Examining the Gold Plates

by John P. Pratt

11 Jan 2020, 1 Witness (P), Trees (PH), End Tabernacles (UE)

©2020 by John P. Pratt. All rights Reserved.

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In March 2019 a book entitled The Sealed Book of Mormon was introduced by a group in Brazil which claimed that it was translated from part of the same Plates of Mormon from which the Book of Mormon was translated. Briefly, the story was that Angel Moroni delivered the plates to a man named Mauricio Berger, along with the interpreters, and announced that the time had come for him to translate the first part of the sealed plates. The main part of the sealed section was only to be unsealed by the Savior as is explained in the Book of Mormon itself.

Mauricio Berger (right) & me.

The book appeared genuine to me but I had no intention to share my conclusion with anyone because it had not come through what we LDS believers (Mormons) had been taught were the proper channels for new revelation.

In May I heard the Voice, which I call "the Spirit", tell me to publish a favorable review of the book on my (low-traffic) web site. I balked at the idea, complaining that no one would be convinced. The response to my complaint was to do it anyway because no one else would. So I published a book review. Just a few days after that article was posted, I received a very enthusiastic response from the Brazilian group asking if they could post the article on their website, to which I agreed.

View from conference venue.

I went to Brazil for a week for the conference last November, expecting only to speak and return home. I was privileged to stay at the home of Mauricio for six days and found him to be very intelligent and straightforward, with no hint of deception. He clearly loves others and is interested in teaching others as much as possible.

To my astonishment, I was invited by Mauricio to become one of the few witnesses of the Plates of Mormon. I knew from reading the book that there had been three witnesses of Angel Moroni, the sword of Laban, and the interpreters. There were also eight other witnesses who had witnessed the plates, so the pattern was nearly identical to the witnesses at the time of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Thus, I was surprised that a few more were being called to be witnesses from various countries around the world. I am the only witness from the state of Utah, U.S.A.

A witness in a court of law is often required to show credibility, so the next section attempts to establish my credibility, followed by a description of my examination of both the plates and the interpreter stones. Those not interested in the following description of my religiously skeptical youth and my scientific training can skip this first section.

1. Credibility

In this section I intend to show that all of my life I have not been one to be swayed easily by religious arguments or wishful thinking that miracles existed. I was born with a scientific mind and have sought to support claims with hard evidence.

I grew up in an LDS (Mormon) home in Utah, with a father being the great grandson of Parley P. Pratt, an original apostle of the LDS Church, and a mother also a descendant of Mormon pioneer ancestry. As a young teenager, when I heard Church members stand in what is called a monthly "testimony meeting", and testify that they "knew" the church was true, I did not believe a word of it. I thought they believed, but couldn't possibly all know, especially my friends who would give rote testimonies to please their parents. I made a point of never "bearing my testimony" of the Church being "true" even one time in my life before age 20.

At age fourteen, I received a challenge from a Sunday School teacher to read the Book of Mormon, which I had never before opened. He promised that if I did, I would know it was true. I thought that would be worth the trouble, because I really did want to know the truth. I read the book from cover to cover and did not believe a word of it! I went back and proudly announced the failure of the experiment to him. His first question was whether I had prayed about it while reading. When I replied in the negative, his immediate response changed my life. He rolled his eyes and replied, "You did not listen carefully and now you have to start all over and repeat the experiment. You must pray every time after reading!" I decided it was worth reading twice even though it contained foolish, over dramatic obvious fabrications, such as the story of a bunch of believers about to be executed who were all miraculously saved because Jesus was born just before they were to die!

During one of my very first prayers during the introduction to the book, I was complaining to God that the angel should not have taken back the so-called "gold plates", but instead he should have left them for evidence to be on display at the Pioneer Museum on Temple Square. To my shock, in my mind I heard a Voice say, "That's not what you want! If they were on display there, you would then complain that they were covered with chicken scratches which no one could read except the so-called prophet! What you really want is the English translation of those scratches so you can compare it to other evidence!" It was the first time I recall having ever heard a Voice in answer to a prayer and I had to admit it spoke truth! That is exactly what I would have said! As I contemplated that disarming annihilation of my criticism, suddenly a rush of emotionless pure knowledge enveloped me, and I instantly knew the book was authentic. I have never doubted that since.

I have made thorough searches of all of the questions concerning that sacred book which have arisen in my reading, and some of them have been the foundation of a strong part of the scientific testimony of my mind. But that first witness to my heart has stayed with me through the three score years since. As for that dramatic part of the book about the believers being saved from execution, I've written articles about how the date chosen for execution would have been chosen by the prophecy of the sign of the Messiah's birth, based on the predicted time interval ending on the Hebrew Passover, combined with the strong evidence that the Savior would be born on the very evening of the Passover meal. Thus, it was not a random coincidence but makes logical sense!

