations throughout his life which serve as the foundation for the Church's doctrine today. He led the Latter-day Saints across the country from New York to Illinois. In 1844, he was martyred while awaiting trial in Carthage, Illinois.
BIOMichael H. Chandler
Michael H. Chandler (ca. 1798–1866) was an Irish immigrant to the United States and antiquities exhibitor and dealer. In the summer of 1835 he exhibited some Egyptian mummies and papyri to Joseph Smith in Kirtland, OH. Joseph purchased these antiquities for $2,400 and his subsequent examination of the papyri resulted in the translation and publication of the Book of Abraham. After his encounter with Joseph Smith, Chandler continued to live in Ohio until his death in 1866.
BIOJoseph
Joseph of Egypt was a prophet from the Old Testament. He was one of twelve sons of Jacob (Israel) and became a ruler in Egypt. He had two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh who inherited blessings from Jacob.
BIOHoward Coray
Howard Coray (1817-1918) was a bookkeeper, clerk, teacher and farmer. He was born in Dansville, New York. He joined the Church in Illinois in 1840. He served as a clerk for Joseph Smith. He served a mission in Pennsylvania and later in his life he served in Virginia. He assisted Lucy Mack Smith, Joseph's mother, in writing her book about the history of Joseph Smith. He died in Salt Lake City, Utah.
BIOLucy Mack Smith
Lucy Mack Smith (1775–1856) was the mother of Joseph Smith, Jr. Born and raised in New Hampshire, she married Joseph Smith, Sr. in 1796. A faithful Presbyterian and a committed Seeker, Smith believed her son's claims to visions. She stayed with the Latter-day Saints throughout her life until Nauvoo, when age prohibited her from traveling with the Saints to the Intermountain West. She composed and dictated the most thorough history of Joseph Smith's early life, which became The History of Joseph Smith By His Mother, transcribed by scribe Martha Coray.
BIOEmma Hale Smith
Emma Hale Smith (1804–1879) was an early leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Born in Harmony, Pennsylvania, Emma received a boarding school education in Boston, Massachusetts. She met Joseph Smith in Harmony, Pennsylvania while he was working as a manual laborer and, occasionally, as a treasure-hunter. They married and she followed Joseph Smith throughout his life. Emma served as the first Relief Society President and navigated Joseph Smith's implementation of plural marriage with mixed responses: either supporting or opposing it at various times in her life. After Joseph's death, Emma married Lewis C. Bidamon, a non-Mormon resident of Nauvoo. Later in life, she affiliated with the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, later called Community of Christ, where her son Joseph III became president.
BIOLewis Bidamon
Lewis Bidamon (1806-1891) was the second husband of Emma Hale Smith. Born in Smithfield, Virginia, Bidamon moved to Ohio as an adolescent and later, to Canton, Illinois. He served as a member of the Illinois militia in support of the Latter-day Saints during the conflicts leading to their expulsion from Nauvoo. At the time of his marriage to Emma Smith, he had two previous marriages and five children, one of whom was born out of wedlock. He continued to serve in the Illinois militia during the American Civil War. In 1864, Bidamon fathered an additional child out of wedlock with Nancy Abercrombie, a recent migrant to Nauvoo; Emma Smith raised the child as her own. After Emma Smith died in 1879, Bidamon married Nancy and remained with her until his death in 1891.
BIOAbel Combs
Abel Combs (1823–1892) was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On May 26, 1856 he purchased Joseph Smith's Egyptian papyri and mummies from Joseph's widow Emma Hale Smith and her second husband Lewis Bidamon. Combs sold a portion of the papyri and two mummies to the St. Louis Museum that same year. Another portion of the collection he kept for himself, which passed to his housekeeper Charlotte Beneke Weaver (1855–1915) upon his death in 1892. These fragments were sold to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 1947. On November 27, 1967, twenty years later, the papyri fragments were returned to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
BIOCharlotte Beneke Weaver
Charlotte Beneke Weaver (1855–1915) was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1873 she married Henry H. Weaver. She was the housekeeper of Abel Combs, who purchased Joseph Smith's Egyptian papyri and mummies from Emma Hale Smith and Lewis Bidamon on May 26, 1856. Upon his death in 1892, Charlotte inherited a portion of the Joseph Smith Papyri that Combs had kept for himself. Charlotte bequeathed this portion of the papyri to her daughter Alice Combs Weaver Heusser (1874–1941) upon her death in 1915. This portion of the papyri was returned to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on November 27, 1967.
BIOAlice Combs Weaver Heusser
Alice Combs Weaver Heusser (1874–1941) was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was the daughter of Charlotte E. Beneke (1855–1915) and Henry H. Weaver (1848–1896) and the wife of Edward Heusser (1866–deceased). She was the owner of a portion of the Joseph Smith Papyri between circa 1915 and 1941. Alice had inherited the papyri fragments from her mother, who had previously inherited them from Abel Combs (1823–1892), the man who purchased the papyri from Emma Hale Smith and Lewis Bidamon on May 26, 1856 and who had for a time employed Charlotte as his housekeeper. In 1918, Alice approached scholars at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and showed them the portion of the Joseph Smith Papyri in her possession. Alice kept possession of the papyri until her death in 1941 in New York City.
BIOEdward Heusser
Edward Heusser (1866–deceased) was born in Switzerland and emigrated to the United States in the early 1880s. He married Alice Combs Weaver (1874–1941), daughter of Charlotte Beneke Weaver (1855–1915), in 1896. Edward's wife Alice inherited a portion of the Joseph Smith Papyri upon the death of her mother Charlotte in 1915, who had previously inherited them from Abel Combs (1823–1892), purchaser of Joseph Smith's papyri and mummies from Emma Hale Smith and Lewis Bidamon on May 26, 1856. In 1947, six years after Alice's death, and around the time of his own death (precise date unknown), Edward sold the papyri fragments to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These fragments were returned to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on November 27, 1967.
BIOHugh W. Nibley
Hugh Winder Nibley (1910–2005) was an influential Latter-day Saint scholar known mostly for his historical and apologetic writings on Latter-day Saint scripture and doctrine. Nibley was born in Portland, Oregon and received a PhD in history from the University of California, Berkeley in 1938. After serving in United States Army during World War Two, Nibley was hired to teach at Brigham Young University in 1946, where he taught religion until 1975. He continued to work at BYU as an emeritus professor until 1994. Nibley is perhaps best known for his apologetic work on the Book of Mormon and the Book of Abraham. Nibley died in 2005 at age 94.
