Download - Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon
El Castillo Tulum, México Paintings by Frederick Catherwood 1839 - 1841
1. Prophetic and Angelic
Considerations
2. Considerations of a High
Society
3. Demographic and Climatic
Considerations
4. Geological Considerations
5. Historical Considerations
6. Archaeological
Considerations
1. Joseph Smith 24 years old
with a 3rd grade education
2. 1830 - Year in which the LDM
was published
3. It was believed that there had
been no advanced society or
civilization in Mesoamerica
before the Conquest
4. Spanish had destroyed or
concealed evidence of
Mesoamerican society
5. 1839 - 1841 The findings of
Stephens and Catherwood
1. Where Lehi landed
2. The land of Zarahemla
3. The narrow neck
4. Quirigua and Palenque and
BoM cities
5. Other ruins in Mesoamerica
6. Land Bountiful in
Mesoamerica
7. Said that Moroni walked from
Mesoamerica to Palmyra,
New York
―It will not be a bad plan to compare Mr. Stephen‘s ruined cities with those in the
Book of Mormon; light cleaves to light, and facts are supported by facts.‖ (Joseph
Smith, Times and Seasons, October 1, 1842, p.927)
"When we read in the Book of Mormon that Jared and his brother came on to this continent
from the confusion and scattering at the Tower, and lived here more than a thousand years,
and covered the whole continent from sea to sea, with towns and cities; and that Lehi went
down by the Red Sea to the great Southern Ocean, and crossed over to this land, and landed
a little south of the Isthmus of Darien [Isthmus of Panama]......" Times and Seasons, vol. 3
(November 1841-October 1842), Vol. 3 No. 22 September 15, 1842 927
Joseph Smith recognized the location of the land of Zarahemla among Stephens' ruined cities. In Times
and Seasons editorial (October 1, 19842), the Prophet Joseph stated "The city of Zarahemla, burnt at the
crucifixion of Christ and rebuilt afterwards, stood upon this land." (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons,
October1, 1842)
In Joseph Smith's last editorial titled "Zarahemla," (Times and Seasons, October 1, 1842) he stated: "Since our last extract
we have found a new fact." He then proceeded to draw a circle on Stephens' Central America map, designating the land
between Panama and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico as the land southward nearly surrounded by water described
in Alma 22:32. The prophet then concluded that "The city of Zarahemla, burnt at the crucifixion of Christ and rebuilt
afterwards, stood upon this land," somewhere among Stephens' ruined cities.
" Mr. Stephens' great developments of antiquities are made bare to the eyes of all the people by reading the history of the
Nephites in the Book of Mormon. They lived about the narrow neck of land, which now embraces Central America, with all
the cities that can be found. Read the destruction of cities at the crucifixion of Christ, pages 459-60. Who could have
dreamed that twelve years would have developed such incontrovertible testimony to the Book of Mormon? surely the Lord
worketh and none can hinder." - Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons (November 1841 - October 1842)
"Let us turn our subject, however, to the Book of Mormon, where these wonderful ruins of
Palenque are among the mighty works of the Nephites:—and the mystery is solved... " -
Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons (November 1841 - October 1842)
"H. Donl Peterson, a past professor of Church History at BYU, published two similar maps of Moroni's
travel from Central America to Palmyra, New York with the information on the map coming from two
credible contemporaries of Joseph Smith: Patriarch Wm. McBride and Brother Andrew H. Hamilton both
of Richfield, Utah. These man credited Joseph Smith with teaching them that the Land of Bountiful
mention in the Book of Mormon was in Central America. He also taught them that Moroni had traveled
from Central America to Palmyra, New York dedicating future temple sites along the way." Dr. John L.
Lund, Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon - Is this the Place?, page 32
Moroni‘s Possible
Routes:
1. Written language
2. City-states
3. Political Sophistication
4. Architectural Achievements
5. Knowledge of Science
6. Knowledge of Math
7. Medical Knowledge
8. Knowledge of the Astros
9. Calendar System
Egyptian Demotic Glyphs
Proto-Hebrew/Early Aramaic
Characters 600BCE
Egyptian Hieratic or Priestly Script
Characters BoM Characters
Reformed Egyptian Meroitic-
Demotic Script Characters
BoM Characters
1. Zapotec (Oto-Mangeo)
2. Mixteca (Oto-Mangeo)
3. Mexica (Uto-Aztec)
4. Mayan (Macro-Mayan)
5. Recently Discovered Olmec
(Proto-Mixe in San Lorenzo
and Proto-Zoqueo in La Venta
or Mixe-Zoqueo)
Bloque de Cascajal
Encontrado en los 1990
Hecho ~900 aC
Veracruz, México
La Mojarra Stela 1
Epi-Olmec Period
About 200 BC
Veracruz, Mexico
This manuscript reports the dates
May 21 and 143 AD
13 July 156 AD.
Stela C Epi-Olmec Period Three Zapotes Veracruz, Mexico Date Recorded: Sep. 3, 32 BC
San Andrés Cylinder
Fabricated ~ 650 BC
San Andrés, Tabasco
Stelae 12 and 13 Fabricated ~ 500 BC Monte Alban, Oaxaca Zapotec Glyphs Earliest Recorded Date
Mixtec Glyphs
Mexica Glyphs
Mayan Glyphs
Charles Mann said in February 1998 at a Meeting of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science
(AAAS) - ... In 1997, the theory suddenly collapsed.
Some of his most ardent supporters, Haynes, among
them, have publicly admitted an archaeological dig in
southern Chile has presented convincing evidence of
human habitation over twelve thousand years ago.
Since these people lived seven thousand miles south of
the Bering Strait, a distance that would have taken too
long to travel, it is most likely they arrived before the
ice corridor existed. (In any case, the new research had
cast doubt on the existence of that corridor.) ... Or
maybe the first Indians traveled by boat, and the land
bridge was not necessary... "We are in a state of
confusion," the archaeologist Stuart Fiedel said. "All we
knew to be fact is now is a mistake."
Michael Coe in his book "The Maya" Sixth
Edition 1999 finally admitted - "The
presence or absence of the Siberian Land
Bridge to Alaska, therefore, is not
necessarily relevant to the problem, the
first Americans may well have taken a sea
route ..."
"It must be that ships were available to the
peoples of Eurasia, as current evidence
shows that Australia, which was never
connected to Asia by a land bridge, was
settled 50,000 years ago.
Smithsonian Institute 2007 - Now there is convincing
evidence of human habitation sites dated before the Clovis
culture ... A coastal migration route is gaining more
acceptance, more than the old conception of the small
bands that moved on foot across the land bridge between
Siberia and Alaska ... The archaeological evidence in
Australia, Melanesia, and Japan, indicates that the boats
were in use some 25,000 to 40,000 years ago. The sea
routes would have provided abundant food resources and
easy movement, faster than over land routes ... Physical
anthropologists see a similarity in these skulls to those of
some Old World populations, such as the Polynesians,
Europeans, and the Ainu of Japan ... At this time,
scientists do not rule out the possibility of migration from
Europe ... Recently, however, a fifth mtDNA lineage named
"X" has emerged in living American Indians and
prehistoric remains which seem to be of Asian origin.
Sweet Potato (Yam) - is native to and grows wild only in Central
America and Peru. It was domesticated over 5000 years in these
places. The Maori, who inhabited the island of New Zealand around
1300AD and natives of other Polynesian islands have grown sweet
potatoes since 700AD even though this vegetable is not native to
the islands and centuries before any European contact, who
allegedly introduced the sweet potato to the rest the
world. Christopher Columbus brought sweet potatoes to Europe
after his fourth voyage to the New World. The Portuguese
introduced it to Japan, China and the rest of the world between 1500
– 1600AD. The scientific world has created a theory to explain this
phenomenon. They call it The Accidental Drift Theory. In other
words, since they can not explain it scientifically, a lone sweet
potato floated over 4000 miles from America to Polynesia on its own
and planted itself on its own in these islands because primitive man
was not capable to travel overseas.
A Maori elder in 1914 told Matthew Cowley, an Apostle - "We come
from a place where the yam grows wild, where it is not sown, nor
does it have to be cultivated." - There are only two places in world
where this phenomenon happens. Central America and Peru.
Thor Heyerdahl - Norwegian
Ethnographer - 1947 – Crossed the
Pacific Ocean from Peru to Polynesia
on a primitive boat (Kon-Tiki) - 4300
miles in 101 days to prove that
primitive man had transported the
sweet potato anciently.
