Anthon Transcript

The "Anthon Transcript" (often identified with the "Caractors document") is a small piece of paper on which Joseph Smith wrote several lines of characters. According to Smith, these characters were from the golden plates (the ancient record from which Smith claims to have translated the Book of Mormon) and represent the reformed Egyptian writing that was on the plates. In 1828, this paper was delivered to Charles Anthon, a well-known classical scholar of Columbia College, Columbia University, for an expert opinion on the authenticity of the characters and the translation. Some adherents to the Book of Mormon claim that Anthon attested to the characters' authenticity in writing to Martin Harris but then ripped up his certification after hearing the story of Smith and the plates. Critics of Smith claim that Anthon believed any idea of reformed Egyptian was a hoax all along and that Harris was being deceived.

Believers claim that the incident between Harris and Anthon fulfilled a biblical prophecy made by Isaiah, as Anthon is reported to have said to Harris, through Smith's telling of events, "I cannot read a sealed book."

In 1980, Mark Hofmann created and sold a forgery of the Anthon Transcript to leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), which was revealed to be fraudulent when Hofmann's crimes were investigated.

In 1838, Smith related an account based on Harris's version of the meeting. Smith wrote that Anthon "stated that the translation was correct, more so than any he had before seen translated from the Egyptian. [Harris] then showed him those not yet translated, and said they were Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyriac, and Arabic"; and that they were "true characters." According to Harris, Anthon wrote Harris a letter of authenticity declaring the fragment to contain true Egyptian characters. Anthon was also reported to have confirmed the translation of these characters as correct. When informed that an angel of God had revealed the characters to Smith, Anthon reportedly tore up the authentication stating that there was no such thing as angels and asked Harris to bring the plates to him for translation. Harris then went to Dr. Samuel L. Mitchill, who sanctioned what Anthon said.

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