Translation
of the Golden Plates
Throughout the Church's history, the leaders have tried to weed out Joseph Smith's use of the seer stone as part of the translation process. Only until recently, have they integrated the "rock in a hat" back into the history.
Timeline
Joseph obtains the plates, Summer 1827
In the summer of 1827, Joseph Smith retrieved the plates with his wife, Emma. Some sources say that he did so in the middle of the night, dressed all in black, while using a black horse.
Lost 116 Pages, Summer of 1828
At the beginning of the translation process Joseph Smith worked with a man named Martin Harris. Excited by the prospect of showing his friends and family, Martin pleaded with Joseph to let him take the manuscript home. After hearing his pleadings, Joseph finally allowed Martin to take the pages home. Shortly after, Martin Harris lost the 116 pages. They were never recovered.
Mosiah III-Moroni, April 1829 - June 11, 1829
After nine months, Joseph again began the translation process, this time starting at Mosiah III (or what is now Mosiah chapter one). Joseph completed the majority of the translation with a man named Oliver Cowdery.
Copyright, June 11, 1829
Joseph and Oliver translate the Title Page which they sent in to be copyrighted. By their description, the Title Page of the Book of Mormon was then on the "last leaf on the left hand side" of the plates. This would indicate that they had translated every part of the Golden Plates except for what was said to be "sealed."
1 Nephi - Mosiah II, c June 11, 1829 - June 30, 1829
Joseph and Oliver translate last what is now the beginning of the Book of Mormon. Theories abound concerning what Joseph Smith actually translated here. Was it another set of plates? Was it simply inspiration? Was it another part of the initial plates Joseph pulled from the Hill Cumorah, even though they'd translated it in its entirety, as indicated by the Title Page?
At some point after the translation, according to many (including David Whitmer, Brigham Young and Orson Pratt), Joseph Smith returned the plates to the Hill Cumorah into what is known as Moroni's Repository. Although the Church today has many of Joseph's seer stones, they do not have the golden plates.
March 1830
The Book of Mormon is finally printed.
How did Joseph Smith Translate the Gold Plates
There are different versions of the translation process. But which is correct?
Still workin' on it!
You guessed it! I'm still working on this page. I work full time, I have a family, I volunteer to help pass the Equal Rights Amendment in the country and, of course, I have other responsibilities, so please be patient. It's coming along!
No Stone in a Hat?
This is one of my Tik Tok videos where I demonstrate how the Church has whitewashed the "stone in a hat" from its history. They did NOT teach that Joseph Smith translated the golden plates with his seer stone in his white top hat.
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