Olav Heyerdahl - Thor's grandson -
April 2006 – Crossed the Pacific
Ocean in a primitive boat (Tangoroa)
in 70 days.
"We have news of our ancestors that I and all that inhabit this land are
not natives of her, but foreigners, who came to her from strange parts,
and that a man brought our generation to these parts whose subjects
we all were, that he returned to his native land, that he then returned
after a long time, so much so that those who had remained were
already married to the native women of the land and they had much
offspring and made towns where they lived, that he wanted to take
them back with him but they did not want to go, and much less receive
him as their lord, and thus he returned, and we have always believed
that his descendants would come to subdue this land and take
ourselves to be their subjects, supposedly from the land that you say
you have come, which is from where the sun rises, and the things you
say about this great lord or king who sent you here, who we believe, is
our natural lord, especially now that you tell us that many days he was
aware of us, and therefore we will certainly obey you and take you as
our lord instead of that great lord of whom you speak, and all that are
in my lordship, give your command, for it will be obeyed, and
done; and all we have is for you to do as you desire.
"Those who possessed this new world in this
third age were the Olmecs and Xicalanas, and as
recounted in their stories, they came in ships or
boats from the east from the land of Pontochan
from where they began to settle." (Ixtlilxochitl,
Fernando de Alva, Obras Históricas)
"It's been many years since the first settlers
came to these parts of New Spain, which is
almost another world, and arrived in boats on
the sea, and anchored in the harbor to the
North." (Bernardino de Sahagún, General
History of the Things of New Spain, SA Mexico,
volume 3, 946, II, 306)
Photograph of stone bas-relief taken by the Mayan Scholar Teobert Maler in the late 19
century in an undisclosed location in the deep jungles of the Yucatan Peninsula.
The tapestry shows nine men emerging out of a cave and receiving a special sphere suspended by three chains. The men cross an expanse of water on the backs of nine turtles. The drawings indicate a migration through Mexico led by a man dressed in a coat of color, who controlled the special sphere. The migration ends in Michoacán where they find "a tree of life." They hold worship services, they build structures and make plates of metal. This is probably the starting point for future generations. They separate and go in different directions.
The group on the tapestry are referred to by the name "Chalchiuitlapazco." According to Moreno these were the Nonoalcanos, who could be the Mulekites. The identification of the group was first established, known by the name of "Nunuualco." The word Nonoalco [or nonohualca] means "place where there are many waters."
The bird above them represents God which emphasizes the religious significance of the event. This special sphere played an important role in the migration to the tree of life. The concept of a sacred sphere was not unique to the Tarascan Indians. The Quiché and Cakchiquel of Guatemala in their stories mention a sacred sphere or rock in their legends concerning their emigration across the sea.
Including the emergence out of a cave [the Atlantic Ocean], they encounter a messenger who delivers the special sphere, a man riding an animal, men riding on turtles nine moving across the land along with a large aquatic plant, and then they begin their journey through Mexico. Apparently there was more than a single lineage involved in migration. There were nine key leaders, another group walking below and eight heads. The nine turtles can mean the tribal leaders who come in ships, which are represented by turtles.
Based on the overall RFLP analysis, it has been concluded that approximately 97% of mitochondrial DNA of
Native Americans belong to one of four major founding mtDNA lineages, designated haplogroups "A" - "Da‖.
It has been proposed that a fifth mitochondrial haplogroup (haplogroup X) represents a minor founding
lineage in Native Americans ... supporting the conclusions that the peoples harboring haplogroup X were
among the original founders of the native populations of America. To date, haplogroup X has not been
clearly identified in Asia, raising the possibility that some Native American founders were of Caucasian
decent.
"Haplogroup X was different. It was discovered by Torroni in a reduced number of the population of Europe.
Thus the group of Emory began to explore the source of the marker. They analyzed blood samples from
Native American, European and Asian populations and reviewed the published studies. We expected to find
it in Asia "as the other four Native American markers, says Professor Brown." "To his surprise, however,
haplogroup X is confirmed only in the genes of a fist full of people living in Europe and Asia Minor (Middle
East), including Italians, Finns, and some Israelis."
The noted Maya scholar, Eric Thompson, first
observed and recorded two glyphs that followed a
pattern of marking dates. He called one the Anterior
Date Indicator (ADI), and the second he labeled the
Posterior Date Indicator (PDI). 3
In 1985, a young Mayanist scholar, David Stuart,
observed that the ADI and PDI functioned as a
grammatical and literary feature in both colonial
and modem Maya languages. He speculated
correctly when he interpreted the sound of the
glyph as "Ut" in the Chol language and Utchi in the
Maya language, meaning "to happen, or to come to
pass." (Schele 1987:26)
Two years earlier, John Justeson and Will Norman
found a consistency in an event indicator that
appears as the word "IWAL," which means the
action is ongoing at the time, such as "and" or "and
then." Together, UT-IWAL in the PDI in Maya glyphs
read "and then it came to pass" or "and now it came
to pass."
Kathryn Josserand and Nicholas Hopkins discovered
that the ADI has basically the same meaning. It
reads ut-ix, "it had come to pass." (lbid)
u-ti (ut) (T513:59) > intr. v. "to happen," "to
occur," "to come to pass."
u-ti (ut) (T738:59) > intr. v. "to happen," "to
occur," "to come to pass."
u-ti-ji-ya (utiy) (T513v:59:126) 1> intr. com.
v. "since it happened," "since it occurred,"
"since it came to pass"; the "Anterior Date
Indicator" (ADI); used as a "background
marker" with the meaning "since" 2> prep.
phr. "it happened at"; used in place name
sequences.
u-ti-ya (utiy) (T513.59:126) 1> intr. com. v.
"since it happened," "since it occurred,"
"since it came to pass"; the "Anterior Date
Indicator" (ADI); used as a "background
marker" with the meaning "since" 2> prep.
phr. "it happened at"; used in place name
sequences.
u-ti-ya (utiy) (T738:59:126) 1> intr. com.
v. "since it happened," "since it occurred,"
"since it came to pass"; the "Anterior Date
Indicator" (ADI); used as a "background
marker" with the meaning "since" 2> prep.
phr. "it happened at"; used in place name
sequences.
u-ti-ya (utiy) (T846[520].59:126v) 1> intr.
com. v. "since it happened," "since it
occurred," "since it came to pass"; the
"Anterior Date Indicator" (ADI); used as a
"background marker" with the meaning
"since" 2> prep. phr. "it happened at";
used in place name sequences.
u-to-ma (utom) (T1:44:502) > intr. incom.
v. "it will happen," "it will occur"; the
"Future Date Indicator" (FDI); incorporates
the root ut "to happen/occur" and the
subjunctive aspect marker -om "will."
u-to-ma (utom) (T3.44:563:142) > intr. incom. v. "it
will happen," "it will occur"; the "Future Date
Indicator" (FDI); incorporates the root ut "to
happen/occur" and the subjunctive aspect
marker -om "will."
Laman-Lamanai - Ruins located on the New River in Belize. Possible city given to King Lamoni and his people. The
name Laman which obviously has its roots in the Middle East, it was still in use in the Americas 1000 years later to
describe a numerous group of people, so it may have had more of an impact on the surrounding cultures. It is also a
Mayan word meaning ―submerged.‖ A site in Belize is known as Lamanai, but that is actually a corruption of its true
name, Lama’an Ayin, which means ―submerged crocodile.‖15 It is truly ancient, with habitation going back as far as
2000BC. Lama‘an Ayin is one of the few examples of a site that has retained its pre-Columbian name. That name has
survived since at least the Classic time period, but it is not known how much older it may be. - Daniel Johnson, Book
of Mormon Comparisions, pg. 6
Kish - Palenque - Jaredite King of the BoM. Olmec King U-Kix-Kan of the city of Palenque. The name of
U-Kix-Kan on the Tablet of the Cross in Palenque. U-Kish-Kan is identified as a royal ancestor of
King Pacal Na. U-Kix-Kan was born on Wednesday March 8, 993 BC (Near the date of the
existence of King Kish in the BoM). He was crowned king on Wednesday, March 25 967 BC.
U kix kan/chan
he, his stingray spine snake, captor
Lib - 2 Kings of the Book of Mormon.