[1]↩︎
The introduction to the current (2013) official edition of the Pearl of Great Price describes the Book of Abraham:
The Book of Abraham. An inspired translation of the writings of Abraham. Joseph Smith began the translation in 1835 after obtaining some Egyptian papyri. The translation was published serially in the Times and Seasons beginning March 1, 1842, at Nauvoo, Illinois
- Introduction to the 2013 official edition of the POGP.
[2]↩︎
There are two common possible translation timelines of the Book of Abraham that are generally accepted by historians.
In the first, Joseph Smith translated most or all of what is currently contained in the Book of Abraham between July and November 1835 and made minor revisions or edits to the text to prepare it for publication beginning on March 1, 1842.
In the second, Joseph Smith translated up to Abraham 2:18 between July and November 1835 and translated the remainder of the text in early 1842 just before it was published.
[3]↩︎
The Book of Abraham was originally published in three installments of the Times and Seasons:
1. Abraham 1:1–2:18 and Facsimile 1 on March 1, 1842.
2. Abraham 2:19–5:21 and Facsimile 2 on March 15, 1842.
3. Facsimile 3 on May 16, 1842.
[4]↩︎
When it was first published by Joseph Smith on March 1, 1842, a header introduced the Book of Abraham as:
A TRANSLATION Of some ancient Records that have fallen into our hands, from the Catecombs of Egypt, purporting to be the writings of Abraham, while he was in Egypt, called the Book of Abraham, written by his own hand, upon papyrus.
- First published text of Book of Abraham (Abraham 1:1–2:18), "purporting" to be a translation of the writings of Abraham.
[5]↩︎
Chandler was displaying his Egyptian antiquities in the Cleveland, OH, area (not far from Kirtland) in the spring of 1835, just a few months before he met Joseph Smith.
[6]↩︎
In a letter to his wife Sally, William W. Phelps indicated Chandler had arrived in Kirtland on the last day of June 1835.
Oliver Cowdery also mentioned in a December 1835 letter how Chandler visited Kirtland "the last of June, or first of July" and showed Joseph the mummies on that date.
Joseph's history, on the other hand, records that he visited Chandler on July 3, 1835.
Chandler may have arrived in Kirtland at the end of June and had to wait a few days before visiting Joseph.
[7]↩︎
The historical record indicates Joseph Coe and Simeon Andrews both provided a third ($800 each) of the money needed to purchase the collection, which cost $2,400. Joseph supplied the final third of the needed funds.
Years after the sale, Joseph Smith and Joseph Coe argued over the financial particulars of the purchase.
- JC writes to JS asking to recuperate the money he paid for the mummies.
- Joseph Smith replies to Joseph Coe letter of January 1 disputing any claim Joseph Coe has on monetary recompense for the mummies.
[8]↩︎
Additional sources besides Joseph Coe's assessment put the price tag of the mummies and papyri at $2,400. A few sources mistakenly understate the price at $2,000 or overstate at $6,000.
[9]↩︎
Joseph's manuscript history recorded how the Prophet identified "one of the rolls contain[ing] the writings of Abraham; another the writings of Joseph of Egypt."
William W. Phelps, writing to his wife, also indicated how "one of the rolls contained the writings of Abraham; another the writings of Joseph of Egypt."
Oliver Cowdery similarly reported in a letter written to William Frye:
Upon the subject of the Egyptian records, or rather the writings of Abraham and Joseph, I may say a few words. This record is beautifully written on papyrus with black, and a small part, red ink or paint, in perfect preservation. The characters are such as you find upon the coffins of mummies, hieroglyphics, &c. with many characters or letters exactly like the present, (though probably not quite so square,) form of the Hebrew without points.
[10]↩︎
Several sources, including Joseph's own history, report that the Prophet provided Chandler with an initial interpretation of some of the characters on the papyri before purchasing them. Joseph's history recorded:
On the 3rd. of July, Michael H. Chandler came to Kirtland to exhibit some Egyptian Mummies. . . . As Mr Chandler had been told that I could translate them, he brought me some of the characters, and I gave him the interpretation . . .
Oliver Cowdery, who was likely an eyewitness to the encounter, wrote in a December 1835 letter:
Being solicited by Mr. Chandler to give an opinion concerning his antiquities, or translation of some of the characters, bro. S. gave him the interpretation of some few for his satisfaction.
A later reminiscence (as retold by Edward Tullidge) from John Riggs, who was also present at the meeting between Joseph Smith and Michael Chandler, similarly recounted:
Young [John] Riggs was present when the Prophet first saw the papyrus from which is translated the Book of Abraham. Joseph was permitted to take the papyrus home with him, Father [Gideon] Riggs vouching for its return, and the morning following Joseph came with the leaves which he had translated, which Oliver Cowdery read. . . .
[11]↩︎
Joseph Smith referred to his work on the Egyptian papyri as "translation" on numerous occasions, but he never expanded upon what he meant by this or how he "translated" the text.
[12]↩︎
These sources include Joseph Smith's clerk Warren Parrish, who scribed for the Prophet in the translation of the Book of Abraham. After his excommunication, Parrish wrote a scathing letter denouncing Joseph, wherein, among other things, he said,
I have set by his [Joseph Smith's] side and penned down the translation of the Egyptian Hieroglyphics as he claimed to receive it by direct inspiration from Heaven.
Another contemporary source, John Whitmer, similarly recorded (in his unpublished history written in the late 1830s):
Joseph the Seer saw these Record[s] and by the revelation of Jesus Christ could translate these records, which gavee an account of our forefathers, ~~even Abraham~~ Much of which was written by Joseph of Egypt who was sold by his brethren. Which when all translated will be a pleasing history and of great value to the saints.
A contemporary non-Latter-day Saint source, William West, reported in 1837 his understanding that the Latter-day Saints in Ohio were professing that "[Joseph] Smith is to translate the whole [of the Egyptian papyri] by divine inspiration."
Orson Pratt commented in 1856 how God had given Joseph Smith "the gift of translation by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost" and "by this gift [Joseph] translated the Book of Abraham from Egyptian papyrus, taken out of one of the catacombs of Egypt."
A few years later he reiterated this, adding that he had personally seen Joseph translate the papyri "by inspiration."
