So I note with some disdain the characters on the rock.
There are 3's, 4's, 9's, X, T, backwards K, L, and on and on.
None of which are part of the Hebrew alphabet.
Posted on 06/28/2011 6:07:46 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
1st off it’s a load of crap.
2nd I cannot locate the name of the author.
3rd probably written by a Mormon to support their claims.
Doesn’t pass the smell test.
Another Rock fake with phony Hebrew alphabet.
If genuine, the inscription predates Columbus by a long shot: by between 2 and 3 thousand years. The script appears to be Middle Semitic, in use between 1500 BC and 500 BC. I can’t make out much of it but the Hebrew letter Aleph (equivalent to “A”), which appears numerous times on the inscription, is distinctive to Middle Semitic.
The inscription apparently has been cleaned, with the letters filled in with white pigment. I have no idea how an inscription dated to this historical period would fit in with the Morman “history” of the New World (which in any case I do not accept as valid).
For the inscription to be a fraud would require someone with in-depth knowledge of the Ancient Near East and early Hebrew language, who was present in the American Southwest in the late 19th century. But what would such an obviously educated individual esp. for their time be doing creating inscriptions in such remote localities?
On the other hand, if valid, this is an astounding discovery, and opens up intriguing possibilities regarding Semitic/Hebrew peoples journeying to and possibly settling in North America.
Full disclosure: I studied classical (and some modern) Hebrew for years in college and graduate school under a professor who was also a rabbi, but unfortunately it has mostly lapsed due to disuse.
See my post below.
I knew it was fake the second I saw the “lettering”.
ROTFLMAO!
Sure there is.
The chart you posted is of Modern Semitic Hebrew script. It is the script familiar to modern readers of the Hebrew (Masoretic) Text. The MT was developed and used roughly between 500 AD and 1300 AD. However, the inscription appears to be written in Middle Semitic or Aramaic text, which is much older, dating from between 500 BC to 1500 BC., and as such is the script in which the original books of the Hebrew Bible are written.
The Mormons started Migrating to California in 1848 and it’s conceivable one might have stopped to carve this on the rock.
Problem is, it ain’t Hebrew or even some forgotten language.
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
If you studied Hebrew then how come you didn’t recognize its most likely not Hebrew text.
I've lost it somewhere in my vast memory and can't find it. The US Coast and Geodetic Survey digs 'em up and lays 'em down every now and then.
The problem with wiki is that anyone can post anything.
The settlement of the New World started out with a lot of really smart young men with good educations and few prospects outside the church or commercial accounting back home.
I'd be surprised to NOT find people with a knowledge of Hebrew, Greek, Latin, maybe even Ladino, out there.
Hugh Winder Nibley (March 27, 1910 – February 24, 2005) was an American author, Mormon apologist, and professor at Brigham Young University. His works—which mainly attempt to demonstrate archaeological, linguistic, and historical evidence for the claims of Joseph Smith, Jr.—although not official positions of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), are highly regarded within the LDS community.
A prolific author and professor of Biblical and Mormon scripture at BYU, he was fluent in numerous languages,[2] including Classical Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Egyptian, Coptic, Arabic, German, French, English, Italian, and Spanish. He studied Dutch and Russian during World War II. He also studied Old Bulgarian and Old English, and his fluency in Old Norse was reportedly sufficient to enable him to read an entire encyclopedia in Norwegian.[citation needed]
Nibley wrote and lectured on LDS scripture and doctrinal topics, publishing many articles in LDS Church magazines. His An Approach to the Book of Mormon was adopted in 1957 as a religious lesson manual by the LDS Church.
Here is what he had to say about "Los Lunas":
Lecture 30: Mosiah 6 Question: The Phoenicians were ship people. Is it possible that the Mulekites had some connection with them? Answer: Remember, if Lehi wanted to do business, he would do it either through Sidon, or he could do it through Tyre. But Sidon was the main port at that time. It's a very interesting thing that the Phoenicians controlled Sidon at that time. They didn't always, but at that time they controlled Sidon. And there were the Philistines at the same time. They were the coast people too. Of course, the Phoenicians spoke a language just like Hebrew, and they were the great ship people too. The alphabet and other things are attributed to the Phoenicians because they got around so much. They got around all over the place in Phoenician ships. You've heard of Cyrus Gordon. The Phoenicians came here, and you can find Phoenician inscriptions in Brazil, etc. In fact, I went down to see what was supposed to be a big Phoenician inscription (I think it was faked) on a rock at Los Lunas in New Mexico, where the ancient turquoise mines were. There was an inscription there and it was perfectly good Phoenician, but I thought somebody may have faked it. There was a bad mistake; somebody had gone over the letters recently with a sharp tool and they were all fresh cut. If they had left them alone so [the experts] could use the lighting etc., then you could see. But that can be decided. So the Phoenicians got around too. Barry Fell, the Harvard marine biologist, has all sorts of crackpot theories about the Libyans coming over here, etc. But actually there were Kon Tiki and the Ra. Heyerdahl's voyages were to show that the trip could be made in either direction, on either the Pacific or the Atlantic. He crossed from Egypt in a reed boat; imagine a boat made of nothing but rushes. We are told that Lehi's ship was a more solid structure than that, but these things are all right.
Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute
http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/books/?bookid=117&chapid=1350
heh heh
K? I can get those as well. But, the characters shouldn’t be totally and completely divorced from each other.
are you thinking of benchmarkers that are embedded in objects that have elevation on them?
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