One lived in the ninth century BC (son of King Kish). The other in the
fourth century BC. The first King Lib built a city near the narrow
neck. The name Lib was found in Palenque who lived around 800
BC. Palenque is located just south east of the Isthmus of
Tehuantepec. The name Lib surfaces again around 709 AD at the
ruins of Yaxchilan found a little southeast of Palenque along the
Chiapas, Mexico/Guatemala border. The name is found on a lintel at
the entrance to a palace.
Jaredite Names - The following diagram shows a sample of Jaredite names rendered in Classic Maya
glyphs. The orthography has been simplified somewhat for readability. Because of the
redundancy in some of the glyphs, these names could have been written using other
combinations, but this should suffice. A few of these actually may have meanings in Mayan. Ah-ha
means ―he of the water‖ and is similar in meaning to the title ah-naab, which refers to artists.
Similarly, ah-kish means ―he of the stingray spine.‖ Kib is the sixteenth day of one of the Maya
calendars. Ma-ha can mean ―no water,‖ and xul is the sixth month of a Maya calendar. – Daniel
Johnson, Book of Mormon Comparisions, page. 4
Nephite Names - We found over 30 Nephite names unique to the Book of Mormon that were compatible
phonetically with a few of these names could also have Hebrew or Semitic origins, but it is interesting
to see how they might look rendered as Maya glyphs. According to Mayan dictionaries, ah-mulek
means ―he of Mulek‖ and xib-lom could mean ―man of the staff.‖ While not a perfect match to Teancum,
a king named Tecum is mentioned by the Spanish historian Juarros in his records of the dynasties of the
Quiché empire in the Guatemalan Highlands Mayan. The table below shows some of the names that
seemed to work well. – Daniel Johnson, Book of Mormon Comparisions, pág. 5
Lamanite Names - Practically all unique Lamanite names are composed only of phonemes
found in Mayan languages. Ab-ix may mean ―year of the jaguar‖ in Mayan. Tubaloth seems to be a
word taken directly from Hebrew. Tubal is a name found several times in the Old Testament; the first is
Tubal-cain in Genesis 4:22. The second is in Genesis 10:2 as Tubal, grandson of Noah through Japheth.
This name was eventually applied to an entire nation or group of people. -oth can be a feminine plural
ending in Hebrew. Even though it has a Hebrew etymology, Tubaloth was included because a Classic
Maya site in the Guatemalan lowlands is named Tub‘al,14 so this appears to be a name that could have
been passed down in one form or another among the Lamanites for millennia. – Daniel Johnson, Book of
Mormon Comparisions, pág. 6
Cintepec Hill - Located in the Tuxtla Mountains, Veracruz, Mexico
Cintepec - Nahuatl word - means Corn Hill
I-xim or X-im Hill - Word Maya - means Corn Hill
Shim Hill - Hebrew Word of BoM- means Corn Hill
Vigía Hill –Located in the Tuxtla Mountains, Veracruz, Mexico
Possible Hill Cumorah
Hermounts = Tehuantepec
Hermounts:
―Now where does the word Hermounts come from? This is certainly not a Latin word. It's not a
Greek word, a Hebrew word, or a Semitic word. Where was it? It was the land on the borders that
was infested at times by wild beasts, at certain seasons of the year. It was way up in the borders.
They went way up there. So it is the Egyptian word hr-Mntw, obviously. Month or Monthis was the
Egyptian Pan; he was the god of wild places, wild animals, and the wild country. Hr-Mntw was the
outmost part of Egypt where the land was sometimes visited by lions and crocodiles and things
like that. It was under cultivation, but it was a place that was in danger from animals. They called
it hr-Mntw because it was Month's country, wild animal country.‖ (Hugh Nibley, Teachings of the
Book of Mormon, lecture 44, p. 242)
Tehuantepec:
The eastern edge of the passage through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec is formed by an uninhabited
mountain wilderness. This wilderness is sparsely inhabited even now. Meleseo Ortega Martinez,
in his Reseña Historico de Tehuantepec, recounts the origin of the word Tehuantepec. It is derived
from the Nahuatl words tecuanitepec. Tecuani has the meaning of "wild beast,"
and tepec translates as "hill." According to the Nahuatl dictionary, tecuani also means "man-eating
beast." The composite has the meaning "Hill of the Fierce Beasts."
Ripliancum= Hueyapan
Ripliancum:
Ether 15:8 - both Coriantumr and Shiz and his people pitch tents by waters of Ripliancum,
which by interpretation is large, or to exceed all.– www.lds.org
Hueyapan:
Its name arose from the Nahuatl language meaning "en el agua grande‖ (on the big
water).
Stone boxes found in 1932 at
the Olmec archaeological
site, Tres Zapotes, Veracruz,
Mexico. Tres Zapotes was
inhabited from about 1000 BC
to 900 AD.
Stone box found off the coast
of Veracruz, area of Tampico
Stone Boxes Found in Mexico
TenochtitlanTenochtitlán
México
This box was found in Templo
Mayor full of the offerings that
are around it.
Stone box found at Palenque,
Chiapas, México
Found at Izapa, Chiapas
around 1930
Made between 300 BC -
50 BC
Mesoamerica is the only area in the Americas, that sustained the
high population density mentioned in the Book of Mormon, and
for the periods specified. - Dr. John E. Clark
El Mirador, Guatemala – Covers more space than downtown Los Angeles. The
city was surrounded on three sides by walls. 600BC – 150AD
In the legends and folklore of a race, the history of the race is written, if we could but read
it. It is true that the grain of fact is generally hidden beneath a wealth of imaginative chaff,
but it is there nevertheless. During my long career in Yucatan I was fortunately able to
prove the truth of certain tales that had passed as legendary for generations and I will
touch upon these matters later. But back of tales such as these are many ancient Maya
traditions, none the less fascinating because they are as yet incapable to proof, and
obviously containing the elements of history. Among these ancient legends none is more
'alluring' to the student, nor more baffling, than that which concerns the landing of
the Chanes.
In a previous chapter I referred to the fact that the Mayas had their Plymouth Rock as had
the Puritans who followed them to the continent of America many centuries later. That is,
the legends of the primitive races of Yucatan and of portions of Mexico tell of the coming
in ships of a fair-skinned race of men who became the rulers and the leaders of the dark-
skinned aborigines. To explain this occurrence as the arrival of some of the survivors of
the catastrophe in which the storied 'Lost Atlantis' disappeared is unsatisfactory to the
scientific mind, and this is putting the matter mildly. The Atlantis theory itself remains to
be proved. But a tradition so widespread and a legend so persistent must have some basis
in history, and it is legitimate for us to hold as probable that at some time in the remote
past a group of people representing a civilization of which we have lost all trace made
their influence felt upon the races indigenous to Mexico and Yucatan…
These traditions tell us, and carvings on ancient walls and stone columns sustain them, that unknown ages ago there appeared strange craft at the mouth of what is now known as the Panuco River in the State of Vera Cruz. The sides of these vessels shone like the scales of serpent' skins, and to the simple natives who saw them approaching they appeared to be great serpents coming swiftly toward them. In these craft were light-skinned beings, and some of the traditions have it that they were tall of stature and blue-eyed. They were clad in strange garments and wore about their foreheads emblems like entwined serpents. The wondering natives who met them at the shore saw the manner of their coming with the symbol of the Sacred Serpent, which they worshipped, on their brows, and knew the strangers to be their gods come down from their home in the sun to teach and guide them. Who were these fair-skinned people, tall of stature and strangely clad, sailing through unknown seas to an unknown land? The answer to this question has been lost in the passing of the ages and the destruction of the ancient records, and now we know only that they came and that until after the arrival of the Spaniards, the place where they landed was known as Tamoanchan, which means, in the native language, the place where the People of the Serpent landed. It is near Tuxpan in the Tampico district. The dark-skinned race too the light-skinned people to be their guides and teachers and all went well with them. Under the sage counsels and wise teachings of the Chanes, the indigenous race was raised from an almost brutish, savage condition to the status of thinking, reasoning people.
