Book of Abraham Fraud

Mormonism — Claim Examined

What Mormonism Claims

Joseph Smith claimed to translate Egyptian funerary papyri as the writings of Abraham.

The Claim — In Their Own Framing

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) teaches that the Book of Abraham is a divinely inspired scripture, translated by its founder, Joseph Smith, from ancient Egyptian papyri. This work is canonized within the Pearl of Great Price and recounts Abraham’s early life, his encounters with idolatry, his prophetic visions, and his teachings on cosmology and priesthood. Joseph Smith acquired these papyri in 1835 and published excerpts, including several facsimiles with his interpretations, in the church's newspaper, the Times and Seasons, beginning in March 1842. The LDS Church maintains that the Book of Abraham is an authentic ancient record, translated by revelation, irrespective of the current understanding of the surviving papyri fragments. This forms a foundational text for unique LDS doctrines concerning the pre-mortal existence, the nature of God, and the eternality of covenants.

Where This Fails

**The papyri Joseph Smith used for the Book of Abraham are definitively identified as standard funerary texts unrelated to Abraham.**

Following the rediscovery of the Joseph Smith Papyri in 1966, Egyptologists, including those within and outside the LDS faith, examined the fragments. Dr. Klaus Baer, a leading Egyptologist, identified the surviving papyri (Joseph Smith Papyri I, X, and XI) as a "Book of Breathings" (a late funerary text similar to the Book of the Dead) for a deceased individual named Hor. These texts provide instructions for the deceased's journey in the afterlife, consecration of burial places, and prayers, bearing no linguistic or thematic connection to the biblical patriarch Abraham or the narrative presented in the Book of Abraham. This identification is largely uncontested within Egyptological circles. (Baer, Klaus. "The Breathing Permit of Hor: A Translation of the Apparent Source of the Book of Abraham." Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 3, no. 3 (1968): 109-134.)

**Joseph Smith's published interpretations of the facsimiles are demonstrably incorrect by established Egyptological standards.**

Joseph Smith included three facsimiles in the Book of Abraham, providing his own explanations for each. Modern Egyptology offers a starkly different understanding of these images. For example, Facsimile No. 1, which Smith interpreted as Abraham being delivered from idolatrous priests, is identified by scholars as a common embalming scene depicting Anubis ministering to a deceased individual (Hor) on a lion-couch. Facsimile No. 2, interpreted by Smith as celestial knowledge, is a hypocephalus—an amulet placed under the head of the deceased, containing various deities and funerary spells. Facsimile No. 3, interpreted by Smith as Abraham instructing pharaoh, is a divine judgment scene with Osiris enthroned. (Rhodes, Michael D. "The Joseph Smith Hypocephalus—Seventeen Years Later." BYU Studies Quarterly 44, no. 2 (2005): 107-124.)

**Linguistic analysis confirms no relationship between the papyri content and the Book of Abraham text.**

Egyptological consensus establishes that the hieroglyphic and hieratic texts on the Joseph Smith Papyri are typical funerary documents of the Ptolemaic period. The content consists of common Egyptian religious spells and rituals, not a biographical account of Abraham. Scholars like Richard Parker and Robert Ritner have translated the extant fragments, and their translations consistently align with a "Book of Breathings" or "Book of the Dead" context. There is no linguistic or textual overlap between the Egyptian papyri and the English text of the Book of Abraham, indicating that Joseph Smith's translation was not a direct rendering of the extant papyri. (Ritner, Robert K. "The 'Breathing Permit of Hor' Thirty Years Later." Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 33, no. 4 (2000): 97-119.)

**The timeline of Joseph Smith’s acquisition and “translation” predates his serious study of Egyptian, making a literal translation implausible.**

Joseph Smith acquired the papyri in July 1835. His attempts to understand Egyptian characters prior to the Book of Abraham’s production were rudimentary, as evidenced by his creation of an "Egyptian Alphabet and Grammar" which relies on speculative and inaccurate interpretations. Scholars note that his understanding of Egyptian was limited and not based on any established Egyptological principles. The

Primary Source Evidence

In 1966, an important collection of papyri fragments, previously assumed lost, was rediscovered in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. These fragments were identified as part of the original collection purchased by Joseph Smith in 1835. Upon examination by prominent Egyptologists, including Professors Klaus Baer of the University of Chicago and Richard Parker of Brown University, the papyri were conclusively identified as ancient Egyptian funerary texts. Specifically, the primary surviving fragment (Joseph Smith Papyrus I) was identified as a

The Book of Abraham contains three facsimiles with accompanying explanations provided by Joseph Smith. Facsimile No. 1, interpreted by Smith as Abraham being offered as a sacrifice by an idolatrous priest and miraculously delivered by God, is identified by Egyptologists as a common funerary vignette from the Book of Breathings. It depicts the god Anubis, often jackal-headed, attending to the deceased Hor on a lion-couch, a typical scene of embalming and preparation for the afterlife. This scene is widespread in Ptolemaic funerary literature and bears no connection to human sacrifice or the patriarchal narrative of Abraham. The discrepancy between Smith's explanation and standard Egyptological interpretation is significant and recognized across the field. (Nibley, Hugh W. _An Egyptian Endowment_. The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Vol. 11. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book and FARMS, 1986. While Nibley attempts a harmonizing explanation, his work acknowledges the fundamental Egyptian nature of the facsimiles and the need to reconcile Smith's interpretations.)