Decades later, Josiah Quincy remembered visiting Joseph in Nauvoo in 1844, being shown the Egyptian papyri, and being "further assured that the prophet was the only mortal who could translate these mysterious writings, and that his power was given by direct inspiration."
[13]↩︎
In an editorial that appeared in the Times and Seasons just six months after the publication of the Book of Abraham, Joseph Smith referred to the text as a "revelation" in his description in its opening chapter.
- JS cites BoA in discussion on persecution of prophets, calls it a "revelation," compares it with apocryphal book of Jasher.
[14]↩︎
This includes two different non-Mormon newspapers writing shortly after the publication of the text. Referring to the Book of Abraham, one of these papers remarked,
Joe Smith, the prophet of Nauvoo has recently translated into the English language a new revelation of the Mormon faith. This new revelation is called the Book of Abraham, which Joe pretends was found among the catacombs of Egypt.
The other, a sympathetic newspaper under the editorship of James Gordon Bennett, commented how the Book of Abraham "is set down as a revelation among the Mormons."
- The Telegraph reports that Joseph has published Book of Abraham, calls it a "revelation."
- Joseph reprints James Gordon Bennett's editorial on Book of Abraham; calls Book of Abraham a "revelation."
[15]↩︎
Wilford Woodruff and Parley P. Pratt, two apostles who assisted in printing the Book of Abraham in Nauvoo and England, respectively, both indicated that Joseph used the Urim and Thummim in the translation of the text.
So did Orson Pratt, who claimed to be an eyewitness to the translation of the Book of Abraham.
As early as August 1835, an Ohio newspaper quoting a Latter-day Saint named "Williams" (most likely either William W. Phelps or Frederick G. Williams, both of whom scribed for Joseph in the translation of the Book of Abraham) reported that Joseph was "examining the papyrus through his spectacles."
[16]↩︎
Referring to Joseph Smith, Howard Coray wrote:
I have heard him prophesy many things that have already come to pass, I have seen him translate by the Seer’s stone
Coray was baptized in 1840, so if he witnessed translation by seer stone then it's likely that he was referring to the Book of Abraham translation. However, this was recorded in a recollection he made over 40 years later.
- Howard Coray witnessed JS translate with "the Seer's stone."
[17]↩︎
In 1846, Lucy showed the papyri and mummies to a group of Quakers visiting Nauvoo. This visit was recorded by one of the Quaker participants, named simply "M." in the newspaper in Philadelphia that published the account.
According to "M.," Lucy relayed the following to her visitors,
She said, that when Joseph was reading the papyrus, he closed his eyes, and held a hat over his face, and that the revelation came to him; and that where the papyrus was torn, he could read the parts that were destroyed equally as well as those that were there; and that scribes sat by him writing, as he expounded. She showed us a large book where these things were printed, which of course sealed their truth to Mormon eyes and minds; but we had not time to read them.
Two other sources also indicate that Joseph could read the damaged or missing portions of the papyri, and one of these sources said he did so by means of "special revelation."
[18]↩︎
In an unpublished editorial dated to early March 1842, Joseph expressed his view that the Egyptian "records" were "penned by the hand of Father Abraham" (spelling corrected). The published header to the Book of Abraham text reads that it was "written by [Abraham's] own hand, upon papyrus."
However, the idiom "by/of/in the hand" is found in ancient Egyptian and denotes the authorship rather than the literal physical act of writing.
It's unclear what Joseph's understanding was when he used the term "by the hand," but he likely assumed the papyrus was written by Abraham.
[19]↩︎
A number of visitors to whom Joseph Smith exhibited the Egyptian papyri claimed to hear him say the "handwriting" or "signature" of Abraham (and other biblical figures such as Joseph of Egypt) was on the papyrus.
[20]↩︎
Apostles Wilford Woodruff and Parley P. Pratt, for example, both expressed this view at the time of the book's publication. Other Latter-day Saints, such as Benjamin F. Johnson, maintained this belief by the end of the nineteenth century.
One secondhand source also attributes this view to Joseph Smith.
[21]↩︎
William Appleby, for instance, remarked that "Joseph [of Egypt] appears to have been the best scribe" when he noticed the difference of quality in the different papyrus rolls, and he believed the mummies that Joseph Smith bought with the papyrus rolls must have been embalmed "nearly four thousand years ago."
- William I. Appleby visits Joseph and is shown papyri.
[22]↩︎
A contemporary newspaper seems to mock this belief among Latter-day Saints in the mid-nineteenth century, perhaps indicating it was widely assumed among members of the Church at that time.
- DMD mentions JS Papyri and mummies being in the St. Louis Museum.
- San Francisco Daily Evening Bulletin republishes information on Emma Hale Smith purchasing the Joseph Papyri and Mummies.
[23]↩︎
This chronology is reflected in the Church's official edition of the KJV Bible (2013).
- Bible chronology chart in 2013 LDS edition of the Bible.
[24]↩︎
Michael D. Rhodes, a Latter-day Saint Egyptologist, reiterated the Egyptological consensus on the dating of the scrolls in his translation of the papyri published through Brigham Young University.
The Church also accepts this dating, as explained in its Gospel Topics essay on the Book of Abraham, "These fragments date to between the third century B.C.E. and the first century C.E., long after Abraham lived."
[25]↩︎
A similar version of this phrase, in the handwriting of William W. Phelps, appeared in one of the three Kirtland-era Book of Abraham manuscripts:
Translation of the Book of Abraham written by his own hand upon papyrus and found in the CataCombs of Egypts.
- First published text of Book of Abraham (Abraham 1:1–2:18), "purporting" to be a translation of the writings of Abraham.
- Transcript of BOA Manuscript–C [Abraham 1:1–2:18], dated circa July–November 1835.
[26]↩︎
Alan Gardiner and James Hoch, non-Latter-day Saint Egyptologists, have both explained the range of meaning this idiom held for the ancient Egyptians.
John Gee, a Latter-day Saint Egyptologist, published an article showing how the phrase "by his own hand" could mean the text was scribed or copied from Abraham, not necessarily that it was handwritten from Abraham.
Hugh Nibley also wrote about this phrasing as an indication of attribution rather than literal authorship. Kerry Muhlestein explained the important difference between the author of a text versus the scribes or copyists who transmitted the text.
[27]↩︎
Joseph Smith appealed to language or concepts in the Book of Abraham on multiple occasions; usually, but not always, in connection with his teachings on the pre-mortal existence, the eternal nature of spirit, and the nature of the Godhead.