In the passing of time -- and much time must have passed to have brought all this
about -- these wise men, the people of the Serpent, separated, probably in the
furtherance of a concerted plan. Some went north and some went south, each
with a band of dark-skinned followers. Those who went north were known as the
Chichimecas and even more northerly peoples, the savage tribes among whom
they worked and taught and whom they left enlightened, as Tultecas -- 'teachers'
or 'builders.‗
Those who went south, the tradition tell, forded rivers, lived under the shadows
of great forests, and in cave darknesses suffered all things that man may suffer
and live. Ever they moved onward, teaching and uplifting into the light the
savage peoples among whom they tarried when the met them. They conquered,
not by force and strange weapons, but by binding the primitive peoples to them
by force of their power and wisdom. Among these races, they were known
as Ulmecas -- the Rubber People. It is known that they used rubber extensively
and this is probably the derivation of the name. The leaders of the Ulmecas were
known as Chanes, or, among the Mayas, as Canob -- Serpents' Wise Men -- or Ah
Tzai - People of the Rattlesnake.
It is impossible from any sources as yet available to reconstruct the details of
that pilgrimage of the Ulmecas, drawn out over not man knows how long a span
of time, but at last they came to a favored site by two great wells. There they
rested finally and there they built Chichén Itzá - the City of the Sacred Well.
Meanwhile a roving branch of the Tultecas, lost brothers of the Ulmecas, had
turned southward and gone first to the ancient parting-place of the two groups
of the Chanes. Through the slow-growing centuries they had become near kin in
manners, thoughts, and language to the peoples they had neighbored in the
north. They drifted along the ancient trail of the Ulmecas, down to the capital of
the Ulmeca Mayas, Chichén Itzá. This was the so-called Toltec invasion, which
occurred but a few centuries before the coming of the Spaniards and when all
the races of the region merged into one people under the name of Maya.
Thus, in barest outline, with many breaks and dubious places, runs the history of
this ancient race of Chanes -- People of the Serpent -- and the peoples they led
from darkness into light, from the landing at Tamoanchan down to the Conquest.
Mayan Murals of San Bartolo, Petén, Guatemala
Discovered 2003
100BC - oldest Mayan Murals
Mayan Mural at Calakmul México
200 – 600AD
Ancient Maya Pottery
Murals of the Battle of Caxcaxtla, Tlaxcala, México
Murals of Las Higueras, Veracruz, México
Murals of Bonampak, Chiapas, México
The use of cement
appears suddenly in
Mesoamerican
archeology around the
first century like the
cement in these
buildings at Teotihuacan
in the Valley of Mexico.
The Book of Mormon
decrees that some
dissidents Nephites who
moved to the land
northward and "became
exceedingly expert in
the working of
cement…that they might
build many cities, both of
wood and of cement―
from 46 BC (Helaman 3:7,
11)
―And there were many highways cast up, and many roads made, which led from
city to city, and from land to land, and from place to place."
(3 Nephi 6:8)
Current evidence indicates that the Maya began to build Sacbe perhaps from about
1000BC and were still being built at the time of the Conquest. The Sacbe below are
of Cobá, Chichen Itza, and Labná respectively.
In his book mentioned above Friar Diego de Landa: Talks about the practice of baptism among the Maya before the Conquest. The Maya Prophecies for the arrival of a foreign power who would impose a single god on their people. The teachings of the Maya elders who taught that their ancestors who inhabited this land had come from the east, that God had helped them, opening two roads across the sea.
"... They say that a book was written in the era of Christianity, but we can not be sure that a book existed. There was another book, which cannot be seen any more, in which was clearly seen the coming from the other side of the sea... We can reason that they conserved some things from Genesis and Exodus as well, because its stories deal primarily with what the Holy Scriptures tell us of these books and also a little concerning other books that tell of the Hebrews and the redemption of mankind. "
"... These Indians are
descended from the ten lost
tribes of the Jews, who did not
return to their land of
inheritance, but kept all the
events written in the sacred
text through oral tradition as
the devil had deceived them
into many errors."
In the Codex he saw ... the Virgin Mary
depicted with her hair arranged in the manner
of Indian women, gathered and tied in a knot
behind, but a small cross stuck in her hair
indicating that she was of the most holy, give
birth to a great prophet who would come from
heaven, and that she would conceive without
any participation of men because she would
remain a virgin. That prophet would be
persecuted by his own people, that they would
wish him evil and crucify Him. He was
represented with his hands and feet tied to a
cross, but without nails. His resurrection was
also shown as his life was restored and He
ascended into heaven. The Dominicans said
they found the leather codices in the
possession of some Indians who live on the
Pacific coast , who said their ancestors had left
them this memorial.
Once, while talking to an old Otomi Indian who was than 70 years
old, about matters of faith, the Indian said that in years past they
had a book, handed down from father to son ... who had dedicated
themselves to preserving it and teaching from it. Doctrines were
written in two columns on each page, and the image of the
crucified Christ was painted between columns ... They would turn
the pages with reverence, not with the hand, but with a stick made
for that purpose, which was kept with that book? When Father
Mercado asked about the content of the book and its doctrine, the
Indian replied that only if the book was not lost, the priest would
see that it contains the same doctrine that had been teaching and
preaching to them, but the book had rotted under the earth, where
its guardians had buried it when the Spaniards arrived. The old
man also said they were aware of the destruction of the flood,
when only seven people were saved in the ark... The Achi Indians
of Guatemala corroborated what others have said about the flood,
saying that before they had it painted in their books along with
other records of antiquity. But the monks, in their eagerness to
destroy idolatry, considered them suspicious and burned them...
There were also those, like the Totonacas, awaited the coming of
the Son of the Great God, who was the Sun, and said he would
renew all things.
A Mexican historian, born in Texcoco in 1570 AD. He was the son of
the last King of Texcoco and family of Cuitlahuac. His version of the
history of the Olmec:
―… After the earth began again to be populated, they built a Zacualli
very high and strong, which means the very high tower, to protect
themselves against the 2nd destruction of the world. s time elapsed,
their language became confounded, such that they did not
understand one another, and they were scattered to all parts of the
world.‖
―The Tultecas, consisting of seven men and their wives, were able to
understand one another, and
they came to this land, having first crossed many lands and waters,
living in caves and passing
through great tribulations. Having arrived here, they discovered that
the land was fertile and good. ―
Ixtlilxóchitl called the people who lived in the Golf ―Giants‖ ―In this land called New Spain, there were giants as demonstrated by their bones that have been discovered in many areas. The ancient Tulteca record keepers called them Quinametzín. They became acquainted with them and had many wars and contentions with them, and in particular in all the land that is now called Mexico. They were destroyed and their civilization came to an end as a result of great calamities and punishments from heaven for some grave sins that they had committed.‖
"The ancestors of the natives of this land now called New Spain, the general opinion of all, as it appears in their paintings, came from the east. … (And all who are now called Tultecas, Aculhuas, and Mexicanas, as we as the other people in this land boast and affirm that they are descendants of the Chichimecas. The reason, according to their history, is that their first King, whose name was Chichimecatl, was the one who brought them to this new land where they settled. And he was, as can be deduced, which came from the great Tartary, and was part of those who came from the division of Babel …‖ ―Those who possessed this new world in this third age were the Ulmecas and Xicalancas; and according to what is found in their histories, they came in ships or boats from the east to the land of Potonchan, and from there they began to populate the land.‖
"Some years after the origin of early Tulla,
from the northern part of Mexico [Veracruz]
came a certain group of people who landed
near Pánuco.
Concerning this nation, no one knows where
they came because there is no data regarding
the subject, but at least the given data says the
landed at Pánuco. "
The raised wood banner will
come.
Our Lord comes, Itzá.
Our elder brother comes.
Oh men of Tantun!
Receive your guests
The bearded men,
men from the east.
Carriers of the sign from God,
Lord!
Hunab Ku – his Firstborn Son is the
God Itzamna.
Hun = One , Ab = Being,
Ku = God = The One God!
Lacandon Maya:
Father God is the same
Hunab Ku - called K'akoch
Eldest son is Sukunkyum –
Elder Brother, our Lord
The Lacandon Maya believe
the same family structure
will exist in the hereafter.
K'inich Ajaw (Ahau, Ahaw) - Sun God, Son of Itzamna or Hunab Ku. Very similar to Quetzalcoatl. Itzamna is the supreme god of all gods and the creator god. Hunab Ku = The One God, appears in the 16 century in the Dictionary of Motul, where "Hunab Ku" is identified as "the only true and living God, also the greatest of the gods of the peoples of Yucatan. The Lacandon Indians made pilgrimages through the jungle for over 500 years to Yaxchilan to worship the statue of the Emperor Escudo Jaguar I. They believed this statue was Sukunkyum.
1. The first family of gods was involved
in a conflict.
2. The elder brothers K‘aak‘ Bakal ak
Yum Chak Xib and Paal ak Yum Chak
Xib rebelled against his father.