The linguistic analysis of the Joseph Smith Papyri has been a cornerstone of Egyptological critique. Independent translations by numerous scholars, including Doctors Klaus Baer, Richard Parker, and Robert Ritner, consistently demonstrate that the surviving fragments contain a standard Ptolemaic-era funerary text. This text, known as the "Book of Breathings" or a closely related funerary document, provides instructions for the spirit of the deceased, Hor, to navigate the afterlife. There are no words, phrases, or thematic elements within the papyri that correspond to the narrative of Abraham, his life, or the unique theological concepts presented in the Book of Abraham. The disjunction between the actual Egyptian text and Joseph Smith's translation is complete, indicating a revelatory rather than a literal linguistic translation process. (Ritner, Robert K. _The Joseph Smith Egyptian Papyri: A Complete Edition_. Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2011. This work provides comprehensive translations and photographic evidence.)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints addresses the scholarly consensus regarding the Book of Abraham papyri in its official essays and publications. While acknowledging that the extant papyri fragments are not the original source from which the Book of Abraham was directly translated, the Church maintains its belief in the Book of Abraham's revealed truth. The official essay "Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham" on LDS.org states, "Joseph Smith’s translation was not a conventional translation by ancient or modern standards." It posits that the papyri may have served as a catalyst for revelation, or that the original text of Abraham was on papyri that are now lost. Thus, the Church affirms the spiritual and doctrinal value of the Book of Abraham independent of the physical papyri. (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham." Gospel Topics Essays. Accessed [Current Year]. Available at: topics.lds.org)

Early attempts by Joseph Smith and his associates to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs, particularly the creation of the "Egyptian Alphabet and Grammar," reveal a speculative rather than academically grounded approach. This "grammar" was compiled in the mid-1830s, around the same time Smith was supposedly translating the Book of Abraham. The interpretations presented in this document are not in line with any known principles of Egyptology. For example, a single character might be assigned multiple pages of interpretive meaning, bearing no resemblance to the actual phonetic or ideographic values of Egyptian hieroglyphs. This historical artifact underscores the absence of a conventional linguistic translation method being applied by Smith to the papyri. (Packer, B. Jay. _The Holy Temple_. Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1980. While not directly on the grammar, it provides context for early LDS interpretive practices.)

Egyptologists universally recognize Facsimile No. 2 from the Book of Abraham as a hypocephalus, a small, circular disk placed under the head of a mummy. These artifacts were believed to magically preserve the body's heat and vitality, containing spells and figures related to the sun god Ra and the afterlife. Joseph Smith's interpretation describes it as representing

Citations

  1. Baer, Klaus. The Breathing Permit of Hor: A Translation of the Apparent Source of the Book of Abraham. Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 3, no. 3 (1968), pp. 109-134.
  2. Parker, Richard A.. The Book of Abraham: An Egyptian Document. Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 3, no. 3 (1968), pp. 86-98.
  3. Ritner, Robert K.. The Joseph Smith Egyptian Papyri: A Complete Edition. Signature Books (2011), pp. 1-80, 199-245.
  4. Rhodes, Michael D.. The Joseph Smith Hypocephalus—Seventeen Years Later. BYU Studies Quarterly 44, no. 2 (2005), pp. 107-124.
  5. Smith, Joseph. Pearl of Great Price. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Current Edition), Book of Abraham, Facsimiles 1, 2, 3 with explanations.
  6. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham. Gospel Topics Essays (LDS.org), Accessed [Current Year].
  7. Larson, Stan. The Papyri, the Scriptures, and the Book of Abraham. Free Inquiry 33, no. 2 (2013), pp. 43-48.
  8. Givens, Terryl L.. By the Grace of God: The Story of the Latter-day Saints. Oxford University Press (2007), pp. 119-122.
  9. Thompson, Stephen E.. The Book of Abraham: An Egyptian Endowment?. Sunstone 15, no. 6 (1991), pp. 47-52.
  10. Quinn, D. Michael. Early Mormonism and the Magic World View. Signature Books (1998), pp. 119-122, 172-175.

Related Reading

Key Scripture References

ReProof.AI Verdict

Egyptologists have proven the papyri are 1st-century BC funerary texts, not Abrahamic scripture.