On February 5, 1840, for example, he taught, "I believe that the Soul is Eternal. It had no beginning; it can have no End."
This teaching is found at Abraham 3:18.
On another occasion, Joseph taught, "The learning of the Egyptians, and their knowledge of astronomy was no doubt taught them by Abraham and Joseph, as their records testify, who received it from the Lord."
This references Facsimile 3 of the Book of Abraham, which depicts Abraham instructing the Egyptians in astronomy.
Just a week before his death, Joseph also drew from Abraham 3:17–19 when he explained how "intelligences exist one above ano[ther]" and "that there is no end to [intelligence]."
[28]↩︎
In an unpublished editorial for the Times and Seasons, Joseph indicated his wish to "contin[u]e to translate & publish as fast as possible till the whole [of the Book of Abraham] is completed."
Later, in February 1843, John Taylor informed readers of the newspaper, "We would further state that we had the promise of Br. Joseph, to furnish us with further extracts from the Book of Abraham."
No such extracts were ever published.
- Joseph says the Book of Abraham was "penned by hand of Father Abraham"; will translate more when possible.
- John Taylor says Joseph promised to translate more of the Book of Abraham.
[29]↩︎
Joseph taught in an 1841 sermon (spelling and punctuation standardized):
[An] everlasting covenant was made between three personages before the organizations of the earth, and relates to their dispensation of things to men on the earth. [T]hese personages, according to Abraham’s record, are called God the first, the Creator; God the second, the Redeemer, and God the third, the witness or Testator.
Nothing like this appears in the published text of the Book of Abraham, suggesting Joseph had revealed or translated material beyond the published text.
- Joseph gives sermon where he draws from "Abraham's record"; teaches about the Godhead.
[30]↩︎
Anson Call, an early Latter-day Saint, remembered (spelling and punctuation standardized):
Joseph was much pleased with the arrival of the books [to Far West, Missouri], and said to us, "Sit down and we will read to you from the translations of the Book of Abraham." Oliver Cowdery then read until he was tired, when Thomas Marsh read, making altogether about two hours. I was much interested in the work.
It's possible that this two-hour-long session included these men reading content from the related Egyptian grammar and alphabet documents. Or it could have involved them stopping to discuss the content they were reading from the Book of Abraham.
- Anson Call recalls handling papyri, reading from BOA translation for two hours.
[31]↩︎
The Chicago Museum's catalog listed papyri, and another contemporary museum catalog also noted the papyri and mummies in "Colonel Wood's" museum, which was also known as the Chicago Museum.
- CM catalog for 1863 indicating possession of JS Papyri and mummies.
- ELS gives notice in directory of holdings in Wood's Museum; mentions papyri and mummies being in the collection, according to museum catalogue.
[32]↩︎
The museum's bulletin for the year 1948 cataloged the acquisition of the papyri the previous year, describing them as "papyrus fragments of hieratic Books of the Dead, once the property of the Mormon leader Joseph Smith."
In 1967, the return of the papyri to the Church was announced in the Deseret News on the day of the transferal.
- The Met bulletin lists acquisition of the JS Papyri in 1947.
- Jack E. Jarrard reports that the Joseph Smith Papyri were returned to the Church.
[33]↩︎
Multiple sources describe people visiting Lucy Mack Smith and being shown the papyri and mummies both before and after Joseph Smith's death. A number of these sources also report being charged 25 cents to view the antiquities.
[34]↩︎
As so indicated by the bill of sale drafted when the papyri and mummies were sold.
According to two other accounts, William Smith, the Prophet's brother, may have briefly had custody of the antiquities at some point in the late 1840s. Almon W. Babbitt indicated in an 1848 letter to Brigham Young that "William Smith has got the mummies" and refused to relinquish them, but failed to indicate where he got this information from. The other source, Joseph Smith III, relayed his understanding decades later that,
Uncle William undertook a lecturing tour, and secured the mummies and case of records, as the papyrus was called, as an exhibit aid to making his lectures more attractive and lucrative. Uncle William became stranded somewhere along the Illinois River, and sold the mummies and the records with the understanding that he might repurchase them. This he never did. Part of the stock, one case of mummies and part or all of the cases of drawers, found their way to Wood's Museum, Chicago, and a part to St. Louis, where, we never learned.
This claim, however, is contradicted by the bill of sale indicating it was Emma and Lewis Bidamon, not William, who sold the papyri in 1856 (in what appears to be a kind of posthumous sale of Lucy Mack Smith's property).
Nevertheless, William Smith did write letters to James Strange discussing the possibility of moving the papyri and mummies up to Voree, WI along with Lucy, suggesting he may have had some kind of custody over the relics (or that he was acting on behalf of his mother). These plans, however, never materialized, evidently because Lucy was in too poor health to travel.
[35]↩︎
The museum announced its acquisition of two mummies and some papyri fragments in a local St. Louis newspaper in June 1856:
TWO MUMMIES from the Catacombs of Egypt, which have been unrolled, presenting a full view of the records enclosed, and of the bodies, which are in a remarkable state of preservation.
The museum's catalogue and a local newspaper also noted its possession of Joseph Smith's papyri, as did eyewitness visitors to the museum who described encountering them. Later nineteenth-century writers also tracked the papyri to St. Louis after they left Emma and Lewis Bidamon's possession.
[36]↩︎
As so indicated by the Museum's catalogue for that year, which simply republished the description used by the St. Louis Museum. Another contemporary museum catalogue also noted the papyri and mummies in "Colonel Wood's" museum, as did near-contemporary writers.
[37]↩︎
Some, such as Orson Pratt, Charles W. Penrose, and Joseph Smith III, claimed or were reported to have seen the papyri fragments in the Wood's Museum before they were lost to the 1871 fire.
[38]↩︎
The Metropolitan Museum of Art recorded that Charlotte Beneke Weaver was given the papyri by Abel Combs.
Mrs. Heusser's mother [Charlotte Beneke Weaver] was a servant in the Combs family and at his death he left these papyri to her.
- AML memorandum to Met Museum describing ACH visiting museum and showing the JS Papyri in her possession.
[39]↩︎
There are no primary sources that document how Alice Combs Weaver took possession of the papyri, however three years after her mother's death she showed the papyri to the Metrolpolitan Museum of Art.
- AML memorandum to Met Museum describing ACH visiting museum and showing the JS Papyri in her possession.