3. The younger brother T'uup honored
his father and was given the
birthright of his older brothers.
4. T'uup became the Master of Light.
5. The older brothers were exiled to the
desert.
6. K‘aak‘ Bakal ak Yum Chak Xib = The
Man who speaks with bitterness,
Father of the red man
7. Paal ak Yum Chak Xib = Lesser
tongue, Father of the red man
1. The Lacandon refer to each
other in terms of kinship.
2. U sukun Kayum – Elder
Brother of Kayum
3. U sukun Jared – Elder
brother of Jared
1. U Ka‘ani Chembel K‘uh – Heaven of the
lesser gods. There is no sun at this level. 2. U Ka‘ani K‘akoch – Heaven of K‘akoch –
Creator / Father of the gods. This level is
heated by the sun.
3. U Ka‘ani K‘uk – Heaven that belongs to the
God in Heaven. Man's universe where
there is sun, moon and stars. Some will
inherit the earth. There will be a mixture
of gods and humans on the surface of the
earth. They are called terrestrial gods. Lu‘um K‘uh – God of the earth.
4. Yalam Lu‘um - Underworld or the spirit
world. Kisin and Sukunkyum reside here.
After death the souls of all humans go
through the underworld and are judged
by Sukunkyum, Elder Brother. If not
penitent they will be punished by
Kisin. Kisin is a child of God who is lost.
Chan K'in Viejo: Spiritual Leader of the
Lacandon people.
1. Belief in blood sacrifice.
2. Belief in Sacramento.
3. Ceremonies Celebrating the
future coming of the Son of
God, Elder Brother.
4. When Elder Brother he will use
red clothing.
5. K'uxu - Red dye made from the
fruit of the annatto tree. The dye
is used to color robes and
crowns (chak hu'un) used for
sacrificial ceremonies.
Dos Pilas, Guatemala
Chunchucmil, México
Becan, México
Naachtun, Guatemala
Punta de Chimino, Guatemala
Ichmul, México
Mayan Murals of War
Common Traditions of War in Mesoamerica and the BoM
1. War and Battle Tactics
2. Captains and Chief Captains
3. Rituals of Human Sacrifice
4. Kings fight against Kings
5. Consumption of Human Blood
6. Beheading
7. Slavery
8. Marriage Alliances
9. Amputation of Arms
10. Cities destroyed in a single day
Popol Vuh
1. Los Nefitas obtained the book
(The 24 Plates).
2. 43 Men found it on an expedition.
3. They descended from the
mountains.
4. It was found on the Atlantic Coast.
5. The book contains the story of the
creation of all things.
6. It is a hieroglyphic book.
1. The Maya Quiche obtained the
book.
2. It was found on an expedition.
3. They descended from the
mountains.
4. It was found on the Atlantic Coast.
5. The book contains the story of the
creation of all things.
6. It is a hieroglyphic book.
Libro de Éter
"The three great nations of the Quiche ... are descendants of the Ten Tribes of the Kingdom of Israel, who
Shalmaneser reduced to captivity, finding themselves on the border of Assyria, they decided to
emigrate…
"These, then, were the three nations Quiches, the descendants of Israel, with the same language and the
same customs and traditions .... They were sons of Abraham and Jacob ....
"Now on September 28, 1554 we signed this confirmation in writing that we have the tradition that our
ancestors told us, who came from the other side of the sea, Civan-Tulán, which borders Babylon (Title of
the Lords of Totonicapán, Dionisio José Chonay and Delia Goetz, Norman, Oklahoma: University of
Oklahoma Press, 1953, pp. 167, 170, 194).
The Tultecas had a knowledge of the creation of the world
(before the Conquest) by Tloque Nahuaque, including the
planets, mountains, animals, etc. They also knew about how
God created a man and a woman from whence all mankind
descended and multiplied. … The records indicate that the
world was created in the year Ce Tecpatl, and the period of
time from the creation to the flood is called Atonatiuh, which
means the age of the sun of water because the world was
destroyed by the flood. And it is recorded in the Tulteca
history that this period or first world, as they called it, lasted
for 1,716 years, after which time great lightning and storms
from the heavens destroyed mankind, and everything in the
earth was covered by water including the highest mountain
called Caxtolmolictli, which is 15 cubits high … After the
earth began again to be populated, they built a Zacualli very
high and strong, which means the very high tower, to protect
themselves against a second destruction of the world. As
time elapsed, their language became confounded, such that
they did not understand one another; and they were
scattered to all parts of the world. The Tultecas, consisting of
seven men and their wives, were able to understand one
another, and they came to this land, having first crossed
many lands and waters, living in caves and passing through
great tribulations. Upon their arrival here, they discovered
that it was a very good and fertile land.
Warm Weather Clothing: Lamanite Loincloth s
Murals of Bonampak,
México
580AD – 800AD
Figures in Ek‘ Balaam, México
El Luchador (The Wrestler)
Olmec Statue
San Lorenzo, Veracruz
Discovered 1933
Made 1550BC – 400BC
Statues of Tula, Hidalgo
980AD – 1179AD
There is an engraving of a pre-Columbian horse at Chichén Itzá. It is located near the observatory at El Templo del Tableros. There are
other examples of Yucatec horses. In the 1950s excavations at the pre-Columbian site of Mayapan were reported. Horse bones were
found in four different locations. Because two of the finds were close to the surface, they were ―summarily dismissed‖ as being Spanish.
The others could not be. They were found in two meters of unconsolidated earth almost six feet deep. Two partially mineralized horse
teeth were found at the same stratum with Maya pottery. This means there was an association of horses with humans. This contradicted
the science of the time and ran counter to the ―Siberian Land Bridge Only‖ doctrine. The site was Ch‘en Mul, a sinkhole referred to as a
―cenote‖ or waterhole.
In 1895 – American paleontologist Henry C. Mercer went to Yucatán hoping to find remains of Ice Age man. He visited 29 caves in the
hill area – the Puuc – of the peninsula and tried stratigraphic excavations in 10 of them. But the results were confused, and he came away
disillusioned. He did find horse bones in three caves (Actun sayab, Actun Lara, y Chektalen). In terms of their visible characteristics,
those bones should have been classified as from the Pleistocene American horse species, then called Equus occidentalis L. However,
Mercer decided that since the remains were near the surface, they must actually be from the modern horse, Equus equus, that the
Spaniards had brought with them to the New World, and so he reported them as such.
In 1947 Robert T. Hatt repeated Mercer‘s activities. He found within Actun Lara and one other cave more remains of the American horse
(in his day it was called Equus conversidens), along with bones from other extinct animals. Hatt recommended that any future work
concentrate on Loltun Cave, where abundant animal and cultural remains could be seen.
It took until 1977 before that recommendation bore fruit. Two Mexican archaeologists carried out a project that included a complete
survey of the complex system of subterranean cavities (made by underground water that had dissolved the subsurface limestone). They
also did stratigraphic excavation in areas in the Loltun complex not previously visited. The pits they excavated revealed a sequence of
16 layers, which they numbered from the surface downward. Bones of extinct animals (including mammoth) appear in the lowest layers.
Pottery and other cultural materials were found in the levels VII and above. But in some of the artifact-bearing strata there were horse
bones, even in level II. A radiocarbon date for the beginning of VII turned out to be around 1800 BC. The pottery fragments above that
would place some portions in the range of at least 900 to 400 BC and possibly later. The report on this work concludes with the
observation that ―something went on here that is still difficult to explain.‖ Some archaeologist have suggested that the horse bones were
stirred upward from lower to higher levels by the action of tunneling rodents, but they admit that this explanation is not easy to accept.
The statement has also been made that paleontologist will not be pleased at the idea that horses survived to such a late date as to be
involved with civilized or near-civilized people whose remains are seen in the ceramic-using levels. Surprisingly, the Mexican
researchers show no awareness of the horse teeth discovered in 1957 by Carnegie Institution scientist Pollock and Ray. Some
uncomfortable scientific facts seem to need rediscovering time and time again. – Dr. John L. Lund, Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon
– Is This the Place? Page 248
El Templo del Tableros
Chichen Itzá
It is by no means implied that pre-Columbian
horses were known to the Mayans, but it seems
likely that horses were present on the Yucatan
Peninsula in pre-Mayan time. The tooth
fragments reported here could have been
transported in fossil condition as curios by the
Mayans, but the more numerous horse remains
reported by Hatt and Mercer (if truly pre-
Columbian) could scarcely be explained in
this manner. CLAYTON C. RAY, Museum of
Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Mass.