Amazing Iguassu Falls on border of Brazil.

(That's me coming home from my mission there.)

At the University of Utah, my interest in religious education was born when I realized that there were some scholars there at the off-campus LDS Institute of Religion who actually knew both Church history and doctrine amazingly well. They did not kick me out of class for asking if all of the fish died in Flood (that had happened to me in Sunday School at age 12)! I graduated from their 4-year program in two years, taking every class I could, more than compensating for what I missed in high school.

At age 19 I was called on an LDS proselyting mission to Southern Brazil. In the initial mission training, we missionaries were all expected to stand up and bear our testimonies, which I had never done. This time it was not a volunteer system, but forced! I had my response all planned to shock everyone by saying that I believed the Church was true (whatever that means!) but did not know that it was true. I knew that it was Church doctrine that not everyone would know for themselves, but some would only be given gift to believe the witness of others (D&C 46:13-14). To my surprise, when I opened my mouth I was enveloped with pure knowledge again and instantly knew that if I then said that I only believed that it would be a lie! I bore a strong witness that Joseph Smith had been a true prophet!

As for more scientific training, I was chosen the Outstanding Student of Physics for my undergraduate senior year at the university and graduated number 15 highest in grades of over 1700 students. My graduate studies were at the University of Arizona where I received a PhD in Astronomy while teaching a class on "Science and Religion" at the LDS Institute of Religion.

That should suffice to establish my scientific background. There were no jobs for PhDs in astronomy, so my professional life began as a computer programmer for Minuteman Missile guidance at Hill Air Force Base in Utah. I worked in computer science as a senior scientific analyst until retirement ten years ago. I've written over 200 articles, about half of them on sacred calendars and half on science and religion.

2. Physical Examination

On Tue 19 Nov 2019 at 9:00 am, Renee Whitefield and I were privileged to become official witnesses of a book composed of plates of metal and also of the two stones with which it was claimed these plates had been translated. Those present included not only Mauricio, but also all of the three main witnesses, who had also seen the angel, and two of the eight witnesses. They could verify that these were the same plates which they had witnessed. We were allowed to examine the plates for ourselves carefully for over an hour.

2.1 Golden Plates

Fig. 1. Bars of raw (18K) gold.

Mauricio gave us a very strong magnet and let us prove to ourselves that the plates were not at all magnetic. It was clear there was no appreciable content of iron, cobalt, or nickel. When the same magnet was put near the three rings which held the plates, it was attracted so strongly that I had trouble pulling it off. The magnet was very powerful!

Fig. 2. Measuring the weight of the plates.

Using a bathroom scale seemed so sacrilegious that I did not even want to suggest it. I exercise at home using dumbbells and am familiar with those of various weights, including 40, 45, and 50 pounds. During our investigation, I requested that a photo be taken of me holding the plates with one arm if possible. It was granted (see Figure 2), but the plates were so heavy that I had to brace them in the back with my other arm.

My best estimate of the weight is 45 lbs.

Dimensions. One of my goals in examining the plates was to get a good measurement of the size of each plate. I carry a 3" ruler in my wallet, marked in both inches and centimeters, so I was prepared. One reason I wanted to measure them was to detect whether or not the page length to width measurements formed a sacred ratio.

First, let it be noted that the pages are very nearly exactly the same size. Moreover, they have sharp edges. I nearly cut myself on one corner as I turned pages.

Ruler used to measure plates.

1

8

1

16

5

8

Fig. 3. Mauricio shows engravings.

Secondly, the engravings were not as deep as expected. They hardly made any indentation at all, as if made with a special delicate tool, rather than a crude stylus. No attempt was made on my part to try to remember nor recognize any characters.

Rings. As can be seen in the photos, the plates are secured by three well-made "rings", each of which consist of two vertical posts with a curved top. They appear to be made of steel. The strong magnet showed the posts to be highly ferromagnetic. Mauricio showed us where the two ends of each ring meet near the center of the plates. The joint was not joined (as by welding), but the two ends met so closely that my fingernail was many times too thick to insert between them. The rings demonstrated advanced skills in metalwork.

Fig. 4. The sealed plates' cover page.

(Click to enlarge).

Looking at the still-sealed portion in that photograph shows that it is now only slightly higher than the unsealed plates on the other side of the rings. One must, however, make allowance for the lack of compression of the unsealed plates. For comparison, look at the thickness of the shinier portion of the lower plates in Figure 2. That is likely the original sealed portion. That photo is consistent with the report of the original witnesses in 1829 that at the time of Joseph Smith the sealed portion comprised about two thirds of the plates. It was the upper plates of the Plates of Mormon which were translated both into the Book of Lehi (116 pages) and also the Book of Mormon.