[40]↩︎
An internal museum memorandum written on January 16, 1918, reported:
A Mrs. Alice C. Heusser, of 221 Ralph Avenue, Brooklyn, brought for our inspection [on this date] some eight or ten fragments of papyri, all from late funerary papyri with small vignettes interspersed throughout the text. With the fragments she had a letter dated 1856 at Nauvoo City, and signed by three persons (one of them the former wife of Joseph Smith, and another Joseph Smith the son of the older Joseph Smith) vouching for the authenticity of these papyri as original Egyptian documents and as having belonged to the "family of one of the Pharaohs," and which they were selling to a Mr. A. Combs. Mrs. Heusser's mother was a servant in the Combs family and at his death he left these papyri to her.
- AML memorandum to Met Museum describing ACH visiting museum and showing the JS Papyri in her possession.
[41]↩︎
The museum's bulletin for the year 1948 catalogued the acquisition of the papyri the previous year, describing them as "papyrus fragments of hieratic Books of the Dead, once the property of the Mormon leader Joseph Smith."
In an interview with the journal Dialogue, a curator in the Egyptian department at the museum, Henry George Fischer, explained,
Our [the museum's] first knowledge of them [the papyri] goes back to 1918 when our first curator, Dr. A. M. Lythgoe, was shown these fragments by a Mrs. Alice Heusser, a woman who lived in Brooklyn. I think that must be the way you pronounce her name (he spells it out). Her mother had been housekeeper to a person named Combs, and Combs had bought them from the family of Joseph Smith. It is that sale which is mentioned in the letter I referred to. On the death of Mr. A. Combs, they were left to Mrs. Heusser's mother. One of our staff members, Dr. Ludlow Bull, had maintained an interest in these records; in about 1946 he tried to find out where they were and they were offered to us by the widower of Mrs. Heusser, Mr. Edward Heusser. We acquired them then in 1947. Of course, we knew because we had the letter too, what the relevance was to the Mormon Church.
- The Met bulletin lists acquisition of the JS Papyri in 1947.
- HGF discusses how the Met came into possession of the JS Papyri fragments.
[42]↩︎
The return of the papyri to the Church was announced in the Deseret News on the day of the transferal.
- Jack E. Jarrard reports that the Joseph Smith Papyri were returned to the Church.
[43]↩︎
Joseph Smith's manuscript history indicates Michael Chandler met with Joseph Smith on July 3, 1835.
- Joseph first examines papyri, offers translation.
[44]↩︎
It's not clear when Joseph handed over some of the mummies and papyri to Lucy Mack Smith, but one early report from 1842 would seem to indicate that by that point she was showing visitors some of the antiquities in her possession.
- Henry Caswall describes seeing papyri and mummies in 1842.
[45]↩︎
The bill of sale of the papyri and mummies from Emma Smith to Abel Combs indicates Emma received the relics from Lucy upon her death.
- EHS sells mummies and papyri fragments to AC in 1856.
[46]↩︎
Emma and Lewis sold the collection to Abel combs, according to a bill of sale for the papyri and mummies to Combs.
- EHS sells mummies and papyri fragments to AC in 1856.
[47]↩︎
It was at this point that the collection was split. Able Combs gave one portion to the St. Louis Museum and kept the other until his death in 1892. It was then transferred to Charlotte Beneke Weaver.
[48]↩︎
The Chicago Museum catalog for 1863 indicated that some of the mummies and papyri were in the museum by 1863.
- ELS gives notice in directory of holdings in Wood's Museum; mentions papyri and mummies being in the collection, according to museum catalogue.
- CM catalog for 1863 indicating possession of JS Papyri and mummies.
[49]↩︎
Orson Pratt, Charles W. Penrose, Joseph Smith III, and others, claimed or were reported to have seen the papyri fragments in the Wood's Museum before they were lost to the 1871 fire.
[50]↩︎
Emma and Lewis sold the collection to Abel Combs, according to a bill of sale for the papyri and mummies to Combs.
- EHS sells mummies and papyri fragments to AC in 1856.
[51]↩︎
When Abel Combs died, he bequeathed the papyri to his housekeeper, Charlotte Beneke Weaver.
- AML memorandum to Met Museum describing ACH visiting museum and showing the JS Papyri in her possession.
[52]↩︎
Charlotte's daughter, Alice, inherited the papyri after her mother died. A few years later, she took them to the Metropolitan Museum in New York City to have them appraised.
- AML memorandum to Met Museum describing ACH visiting museum and showing the JS Papyri in her possession.
[53]↩︎
Alice Heusser died and passed the papyri to her husband Edward, who was contacted not long after by the Metropolitan Museum of Art inquiring about the fragments.
- HGF discusses how the Met came into possession of the JS Papyri fragments.
- Church News reports on the recovery of the Joseph Smith Papyri.
[54]↩︎
In 1947, the Met formally acquired the papyri from Edward Heusser, according to the museum's catalog and later interviews with the staff involved.
- HGF discusses how the Met came into possession of the JS Papyri fragments.
- The Met bulletin lists acquisition of the JS Papyri in 1947.
[55]↩︎
The Deseret News and the Church News reported on the formal transfer of the surviving Joseph Smith Papyri back to the Church.
- Jack E. Jarrard reports that the Joseph Smith Papyri were returned to the Church.
- Church News reports on the recovery of the Joseph Smith Papyri.
[56]↩︎
Full or part translations of the Joseph Smith papyri have so far come from Richard Parker (1968), Klaus Baer (1968), Hugh Nibley (1975, rev. 2005), Michael D. Rhodes (2002; 2010), and Robert K. Ritner (2000, rev. 2003; 2011).
These individual translations differ in some grammar, syntax, or readings of specific words but don't dramatically differ from each other in meaning.
[57]↩︎
Latter-day Saint Egyptologist John Gee gave an overview of the meaning of this text for Latter-day Saint audiences.
He noted the document "allows their possessors to fellowship with the gods after death." He also wrote:
In its words, it was to cause the individual's "soul to live, to resurrect his body, to rejuvenate all his limbs again, to unite him with the horizon (or temple) with his father Re, to cause his soul to appear in heaven in the disk of the moon, to cause his body to shine as Orion on the face of the sky" (Document of Breathings Made by Isis, rubric). It consists of a number of stanzas, most of which are addressed by the gods to the [deceased] individual.