Received May 28,1956).
It is clear that Loltun Cave is an important site because of the presence of lithic tools
and Pleistocene fauna, though doubts still exist about the stratigraphic and temporal
associations. The presence of Pleistocene Equus conversidens in ceramic layers has
been interpreted as possible proof of the survival of the extinct horse into the
Holocene (Schmidt 1988)
Petroglyphs of Horses
Monte Vista, Colorado
Stones of Ica, Ocucaje, Perú
Dr. Javier Cabrera 1930 - 1970
Petroglyph of Horse
Picture Canyon, Colorado
In Plain Sight Old World Records in Ancient America
Page 349 Gloria Farley 1994
Petroglyph of Horse
Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World Records in Ancient
America Gloria Farley 1994
Petroglyph of Horse
Anubis Cave #2, Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World Records in Ancient
America Gloria Farley 1994
Stela B
Copan, Honduras
Made Augusto 22, 731AD
Ancient Pipe
Mississippi River Delta
Found 1880
Elephant Mound
Grant County, Wisconsin
Smithsonian Report, 1872
Elephant Petroglyph
Anubis Cave #2, Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World
Records in Ancient America
Gloria Farley 1994
The Rebus Ship Petroglyph
Picture Canyon, Colorado
In Plain Sight Old World Records in
Ancient America Gloria Farley 1994
Boat Petroglyph
LeFlore County, Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World
Records in Ancient America
Gloria Farley 1994
Gaelic Yawl Petroglyph
Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World Records in Ancient
America Gloria Farley 1994
Boat Petroglyph
Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World
Records in Ancient America
Gloria Farley 1994
Boat Petroglyph
Baca County, Colorado
In Plain Sight Old World Records in
Ancient America Gloria Farley 1994
Boat Petroglyph
Hicklin Springs, Colorado
In Plain Sight Old World
Records in Ancient America
Gloria Farley 1994
Boat Petroglyph
Maba Refuge, Oklahoma
In Plain Sight Old World
Records in Ancient America
Gloria Farley 1994
Barley was discovered in Hohokam deposits in Phoenix, Arizona as a result of
excavations carried out by the University of Arizona. The Hohokam Indians were
present in the Phoenix area from about 300 BC to about 1450 AD. They possibly
arrived from Mesoamerica, as many Mesoamerican characteristics were present
in their culture, such as similar styles of figurines, the use of cotton, textile
techniques, their ball game, platform mounds and copper bells. The Hohokam
Culture is famous throughout the Southwest for a number of things, including the
construction of a massive system of irrigation canals. More than 1000 miles of
canals as large as 30 feet wide and seven feet deep were built by these ancient
industrious people.
Adams affirms in the journal Science # 83:
Perhaps the most surprising evidence of Hohokam agricultural sophistication
occurred last year, when rescue archaeologist found preserved grains of what
appears to be domesticated barley, the first to be found in the New World. Wild
barley has a fibrous husk on each grain. Domesticated barley lacks this. The
same is found in Hohokam barley. "It is debatable whether this is genetic or due
to extreme skill in processing," says Vorsila Bohrer, a Ethno-Botanist from the
University of Eastern New Mexico. Almost half of the samples from the site
produced barley. (Page 32)
Science Daily (March 18,
2008) - Archaeologists from
the Institute of Prehistory and
Early History of the University
of Vienna have found an
amulet inscribed with a
Jewish prayer in a Roman
child‘s grave dating back to
the 3rd century CE at a burial
ground in the Austrian town of
Halbturn.
The Etruscans in Italy were
familiar with the Phoenician
alphabet, as shown in the Pyrgi
gold plates. The plate on the left
was written in Phoenician, and the
other in Etruscan.
The world's oldest multi-page book in the lost
Etruscan language. The National History Museum
in Sofia Bulgaria. It is evident from the picture that
this book was created on metal plates that are
attached with metal rings, similar to the original
documents that became the Book of Mormon.
Gold plates decorated with exotic
and beautiful animals, sixth
century BC. Delphi Museum,
Greece
This plate of gold was found in Persia in
1961. The plate is dated to the time of
Darius II in the fourth century BC.
The Louvre Museum in Paris has some old plates on
display. Some are gold, while others are made from
other metals. These were discovered during excavation
of the palace of Sargon II, the Assyrian king from 721 to
705 BC. The site is known as Khorsabad, for the current
nearby Iraqi city.
This tablet of gold was found during an excavation in the
city of Ashur, now Qual'at Serouat, Iraq, by a team of
German archaeologists led by Walter Andrae. The tablet
with inscriptions, which was discovered in the
foundations of the Temple Ishta is actually a construction
document. It dates from the reign of the Assyrian king
Tukulti-Ninurta I (1243-1207 BC), who expanded the
Assyrian empire, but was later killed by his son.
Gold Plate from Persépolis, Iran
Persepolis fortification tablets: large collection of
old administrative cuneiform texts, written
between 506 and 497 BC. They are one of the
most important sources for the study of the
Achaemenid empire government. Persepolis was
one of the capitals of the ancient Persian empire,
founded by King Darius I the Great in 518 BC. It
was excavated by the Oriental Institute of
Chicago: Ernst Herzfeld and F. Schmidt who
worked in Persepolis from 1931 to 1939. During
the excavations, two archives of cuneiform texts
were discovered. The smaller set is called the
Persepolis Treasury Tablets. There are 139 of
them, and describe the payments in silver
between 492 and 458. The collection of greater
number and larger tablets is known as the
Persepolis Fortification Tabletsis: between 20,000
and 25,000 of them, belonging to about 15,000 to
18,000 documents. Not all tablets have been
published, after decades of neglect, the project
reinitiated in 2002. The Persepolis Fortification
Tablets were written in Elamite, the language of
the Persian Foreign Office, and dealt with
financial transactions until 493 BC. Just a couple
of them are in Aramaic , Phrygian, Old Persian, or
Greek. The men in charge of them were Farnaces
and his deputy Ziššawiš.
Gold Plates from Persépolis, Iran
Monument #13 La Venta, Tabasco, México
Olmec Civilization
Shows a bearded man wearing a turban that looks
more like a Phoenician than a Mexican. The pointy
toed shoes that he wears were used in three
Mediterranean civilizations: Etruscans, Hittites and
Phoenicians. The native peoples of Central America
were unable to grow facial hair. It also shows four
glyphs, three in a linear arrangement and the fourth a
footprint, the Mesoamerican common symbol for
movement. The carved stone monument can be dated
from 600 to 400 BC(Houston 2004b: 292)
Olmec Clay Head, Tres Zapotes, Veracruz
México. The realistic appearance suggests that
this is the study of an artist from a real person
and not the figment of an artists imagination.
Bearded jadeite head of Quetzalcoatl. This head is in
the Musée de l'Homme, Paris, France.
Mexica statue of Quetzalcoatl with a beard. Both
photographs are from American Indians in the Pacific,
Thor Hyerdahl
This vase with a bearded Mayan face "Old
Empire" (c.430 AD). This Mayan figure from
Honduras could be Itzamná in his youth.
Itzamná, ancient bearded god of the Maya-Itzá.
Itzamná, the legend, arrived by boat from the east
and founded the civilization Itzá.
Quirigua, Guatemala.
Cal Ixtlahuaca‘s head.
This head of terracota,
with his well trimmed
mustache and beard,
was excavated from an
undisturbed and sealed
ancient tomb in the
Cal Ixtlahuaca Pyramid, 35
Miles to the southeast
Of México City, in 1933.
Many experts believe that it is Roman and from
the second century AD, but it is officially
classified as " colonial " .
Stela of a Bearded Man, La Venta, Tabasco, México
700 – 400 BC
Bearded Man of Comalcalco, Tabasco, México
200 – 1300 AD
Stela of Bonampak, Chiapas, México
580 – 800 AD
Bonampak, Chiapas, México
580 – 800 AD
Bearded Men in Palenque, Chiapas, México
1000 BC – 800 AD
Bearded Men in Palenque, Chiapas, México
1000 BC – 800 AD
The Olmec-Mayan ruins at Comalcalco, near the modern city of Villahermosa in Tabasco State, are more than a small
mystery to archeologists and other researchers who are studying the unique architectural style of the ancient city. For one,
other Meso-American ruins of the region, indeed all the ancient world of the Maya, were built using hand carved limestone
blocks - not bricks.
