What Sea Did Lehi Cross? – Part III

Continuing with the list of inaccurate items written by a Heartland/Great Lakes theorists, we find:

8. “Clark’s broad oceanic reference frame(s) seems inconsistent with the clearly local designation of “the sea on the west and on the east” of a terrestrial location “by the narrow pass…”. It can only be concluded, based on LDS scripture, that the American land of “first inheritance” extended to and included a place by the shore of a sea that situated west relative to the land of Nephi.”

Let’s not get complicated. The Land of promise was an island (2 Nephi 10:20). That means it was a “tract of land surrounded by water.” Since the Lord made the sea their path, they landed on the west coast of the island (evidently a long, narrow island) where Mormon placed them (Alma 22:28). It is no more complicated than that. As for local designations, we have to keep in mind that anciently, when places and waters had no names, people referred to them in rather simple terms—often by their compass direction.

In addition, the word “Irreantum” meant “many waters,” a term used by the Nephites and Jaredites when standing upon land and looking out into the great sea fronting Bountiful. However, when talking about crossing, or upon, the ocean, it was called “the great deep” or “the great waters,” which was simply a difference in viewpoint. Where the word Irreantum came from we are not told, nor do we know what language the word came from—perhaps even from the Lord to Lehi. The point is, seas, oceans, waterways, lakes, etc., seldom had names in the beginning when first confronted.

Nephi’s ship sailed across the many waters, “driven forth before the wind” until it reached the Land of Promise: “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land. And it came to pass that after we had sailed for the space of many days we did arrive at the promised land; and we went forth upon the land, and did pitch our tents; and we did call it the promised land” (1 Nephi 18:22-23). It is kind of hard to make anything more of this than what is said—they sailed across the sea and landed on the coast of their island.

Since the Nephites were on an island and there was a sea all around them, they very well might have chosen simple cardinal directions to designate which area of the sea to which they referred. Thus, they called the sea to the west the “West Sea,” the sea to the east, “The East Sea,” etc.

9. “To allege that all Book of Mormon seas are oceans is to make extrapolations beyond what the scripture actually states.”

And to try and limit the size of seas mentioned, and their location, and to ignore that they were on an island in the midst of the sea over which they traveled, is to try and change the meaning and content of the scriptural record—which is far more of an extrapolation than what Clark wrote.

10. “The logic that sea = ocean, fails in the case of many biblical verses that refer to a “sea” or “the sea.” Even “the great sea” (the Mediterranean, Numbers 34:6) bordering the biblical Promise Land, is essentially an inland body of water.”

Here again, the ideas presented are inaccurate, stated by someone with limited knowledge on the subject, or intended to mislead. While the Mediterranean may be considered an “inland sea,” it is not landlocked, therefore, is actually part of the Atlantic Ocean. The same is true with the Persian Gulf (anciently called the Arabian Sea), the Red Sea, as well as any Gulf, bay, or inlet that opens to the ocean. It should also be noted that the Hebrew word “yam” is far more often referred to and reserved for a saltwater sea/ocean than any other meaning. However, what a Hebrew word meant is not important when discussing the Book of Mormon, which was originally written on plates in Reformed Egyptian and translated directly into English by Joseph Smith with the aid of the Spirit.

The problem is, people get so carried away with their own beliefs and ideas, they simply ignore the facts against their argument. After all, facts cannot be discredited by changing the basis of those facts, nor even by adding or introducing other facts. The issue at hand is the scriptural record of the Book of Mormon. This is not something to trifle with in bending, altering, changing, ignoring, or adding to the record. We must use the record as it was written, understanding that no matter what language it was originally written in (Reformed Egyptian), it was translated by Joseph Smith, under the direction of the Spirit, using the language known to him in 1829 New England. The fact that the Lord inspired the first-ever American dictionary to be published during the time of the translation merely provides for us with an understanding of what the words Joseph used actually meant.