- JG gives overview of the Book of Breathings text.
[58]↩︎
Michael D. Rhodes, in an article for Latter-day Saint readers, defined the Book of the Dead as "an ancient Egyptian religious text placed in the coffin or burial chamber of the deceased."
He noted that ancient Egyptians called it "rꜣ.w n pr.t m hrw, 'Chapters of Coming Forth into the Day,' a reference to their belief that its use would facilitate the deceased entering into eternal life."
Rhodes also wrote:
Some 192 chapters of the Book of the Dead are known, but no single copy contains all of them. Each one consists of a selection from this corpus. These chapters served a variety of purposes: providing knowledge of the afterlife and its inhabitants, giving instructions for preserving and reuniting different parts of a person's being to ensure continued existence, protecting the deceased from various hostile forces, and guiding them in their journey through the underworld.
- Michael D. Rhodes gives overview of Book of the Dead for LDS readers.
[59]↩︎
Church reporter Jack E. Jarrard published a report of the Church's acquisition of the papyri fragments in the Deseret News on the day of the transfer and in an issue of the Church News published about a week later.
President N. Eldon Tanner of the First Presidency also called a press conference that same week where he announced the Church's acquisition of the papyri.
[60]↩︎
Two months after the acquisition, a description of the rediscovery of the papyri was published in the Improvement Era, the Church's official magazine.
[61]↩︎
In the November 27, 1967 announcement of the rediscovery of the papyri fragments in the Deseret News (and before they had been translated), Jack Jarrard reported:
Included in the museum's presentation are a number of other papyri once in the possession of the Prophet. These include conventional hieroglyphic and hieratic Egyptian funerary texts. Such papyri, including passages from the well-known Book of the Dead, were commonly buried with Egyptian mummies.
Soon after, in the January 1968 Improvement Era, Jay M. Todd acknowledged:
Some of the pieces of papyrus apparently include conventional hieroglyphics (sacred inscriptions, resembling picture-drawing) and hieratic (a cursive shorthand version of hieroglyphics) Egyptian funerary texts, which were commonly buried with Egyptian mummies. Often the funerary texts contained passages from the "Book of the Dead," a book that was to assist in the safe passage of the dead person into the spirit world. It is not known at this time whether the ten other pieces of papyri have a direct connection with the Book of Abraham.
The February 1968 issue of the Improvement Era (again, before Egyptologists had fully translated the fragments) indicated that fragments 4-9 were from the Book of the Dead, a common funerary text.
[62]↩︎
For example, Michael D. Rhodes, in his article for the Ensign, indicated that the translation of Facsimile #1 did not match the Book of Abraham text.
The Church's Institute manual Church History in the Fulness of Times identified them as "mainly ancient Egyptian funerary texts."
- CES manual discusses BOA translation.
- MDR answers questions about the JS Papyri and Book of Abraham in the Ensign.
[63]↩︎
Nibley's translation appeared alongside extensive commentary on the significance of the papyri both from ancient Egyptian and modern Latter-day Saint perspectives.
- HWN translation of the Hor Book of Breathings.
[64]↩︎
Michael D. Rhodes produced the translations and published them through the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship) after the foundation had been acquired by BYU.
- Michael D. Rhodes translation of the Hor Book of Breathings among the JS Papyri.
- MDR translation of the JS Papyri fragments; Books of the Dead of Tshemmin and Neferirnub.
[65]↩︎
The Church Newsroom site compiled the publication dates of the Gospel Topics essays and indicates the Book of Abraham essay was published on this date.
- Church Newsroom lists original dates of publication of Gospel Topics essays; BOA essay published on July 8, 2014.
[66]↩︎
The essay also discusses the historicity and antiquity of the text of the Book of Abraham.
- Gospel Topics essay on the BOA.
[67]↩︎
The essay noted:
None of the characters on the papyrus fragments mentioned Abraham’s name or any of the events recorded in the book of Abraham. Mormon and non-Mormon Egyptologists agree that the characters on the fragments do not match the translation given in the book of Abraham, though there is not unanimity, even among non-Mormon scholars, about the proper interpretation of the vignettes on these fragments. Scholars have identified the papyrus fragments as parts of standard funerary texts that were deposited with mummified bodies. These fragments date to between the third century B.C.E. and the first century C.E., long after Abraham lived.
- Church Newsroom lists original dates of publication of Gospel Topics essays; BOA essay published on July 8, 2014.
[68]↩︎
The Church's Gospel Topics essay summarized the "missing scroll" theory this way:
It is likely futile to assess Joseph’s ability to translate papyri when we now have only a fraction of the papyri he had in his possession. Eyewitnesses spoke of “a long roll” or multiple “rolls” of papyrus. Since only fragments survive, it is likely that much of the papyri accessible to Joseph when he translated the book of Abraham is not among these fragments. The loss of a significant portion of the papyri means the relationship of the papyri to the published text cannot be settled conclusively by reference to the papyri.
[69]↩︎
The Church's Gospel Topics essay summarizes the "catalyst" theory this way:
Joseph’s study of the papyri may have led to a revelation about key events and teachings in the life of Abraham, much as he had earlier received a revelation about the life of Moses while studying the Bible. This view assumes a broader definition of the words translator and translation . According to this view, Joseph’s translation was not a literal rendering of the papyri as a conventional translation would be. Rather, the physical artifacts provided an occasion for meditation, reflection, and revelation. They catalyzed a process whereby God gave to Joseph Smith a revelation about the life of Abraham, even if that revelation did not directly correlate to the characters on the papyri.
- Gospel Topics essay on the BOA.
[70]↩︎
For instance, William W. Phelps, William Appleby, and Henry Tresller all described seeing "roll(s)" of papyrus when they first encountered the Egyptian antiquities.
In an 1843 letter to her mother, Charlotte Haven wrote of Lucy Mack Smith showing her "a long roll of manuscript" and claiming it contained the writings of Abraham and Isaac (probably confusing the latter with Joseph of Egypt).
Cora Agnes Bennison, detailing the experience of local Illinois militiamen seeing the papyri and mummies in 1846, described "an interminable roll" being shown to them by Lucy.
Jerusha Blanchard also remembered seeing as a young girl a "roll of papyrus" laying with the mummies that Joseph Smith translated as the Book of Abraham, not the mounted fragments.
[71]↩︎
Henry Caswall, a contemporary eyewitness, described these papyri fragments as "a number of glazed slides, like picture frames, containing sheets of papyrus, with Egyptian inscriptions and hieroglyphics."