But the mystery deepened when researchers discovered that when an oyster-base mortar used to bind the bricks was
removed, it revealed various odd markings on the back of the bricks, including what is believed to be the brick makers
fingerprints.
But it is the strange figures carved into the bricks that are most perplexing
to archeologists. Pictured at the right is a comparative illustration that
captured the attention, and imagination, of researchers. The symbols in the
first six columns(from left to right) in the illustration are mason symbols from
Roman bricks. The symbols in the six columns on the right were discovered behind the bricks excavated at Comalcalco.
They appear to be almost identical. There are many additional similarities between the brick mason marks at Comalcalco
and ancient Romano, Minoan, and Greek sites.
Further complicating the issue, whether by design or coincidence, the bricks have Roman-like architectural measurements
and the building structures sport Roman-like architectural features. Further deepening the mystery is the discovery of what
may well be a Roman figurine, leading some to speculate that there may have been a Roman-Christian presence in the
Americas a thousand years before the arrival of Columbus.
There is an evolving theory that ancient man from the European and Asian continents may have made the Atlantic crossing
long before Columbus, bringing with them artifacts and items for trade.
Theorists say elsewhere in the Maya region, Roman-style figurines have emerged, and pre-Columbian horse remains have
been excavated. Old World parasites and DNA affinities, the blowgun, bark cloth, and paper manufacturing said to have
been unearthed at or near Comalcalco add to the mystery according to supporters of the theory.
Temples of the Descending God in Tulum and Coba – According to a personal conversation with a local Tulum guide
(Mosiah Petlaclalco) the phenomenon seen below during the equinoxes at the Temple of the Descending God
is also seen on April 6 at 6am. He swore to me that he himself has lived the experience.
Monument 19 from La Venta
Olmec Civilization
First known representation of a feathered serpent in
Mesoamérica.
Local researchers have found that the greatest illumination of the serpent is
produced on April 6th
for some unknown event (Vergara). Christ / Quetzalcóatl
was born on the 6 of April according to a revelation given to Joseph Smith (D&C
20:01)
1. Both were recognized as the creator of all things (Mosiah 4:2) (Sáenz 1962)
2. Both were born of virgins (Alma 7:10) (Gamino)
3. Both are described to be white and wearing a white robe (3 Nephi 11:8)
(Torquemada)
4. Both performed miracles (3 Nephi 26:15) (Séjourné)
5. Both taught the ordinance of baptism (3 Nephi 11:23) (Irwin 1963)
6. Both prophesied future events (Ixtlilxóchitl)
7. Both are universal, as opposed to being nothing more than recognized as local
gods (3 Nephi 16:1) (Séjourné 1962)
8. A great destruction was associated with both (3 Nephi 8:5) (Ixtlilxóchitl)
9. The cross was a symbol for both (3 Nephi 27:14) (Irwin 1963)
10. Both Sent disciples to preach their word (3 Nephi 12:1) (Wirth)
11. They promised to come a second time (2 Nephi 6:14) (Sahagún)
12. A new star is associated with both (3 Nephi 1:21) (Annals of Cuautitlán)
13. The children of both are lords and heirs of the Earth (4 Nephi 17) (Ixtlilxóchitl)
The Number 7 in Christianity:
The number seven (7) in the seven days of Creation is typological and the number seven appears commonly elsewhere in
the Bible. These include:
1. Seven days of Creation (Genesis 1) e.g., God rested on and sanctified the seventh day (Sabbath)
2. Anyone who dares to kill Cain 'will suffer vengeance seven times over' (Genesis 4:15)
3. Lamech in his "Song of the Sword" claims that 'if Cain shall be avenged sevenfold', he himself shall be 'seventy-sevenfold'
(Genesis 4:24)
4. Seven years of plenty and seven years of famine in Pharaoh's dream (Genesis 41)
5. Seven days of the feast of Passover (Exodus 13:3–10)
6. Seven day week and the pattern concerning distribution and use of manna (Exodus 16)
7. Seven year cycle around the years of Jubilee (Leviticus 25)
8. The fall of the walls of Jericho on the seventh day after marching around the city seven times (Joshua 6)
9. Seven things that are detestable to the LORD (Proverbs 6:16–19)
10. Seven Pillars of the House of Wisdom (Proverbs 9:1)
11. Seven loaves multiplied into seven baskets of surplus (Matthew 15:32–37)
12. The Seven last words (or seven last sayings) of Jesus on the cross
13. Seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom (Acts 6:3)
14. Seven Spirits of God are mentioned in the Book of Revelation
15. Seven churches of Asia to which the "Book of Revelation" is addressed
16. Seven churches, seven stars, seven seals, seven last plagues, seven vials or bowls, seven thunders in the Revelation, the
last book of the Bible
17. Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
18. The Seven Virtues: chastity, temperance, charity, diligence, kindness, patience, and humility
19. The Seven deadly sins: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride
20. The seven terraces of Mount Purgatory (one per deadly sin)
21. In the genealogy in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is 77th in a direct line
22. The number of heads of the three beasts (7 × 10 × 7 + 7 × 10 × 10 + 7 × 10 = 1260) of the Book of Revelation, and of some
other monsters, like the hydra and the number of seals
23. In the New Testament, in Matthew 18:21, Jesus says to Peter to forgive 'seventy times seven times', remembering so the
curse of Cain and the song of Lamech in Genesis 4.
The Number 7 en Judaism:
A highly symbolic number in the Torah, alluding to the infusion of spirituality and Godliness into the creation. For example:
1.God rested on and sanctified the seventh day (Shabbat). – Genesis 2:3. "Wisdom has built her house, she has hewn out her
seven pillars." – Proverbs of Solomon son of David King of Israel 9:1
2. A seven-day purification period is required for one who has become tamei to become tahor.
3. The Shmita (Sabbatical) year arrives every seventh year.
4. The Jubilee (Yovel) year comes after 7 times 7 years.
5. The Counting of the Omer leading up to the Giving of the Torah is expressed as "7 times 7 weeks."
6. There are 7 days of Passover and Sukkot when celebrated in Israel. 7. Shiv`a (another pronunciation of the Hebrew word for 7—(Hebrew: שבעה ;" seven")), is the number of days of mourning.
Hence, one sits Shiva. As in Shiva (Judaism)
8. The weekly Torah portion is divided into seven aliyahs, and seven Jewish men (or boys over the age of 13 who are
considered men; Bar Mitzvah) are called up for the reading of these aliyahs during Shabbat morning services.
9. Seven blessings are recited under the chuppah during a Jewish wedding ceremony.
10. A Jewish bride and groom are feted with seven days of festive meals after their wedding, known as Sheva Berachot
("Seven Blessings").
The number of Ushpizzin (also known as the "Seven Shepherds") who visit the sukkah during the holiday of Sukkot:
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, and David.
11. The number of nations God told the Israelites they would displace when they entered the land of Israel (Deut. 7:1): the
Hittite, the Girgashite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite.
12. In Breslov tradition, the seven orifices of the face (2 eyes, 2 nostrils, 2 ears,
and the mouth) are called "The Seven Candles." 13. The Menorah (Hebrew: מנורה) , is a seven-branched candelabrum lit by olive
oil in the Tabernacle and the Temple in Jerusalem. The menorah is one of the
oldest symbols of the Jewish people. It is said to symbolize the Burning bush
as seen by Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 25).
14. The number of times Cain will be avenged by God if he is murdered
(Gen 4:15).
15. The Israelites circled Jericho for 7 days and then the wall tumbled down.
The Seven Primordial Tribes of Mesoamerica
by Diane E Wirth
Seven tribes are described in the Book of Mormon as having evolved from the families who came from the land of Jerusalem to the New
World. The first mention of these lineage groups is circa 544 B.C., when the individual tribes were designated as Nephites, Jacobites,
Josephites, Zoramites, Lamanites, Lemuelites, and Ishmaelites (Jacob 1:13). Almost 700 years later, these patriarchal tribal divisions were
mentioned again, indicating the enduring nature of this tradition (4 Nephi 38). Over time, the order of the names remained the same; the
last reference appears in Mormon 1:8, shortly before the demise of the Nephite nation as a result of war. From these scriptures we know that
the seven families were remembered over a span of 866 years in the Book of Mormon. The importance of these lineages cannot be
diminished as they are even mentioned in Doctrine and Covenants 3:17-18.
