Examining the Book of Abraham; Table of Contents
by Kevin Mathie
Chapter 1 - A Brief History
After a very short introduction, this chapter briefly recaps the
history of the Book of Abraham from the time that the papyri and mummies
left Egypt to the book's canonization into the LDS body of scripture.
Chapter 2 - The Field of Egyptology
This chapter briefly recaps the history of the Egyptian writing
system, from its beginnings around 3100 B.C.E. to its abandonment.
This chapter also mentions how Egyptian writing was perceived after
the interpretation of it became "lost", and then discusses its "rediscovery"
by Champollion, which brought about the birth of the scientific field of Egyptology.
Chapter 3 - The Difficulties Begin
Chapter 3 briefly outlines the history of the controversy surrounding
the Book of Abraham from Theodule Deveria in 1856 until just before 1967.
Chapter 4 - The Original Papyri Rediscovered
The present chapter in this hundred-year debate over the Book of
Abraham began in 1967 with the rediscovery of several sections of the
original papyri that Joseph Smith and the brethren at Kirtland purchased
from Chandler. This short chapter introduces us to the fragments that were
found, and includes color photographs of the papyri.
Chapter 5 - Do Papyri Fragments=Book of Abraham?
Note! This page is very graphics-heavy, so load times may be
slower than normal. Chapter 5 discusses how we arrive at the conclusion
that we have in our possession the papyrus that was used to produce
the Book of Abraham.
Chapter 6 - Translation of Egyptian Symbols — The Breathing Permit of Hôr
Note! This page is very graphics-heavy, so load times may
be slower than normal. Chapter 6 goes through Facsimiles 1 and 3 number
by number, comparing Joseph Smith's interpretations with our current
Egyptological understanding. It also translates the figures which are
found on the translation manuscripts.
Chapter 7 - Translation of Egyptian Symbols — Facsimile #2
Note! This page is a bit graphics-heavy, so load times may be
slower than normal. This chapter translates the writing and interprets
the figures of Facsimile 2.
Chapter 8 - The Text of the Book of Abraham
Chapter 8 examines the text of the Book of Abraham for anachronisms
and incorrect reconstructions of history contained within its pages.
It also looks at the possible sources Joseph used for the book.
Chapter 9 - Conclusions
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