Joseph Smith III and Luman Andros Shurtliff both had similar recollections to the Caswall description.
[72]↩︎
This portion of Joseph's manuscript history was written in Nauvoo with the assistance of clerk Willard Richards, who joined the Church in 1836 and became one of Joseph's clerks in 1841.
- Joseph first examines papyri, offers translation.
[73]↩︎
This is one of the earliest surviving accounts of Joseph's encounter with Chandler and descriptions of the papyri.
- W.W. Phelps describes two papyrus rolls.
[74]↩︎
Whitmer began this history as early as 1831. The portion covering the summer of 1835 was most likely written sometime in 1838.
- John Whitmer says Joseph Smith as seer could translate papyri by "the revelation of Jesus Christ."
[75]↩︎
This newspaper account is one of the earliest non-Latter-day Saint reactions to the news of Joseph acquiring the mummies.
- JS translates papyrus with "spectacles."
[76]↩︎
Bradley's account is unsourced and skeptical of Joseph's claims.
- Joseph Bradley mentions Joseph translating the papyri in the Evangelical Magazine and Gospel Advocate.
[77]↩︎
Like the Cleveland Whig, the Albany Journal reports only three mummies being purchased.
- Albany Journal reprints newspaper article on Joseph acquiring mummies, papyri; says Joseph identified the mummies.
[78]↩︎
The Painesville Telegraph does not source its report and seems to compound the likely error from other newspapers that Joseph only had two or three mummies instead of four.
- Non-LDS Painesville Telegraph paper reprints mocking description mummies and papyri; says Joseph identified the mummies as the biblical Joseph and Abimelech.
[79]↩︎
It is unclear if Brown was an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies.
- Albert Brown says Joseph can translate papyri "without wisdom of this world."
[80]↩︎
Like William Phelps, Oliver Cowdery was closely associated with Joseph during the translation of the Book of Abraham.
- OC describes JS translating papyri for MC.
[81]↩︎
Coe was likely relaying generally known information in this account.
- Truman Coe says Joseph "deciphered" papyri, this was seen as proof of "divine inspiration."
[82]↩︎
This newspaper account doesn't name a source, but it does offer another early non-Latter-day Saint reaction to Joseph's purchase of the Egyptian artifacts.
- JS translating papyri; language same as BOM.
[83]↩︎
Woodruff was an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies, having seen them in the Kirtland Temple.
- Wilford Woodruff sees papyri and mummies in Kirtland in the temple; says was written by Abraham's own hand.
[84]↩︎
West references Oliver Cowdery's account published in the Messenger and Advocate (December 1835) but doesn't otherwise name his sources for his information.
- William West says Joseph can translate missing portions of papyri.
[85]↩︎
This history by John Corrill was initially begun as an official project from the Church before Corrill's disaffection in 1838.
- JC mentions JST Bible project and BOA translation project together.
[86]↩︎
This newspaper account is unsourced.
- Anonymous source published in Sentinel of Freedom says Joseph identified hand writing of Abraham on papyri.
[87]↩︎
The anonymous source quoted in this account purports to be an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies after visiting Joseph in 1840.
- Anonymous source sees papyri, says JS identified the "signature" of Abraham, wanted to hang up translation in temple.
[88]↩︎
In this account, Parsons passed information he learned from a Latter-day Saint missionary debating him.
- Tyler Parsons debates a Mormon who uses Book of Abraham in his argument.
[89]↩︎
Appleby was an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies. He visited Joseph and saw the antiquities in May 1841.
An early version of Appleby's visit was published that year, and Appleby reworked some of that material into his manuscript history begun in 1847.
- William I. Appleby visits Joseph and is shown papyri.
- William Appleby describes seeing papyri and mummies; editor mocks Joseph.
[90]↩︎
In this account, a source writing under a pseudonym purports to be an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies after visiting Joseph in 1841.
- Anonymous claim that JS knew identity of mummies by revelation.
[91]↩︎
This newspaper account passes along claims made by an anonymous Latter-day Saint missionary.
- Anonymous source reports Mormon missionary using Book of Abraham as evidence for Joseph being a prophet; says Book of Abraham will be published soon.
[92]↩︎
Caswall was an eyewitness to the mummies and papyri. He was granted a view of them when he visited Joseph Smith and his mother Lucy in 1842.
- Henry Caswall describes seeing papyri and mummies in 1842.
[93]↩︎
Joseph Smith gave this description in response to claims made by newspaper editor John Gordon Bennett.
- Joseph responds to James Gordon Bennett on the mummies and papyri in the Times and Seasons.
[94]↩︎
Pratt was editor of the Millennial Star and presiding over the British Mission at the time of this account.
- Parley P. Pratt gives overview of discovery and translation of the BOA.
[95]↩︎
This was an anonymous report from Ireland.
- Dublin University Magazine criticizes the contents of the BOA.
[96]↩︎
Haven was an eyewitness to the papyri. She saw them during her visit with Lucy Mack Smith in 1843.
- Charlotte Haven says a "long roll of manuscript" was the "writings of Abraham."
[97]↩︎
In this account, Graves passed information he learned from Adiel Sherwood, President of Shurtliff College, who had recently visited Nauvoo and claimed to be an eyewitness of the papyri and mummies.
- H. A. Graves reports on Adiel Sherwood visit to Nauvoo, says Lucy Mack Smith explained contents of papyri.
[98]↩︎
This account, published in the Church's newspaper, claims to come from an eyewitness visitor in Nauvoo.
- Anonymous visitor to Nauvoo sees mummies and papyri.
[99]↩︎
Knight was an eyewitness to the Egyptian antiquities.
- LK describes seeing mummies, LMS identifies one as "King Onitus."
[100]↩︎
This anonymous report claims to be from an eyewitness who visited Joseph Smith.
- Anonymous non-LDS visitor describes seeing mummies, papyri.
[101]↩︎
Adams, like his traveling partner Josiah Quincy who also left an account of the encounter, was an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies during his visit with Joseph Smith in May 1844.
- According to CFA, JS says papyri were written by the hand of Abraham.
[102]↩︎
This anonymous report claims to come from an eyewitness who visited Lucy Mack Smith.
- Anonymous visitor reports visiting Lucy Mack Smith, who shows him papyri and mummies.