Before and after the end of the Nephite nation in A.D. 385, genealogy continued to be extremely important to Mesoamerican cultures.
Early traditions, passed orally from one generation to the next, spoke of seven primordial tribes who were their ancestors. These
Mesoamerican legends are recorded in murals, on Stelae, on monuments, and in codices, and were fortuitously recited to Spanish clergy
who made a written record of the various accounts.
Bernardo de Sahagún learned that the natives equated the cave symbolism of the seven tribes with that of boats, and suggested that
these tribes crossed the waters in search of a terrestrial paradise. He wrote:
Concerning the origin of these peoples, the report that old men [of central Mexico] give is that they came by sea . . . in some wooden
boats. . . . But it is conjectured by a report found among all these natives that they came from seven caves, and that these
seven caves are the seven ships or galleys in which the first settlers of this land came.. .
[Bernardino de Sahagún, Historia General de las Cosas de Nueva Espana, Introduccion al Primer Libro, Mexico, 1946), cited in Archaeology
and the Book of Mormon, by Milton R. Hunter (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1972), 44].
Las Siete Cuevas Histórica Tolteca-Chichimeca Los Siete Tribus del Códice Duran
Are the Hopi related to the Maya? According to Frank Waters, the ―Hopis first lived in seven puesivi, or caves‖. From there they migrated
northward, establishing their people and villages in accordance with the names of the "caves or womb-caverns" [Frank Waters, Mexico
Mystique (Chicago: Swallow Press, 1975), 168-170]. These events may refer to the Late Classic Period in Mesoamerica when many people were
on the move, as war, disease, and famine plagued much of Mesoamerica. But by the same token, the myth may be coupled with earlier times, with
events going back to myths of early arrivals in the New World from across the sea.
Izapa, Chiapas, Mexico, has many beautiful and interesting stelae. Stela 67 appears to portray a bearded man in a boat, riding an inverted ocean
wave. The upside down wave gives the understanding of the watery Underworld where the dead enter and rebirth takes place.
The numeral classifier for caves in Yucatec is ak, which forms part of the word aktun "cave." The classifier ak is also used for words such as canoes,
boats, houses, and containers [Andrea J. Stone, Images from the Underworld: Naj Tunich and the Tradition of Maya Cave Painting (Austin: University of
Texas Press, 1995), 35]. All these words are associated with things that hold people and objects in safe enclosures.
Although the legend of the seven caves comes primarily from Mexican Nahuatl speaking peoples, there was a widespread adoption of this myth
among other peoples, as is evidenced by the Quiche Maya. Tulan Zuyua, or vukub pek, vukub zivan "seven caves, seven canyons," is referred to
in The Popol Vuh. [Denis Tedlock, Popol Vuh: The Definitive Edition of the Mayan Book of the Dawn of Life and the Glories of Gods and Kings (New York:
Simon and Schuster, 1985), 360].
The High Priest's Grave at Chichen Itza in the Yucatan also supports a belief in this origin myth
in an area of non-Nahuatl speaking peoples. Similar to the Quiche place of origin, the original name
for Chichen Itza may have been Ucil-Abnal, "Seven Bush Places or Hollows" [Ralph L. Roys, ―Native
Empires in Yucatan,‖ in Revista Mexicana de Estudios Antropologicos 20: 153-177].
The Annals of the Cakchiquels, a Maya history, refers again and again to the seven primordial tribes
as the original colonizers who came from across the sea [The Annals of the Cakchiquels, translated from
the Cakchiquel Maya by Adrian Recinos and Delia Goetz (Norman: University of Oklahoma, 1953), 59, n.59].
Does this account of the seven tribes, as well as the others mentioned here, refer to the same long-held concept of seven lineages in the Book of
Mormon? We can only speculate that this is the case. What we do know is that after Book of Mormon times, this legend was part of oral tradition
among the natives of Mesoamerica for many, many years.
The Totonicapán record (of Guatemalan Indians) refers to the division into Seven Tribes: "The Xahila family, one of the royal lines of the Quiches
of the highlands of Guatemala, left an account in the Maya tongue entitled Annals of Xahila. It is stated therein: "We were brought forth, coming we
were begotten by our mothers and our father, as they say . . . They say that the seven tribes arrived first at Tullan." It is observed that the Xahila
record likewise indicates a departure from an Old World Tulan (Bountiful) and the settlement of seven tribes in a principal homeland, Tullan
(Bountiful), in the New World. [Milton R. Hunter and Thomas S. Ferguson, Ancient America and the Book of Mormon, p. 87]
According to a Mexican tradition, "Here is the beginning of the accounts of the arrival of the Mexicans from the place named Aztlan ("tlan" means
"Bountiful"). It was through the midst of the water that they made their way to this locality, being four tribes.
According to the history of the Quiche Maya people written in the book Title of the Lords of Totonicapan, there were four great leaders who
brought their people from the other side of the sea, from Pa-Tulan ("Tulan" means "Bountiful"). [Clate Mask, "And They Called the Place Tulan," p. 4]
Do these stories of the seven tribes, and the others mentioned here, refer to the same old concept of the seven lineages in the Book of Mormon?
We can only speculate that this is the case. What we do know is that after the Book of Mormon time period, this legend was part of the oral tradition
among the natives of Mesoamerica for many, many years.
The Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca portrays Chicomoztoc, or the
Seven Caves of Aztlán from which the first Chichimec tribes
emerged before invading the Basin of México to become the
Aztecs.
Bittman Simons (1968) wrote: "Chicomoztoc (or
Culhuacatepec) is the legendary point of origin of many
people of ancient Mesoamerica. It is depicted in paintings and
manuscripts mentioned in chronicles. In addition to the
Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca we may also mention, the Tira de
la Peregrinación, Azcatitlan Codex, the Codex Rios, the
Chimalpopoca Codex and the work of Tezozomoc, Muñoz
Camargo, Pomar and Zorita, Chimalpahin, Motolinia, Duran,
Sahagún and Torquemada as well as the Popol Vuh and the
Annals of the
Cachiqueles.
The Book of Mormon states that Lehi's unified company divided into seven main lineage groups soon after arriving in the
promised land (Jacob 1:13). Similarly, most major Meso-American cultural groups claim ancestry from seven major lineage
groups. In the Popol Vuh, the K'iche' ancestors are said to have emerged from seven caves or canyons, representing the
origin of the seven main royal families in highland Guatemala. Also, as was the case with the Mulekites, the people
mentioned in the Popol Vuh changed their language after crossing the sea to establish a new homeland. - - The Popol Vuh
and Mormon Studies, Insights Volume - 20, Issue - 7
The Templo Mayor of Tlatelolco has seven stages of construction. The director of the archaeological site remembered it is
known that the Templo Mayor of Tlatelolco had been built seven times, the same as it was conquered.
Tlatelolco, Distrito Federal, México
Pyramid of the Niches
El Tajín, Veracruz, México
The Pyramid has 7 Levels
The splendor of the city of Cholula started in the pre-Hispanic era, where they erected the tallest pyramid
in Mesoamerica. This building has seven different superimposed construction phases.
Cholula, Puebla, México
The Pyramid of the Moon has seven stages of construction, the last being around the year 400 AD. This last
stage is the stage that the visitor can see today in the archaeological site.
Teotihuacán, Estado de México, México
The Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan has seven stages of construction. The Temple was rebuilt seven times,
expanded eleven, its construction began in the year 2-Rabbit (1390).
Tenochtitlan, Distrito Federal, México
For analogies identified through registration, classification and architectural analysis of the cities of Tenayuca, Tenochtitlan
and Tlatelolco, we can infer that beyond their almost identical measurements, their astronomical orientation, and the
superimposed seven stages of construction on their respective Templo Mayor, in the three pre-Hispanic sites there was a
parallel and simultaneous development. So explains the archaeologist Salvador Guilliem Arroyo, in his study, Tlatelolco,
mirror of Tenochtitlan.
Tenayuca, México
The Prophet Gordon B. Hinckley said:
"The evidence of its truth and validity in a world that tends to demand
evidence, lies not in archeology or anthropology, although knowledge of
these sciences may be helpful for some, nor linguistic research nor historical
analysis, although they may serve to confirm. The evidence of its truth and
validity lies within the book itself. The proof of its truth lies in reading the
book itself. It is a book of God. "(" Four Cornerstones of Faith‖ Liahona,
February, 2004)