What Sea Did Lehi Cross? – Part II

Continuing with the list of inaccurate items written by a Heartland/Great Lakes theorists, we find:

6. “The idea that the “west sea” of the Book of Mormon is the Pacific Ocean has, nevertheless, persisted in localized Central American, South American and exaggerated hemispheric settings for the Book of Mormon.”

One of the reasons it has persisted is that today we know that such a course would be the only way for a sailing ship “driven forth before the wind” to have reached the Western Hemisphere from the south Arabian Peninsula in 600 B.C. In fact, experienced seamen as late as the 1500s found this to be true for any deep-sea, ocean sailing vessel.

7. “Mesoamerican setting advocate John E. Clark writes that ‘all seas that bordered New World Book of Mormon lands “had to be the Pacific and Atlantic oceans…’ This statement is without clear scriptural support.”

There is no statement in the scriptural record that says the sea Lehi crossed in the ship Nephi built, was the Pacific Ocean—nor any other ocean. First of all, such a term would have been unknown to Nephi or any Book of Mormon writer at any time in their history. The name Pacific was not identified with that ocean until the last week of November, 1519, by Ferdinand Magellan. However, there is clear scriptural support about where they sailed upon leaving the Arabian Sea. Nephi makes it quite clear they were “driven forth before the wind” all the way to the Land of Promise. We now know from 20th-century winds and currents research, that the only direction they could have reached the Western Hemisphere from Arabia was across the Pacific in what is today called the Prevailing Westerlies and the West Wind Drift of the Southern Ocean, which moves eastward around the globe.

8. “Citing Alma 22:28, Clark alleges that “Lehi arrived from the Old World across the west sea”. Great Lakes, and American Heartland setting advocates point out that this verse (cited by Clark), does not in fact say that Lehi voyaged across “the west sea”. Clark alleges that the designations of west and east seas in the Book of Mormon “…are tied to…original arduous journeys across oceans and the receding direction of their [the voyaging immigrant’s] forfeited homeland.” But LDS scripture does not clearly identify “the waters of the great deep”, “the great waters” or “the many waters” that Book of Mormon peoples voyaged across, with either of the seas immediately west or east of the lands of Zarahemla and Nephi.”

Jacob, who was on the ship that brought the Lehi Colony to the Land of Promise, and was part of the landing, makes it clear that the Land of Promise was upon the sea they sailed upon to reach it. He said, “The Lord has made the sea our path, and we are upon an isle of the sea” (2 Nephi 10:20). No matter how you cut it, the statement is simply too clear to alter, change, or disregard. Inarguably, Nephi’s ship set out upon the sea called Irreantum along the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. That sea, called today, the Arabian Sea, is the northern part of the Indian Ocean. Now once upon the Indian Ocean, the winds and currents blow ONLY to the east in what is called the Prevailing Westerlies which drive the current that is called the West Wind Drift. That means they went eastward from the Indian Ocean along this strong current that circles the globe. This means they entered the Pacific Ocean, which currents eventually turned them northward up the western coast of present day South America where the currents and winds stopped blowing at the 30º south latitude (as Williams wrote down). Based upon currents and winds that would “drive a ship before the wind,” there simply is NO OTHER WAY to reach the Western Hemisphere starting out from the southern tip of Arabia!

The rest of the list will be continued in the next post.

What Sea Did Lehi Cross? – Part I

The controversy between Mesoamerican and Great Lakes/Heartland theorists rages over the different view of the oceans or seas surrounding the Land of Promise—specifically the West Sea where Lehi landed. In a recent posting on a website, a Heartlant theorist tries to discredit the idea of the Land of Promise being an island in the midst of the sea (2 Nephi 10:20). The author states several misconceptions that will be dealt with here one at a time:

1. “The Book of Mormon indicates that there was a western sea near the place of the American land of ‘first inheritance’ (Alma 22:28). There is nothing in the Book of Mormon indicating that this west sea was saltwater.”

Conversely, there is nothing in the Book of Mormon that says it is not saltwater. In addition Jacob says they were on an isle of the sea, the same sea they sailed on to reach their island (2 Nephi 10:20). Such a sea would normally be considered a salt sea like the ocean.