[103]↩︎
This report from an "F. J." claims to be an eyewitness account of someone who visited Lucy Mack Smith.
- Lucy Mack Smith says Joseph translated by "inspiration", links it to the coming forth of the Book of Mormon.
[104]↩︎
Shurtliff was an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies, but it's not clear when he composed this account.
- LAS visits Kirtland Temple, sees mummies and papyri, describes papyri.
[105]↩︎
This anonymous report claims to come from an eyewitness who visited Lucy Mack Smith.
- Anonymous guest sees papyri and mummies; Lucy Mack Smith describes contents.
[106]↩︎
Quincy, like his traveling partner Charles Francis Adams (who left an earlier account of the encounter), was an eyewitness to the papyri and mummies during his visit with Joseph Smith in May 1844.
- Josiah Quincy recounts visit to Nauvoo in 1844, visiting Joseph, seeing mummies and papyri, says Joseph identified handwriting of Abraham and Moses on the papyri.
[107]↩︎
This description was part of the bill of sale Emma and her second husband, Lewis Bidamon, drafted for Abel Combs upon selling him the papyri and mummies.
- EHS sells mummies and papyri fragments to AC in 1856.
[108]↩︎
Horne was an eyewitness to the papyri.
- RH remembers seeing mummies and papyri.
[109]↩︎
Jones was reporting on his encounter with Henry Tressler, who was an eyewitness to the papyri.
- Foster W. Jones says Henry Tressler saw "rolls of papyrus" that BOA was translated from.
[110]↩︎
Joseph III was 24 years old at the time of the sale of the papyri and mummies to Abel Combs, meaning any recollection he had of them would have come from his teenage years and early adulthood.
- Joseph Smith III describes seeing mummies and papyri, discusses how they ended up in Wood's Museum.
[111]↩︎
Winget recorded a late recollection of seeing the mummies.
- CHW remembers seeing mummies in JS's home as a girl in Nauvoo.
[112]↩︎
Bennison's account is secondhand, relaying details about an encounter local Illinois militiamen had with Emma Smith not long after Joseph Smith's death.
- Cora Agnes Bennison recounts militia men in Nauvoo seeing "an interminable roll" of papyrus and mummies.
[113]↩︎
Blanchard's account was a late recollection of seeing the mummies.
- Jerusha Walker Blanchard says "roll of papyrus" was source of BOA.
[114]↩︎
This account by Solomon Hale is one of the latest surviving accounts preserved by an eyewitness.
- Solomon H. Hale remembers Joseph getting upset when boys were playing with mummies.
[115]↩︎
For instance, Josiah Quincy claimed Joseph Smith identified the handwriting of Abraham on one of the papyri fragments preserved in a glass frame (one of the fragments returned to the Church in 1967).
An anonymous source in 1840 likewise reported this and noted that Joseph pointed out "the signature of the patriarch Abraham."
[116]↩︎
These marginal characters are seen in all three Kirtland-era manuscript copies of the Book of Abraham.
[117]↩︎
Editors at The Joseph Smith Papers Project noted that most of the Egyptian characters in the margin were copied from the papyri, but a "few of them are found in the Egyptian Alphabet documents or in the Grammar and Alphabet volume."
The Egyptian Alphabet documents and the Grammar and Alphabet volume are documents that were created by Frederick G. Williams, Warren Parrish, and William W. Phelp as they studied the Egyptian language.
The Joseph Smith Papers Project observed that there is an implied relationship between the characters and the text, but "the exact nature of that relationship is not stated" by Joseph Smith or his scribes.
[118]↩︎
Joseph referred to the Book of Abraham as a "revelation" in a September 1842 editorial published in the Times and Seasons, just months after the text of Abraham had been published.
- JS cites BoA in discussion on persecution of prophets, calls it a "revelation," compares it with apocryphal book of Jasher.
[119]↩︎
This includes John Whitmer, who at the time of the translation of the Book of Abraham was the Church Historian and Recorder, and Warren Parrish, who scribed for Joseph in the translation.
A contemporary non-Latter-day Saint newspaper also reported that the Book of Abraham was "set down as a revelation among the Mormons."
[120]↩︎
Pratt grouped Joseph's prophetic outpouring and his "translations" of ancient texts into one overlapping category of "revelation," writing in 1856,
He was inspired of God to translate the Scriptures, and to reveal some of the lost books; such as, the prophecy of Enoch, the Book of Abraham, the Revelation to Moses, not included in the five books called the Pentateuch, and some other revelations not now in the Bible. By this great gift of the Spirit, he translated the Book of Mormon from the original language of the ancient inhabitants of America—a language entirely unknown to human wisdom at the present day. By this gift, he translated the Book of Abraham from Egyptian papyrus, taken out of one of the catacombs of Egypt. By this gift, he translated from parchment a sacred revelation concerning the Apostle John . . .
- Orson Pratt say JS translated the Book Of Abraham by the same power as the BOM (i.e., revelation).
[121]↩︎
In its 2014 Gospel Topics essay, the Church merely affirms, "By the gift and power of God, Joseph received knowledge about the life and teachings of Abraham."
The revised 2013 introduction to the Pearl of Great Price also identifies the Book of Abraham as "an inspired translation of the writings of Abraham."
- Introduction to the 2013 official edition of the POGP.
- Gospel Topics essay on the BOA.
[122]↩︎
The Church's Gospel Topics essay on the Book of Abraham leaves both of these options open to Church members:
It is likely futile to assess Joseph’s ability to translate papyri when we now have only a fraction of the papyri he had in his possession. Eyewitnesses spoke of “along roll” or multiple “rolls” of papyrus. Since only fragments survive, it is likely that much of the papyri accessible to Joseph when he translated the book of Abraham is not among these fragments. The loss of a significant portion of the papyri means the relationship of the papyri to the published text cannot be settled conclusively by reference to the papyri. Alternatively, Joseph’s study of the papyri may have led to a revelation about key events and teachings in the life of Abraham, much as he had earlier received a revelation about the life of Moses while studying the Bible. This view assumes a broader definition of the words translator and translation. According to this view, Joseph’s translation was not a literal rendering of the papyri as a conventional translation would be. Rather, the physical artifacts provided an occasion for meditation, reflection, and revelation. They catalyzed a process whereby God gave to Joseph Smith a revelation about the life of Abraham, even if that revelation did not directly correlate to the characters on the papyri.
- Gospel Topics essay on the BOA.