Thus, if these are indeed the Plates of Mormon, as they certainly appear to be, then there are still over half of them left to be opened at the coming of the Savior to those who believe in His word.

Page Weight. While growing up, I made a lot of inventions out of tin cans. There were no plastic bottles nor aluminum cans, but tin cans were plentiful. They are really not made of tin, but of steel with a thin tin coating. I have cut many pieces out of tin cans about the size of the plates being examined.

I was surprised when I turned a page of the book at how heavy a single page was. I would say one plate is thinner than a tin can plate and yet weighs more. Steel is 7.8 times as dense as water and 18 karat gold is about 16 times as heavy, so that page weight is a vote in favor of a high gold content. Copper is only slightly more dense than steel (8.9), tin (in bronze) is less (7.3), and zinc (in brass) is also less (7.0), so none of those metals would qualify.

Sealed Cover Page. One highlight of looking at the plates for me was to examine the cover page of the still-sealed portion. It has some exquisite, beautiful engraving on it. Clicking on the photo shows some of the detail on that page.

Fig. 5. The California Condor.

Mauricio explained that the dominant image in the center, which I refer to as a thunderbird, symbolized the return of the heavenly city back to earth. He also explained other figures on that page. My description of it as a "thunderbird" is based on my recognition of the image; I don't believe anyone else has referred to it as such. It is definitely a Native American symbol, as shown on my headband and as is included as the step above Eagle on the 20-day veintena circle. From my research, the condor is an excellent choice to represent the heavenly city because its symbolism is that of the great bird that flies higher than an eagle and demonstrates that it can overcome death because it thrives on carrion.

2.2 Interpreter Stone

To my delight and awe we were also allowed to hold and examine the two interpreter stones used by Mauricio to translate the plates. I was totally unprepared for that because I only expected to witness the plates.

I was awestruck by the stone I was given to examine, so much so that I forgot to look at the other stone which was given to Renee. To me this was much more than seeing the plates because it is my understanding that it had been prepared by the Lord and given to the Brother of Jared to be sealed up with his record, later to be used by Moroni to translate the vision of Jared, and then again sealed up to be used by Joseph Smith, and then again to be used by Mauricio in the translation of the first part of the sealed portion of the plates (Ether 4:5).

Fig. 6. Double Refraction.

I've made a thorough study of seer stones in the past. I've held one in my hand that was in the possession of Wilford Wood of Bountiful, Utah. There are pictures of several seer stones readily available on line.

One confusing part of early LDS Church history is that sometimes the words "seer stone", "interpreters", and "urim and thummim" were used almost interchangeably. All of the several seer stones which I've seen personally, or pictures of, are opaque rocks which were apparently used mostly for focusing the mind and/or heart in a way to receive inspiration. Joseph was said to have received several revelations using a seer stone.

On the other hand, the interpreters (which I understand are identical in meaning with "urim and thummim") were said by earlier witnesses to be two stones held in silver rims, through which one looked, as through a pair of glasses. In the days of Joseph they were attached to a breastplate, apparently to hold them in place in front of the eyes while translating. Thus, the interpreters were apparently totally different from seer stones.

The interpreter stone did look like it had been made to be used like a lens in a pair of glasses, which is how Mauricio explained that it indeed is used. It was a flat piece of transparent crystal about an eighth of an inch thick. I had read in Mauricio's description of how the translation was done that when he looked through the two stones at a character that more than one translation appeared off to the sides. Moreover, to demonstrate this to other witnesses previously, it is my understanding that a beam of light had been passed through it, producing multiple images on a wall. All of those features were reminiscent of birefringence, or double refraction. That is the property of certain crystals which cause a double image as shown in Figure 6.

I was so awestruck at the sacredness of the occasion that I only looked at the crystal, not through it. Thus, I don't know if it exhibited double refraction.

3. Conclusion

Combining both my physical examination with what was revealed to me by the Holy Spirit, there is no doubt whatsoever in my heart or mind that the gold plates which I examined are indeed the Plates of Mormon, from which came the translation the Book of Mormon. The moment I saw them I knew they were authentic. I attempted to exclude any spiritual manifestations to me in the above examination description because such would not be allowed in a court room, but nevertheless, my conclusions must include the spiritual witness also.

I know the plates to be authentic by the gift of God. I was asked by Mauricio only to be a witness that he indeed has these plates, but I believe that God requires me also to declare that they are not a hoax. They are indeed the Plates of Mormon! I am accountable to God directly never to deny what I know to be true, so it is without reservation that I declare before God, angels, and all mankind that these are the plates which were translated by Joseph Smith.

It was an amazing privilege to view the gold Plates of Mormon and the interpreter stone, for which I am profoundly grateful to God.

Notes