2. The biblical word “yam”, translated “sea”, doesn’t necessarily mean ocean.”

The word “yam” is a Hebrew word. The plates were written in Reformed Egyptian, and even the Nephites’ Hebrew was changed by them over the many centuries of their inhabiting the Land of Promise (Mormon 9:32-33). So what does it matter what a Hebrew word means when the scriptural record written in Reformed Egyptian was translated by Joseph Smith into English under the direction of the Spirit? According to the 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, written by Noah Webster who grew up 112 miles from where Joseph Smith grew up, defines the word “sea” as an “ocean.”

3. An early Mormon document in the handwriting of Frederick G. Williams speculates that Lehi’s company “sailed in a southeast direction and landed on the Continent of South America in Chili [Chile] thirty degrees south latitude.”

The fact that anyone in the mid-1800s would choose the 30º south latitude as a landing sight should be considered significant. This area is the only place in the entire Pacific Ocean where winds and currents die down to nothing along a path from Arabia to the Western Hemisphere—where the wind would no longer drive Nephi’s ship which to that point had been “driven forth before the wind” (1 Nephi 18:8). It is also the only place where a Mediterranean Climate, matching the climate of Jerusalem, existed south of southern California, and an ideal place for “the seeds brought from Jerusalem” to grow “exceedingly” and provide an “abundant” crop (1 Nephi 18:24). How did Frederick Willaims, who was the second counselor in the First Presidency to Joseph Smith between 1833 and 1837, know this when such information was unknown in the U.S. at the time? One might wonder where Williams came up with that idea since most leaders close to Joseph Smith during his lifetime reflected on what he said rather than promote their own views.

4. “This document greatly influenced a tradition that Lehi’s family voyaged across the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the vast Pacific Ocean.”

Again, in the mid-1830s, such a course would be no more understandable than one around Africa and across the Atlantic. It was not until the early 1900s, that the winds and currents of that area became known outside the Indian Ocean. Such winds and currents that lead eastward out of the Indian Ocean not westward around Africa.

5. “Twentieth Century LDS Church authorities, however, called the Williams document into question.”

They did so because some were claiming Williams’ writing—long after his death—had been a revelation to Joseph Smith. The debate was over the authenticity of it being a revelation, not of its accuracy. More than one hundred years later, mariners have come to realize the accurate path stated in Williams’ writing for a sailing ship “driven forth before the wind”—and the only course the winds and currents move out of the Indian Ocean.

The list will continue in the next post.

Sorenson's Land of Promise Directions

Once again, since John L. Sorenson’s book, “An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon,” is the criteria against which all other Land of Promise writings, locations, and books are to be judged, according to Arrington, Madsen, and Welch, then it is incumbent upon us to take another look at Sorenson’s claims.

He wrote: “The Book of Mormon writers talk about their geography in terms of ‘north’ or ‘northward’ and ‘south’ or ‘southward,’ while Mesoamerica seems skewed from those standard compass directions.”

The word “seems” used here is an interesting choice of words. It means “to appear.” Thus, Sorenson tries to soften the difference between his Mesoamerican model and the wordage of the scriptural record. However, there is no “seems to be skewed,” It is skewed! By about 90º. That is, Mesoamerica runs almost true east and west, while the Land of Promise runs north/northward and south/southward. It is not just that Mesoamerica appears to be skewed—it is skewed!

To try and explain this, Sorenson asks the question: “How is this problem to be solved?” then goes on to write: “The Israelites of Palestine, in their most common mental framework, derived directions as though standing with backs to the sea, facing the desert. Yam ("sea") then meant "west," for the Mediterranean lay in that direction, while qedem ("fore") stood for "east." Then yamin ("right hand") meant "south," while semol ("left hand") denoted "north."

It is always interesting to see how far Sorenson will go to cloud an issue so that the scriptural record can be ignored while his worldly knowledge is excelled. Does anyone really believe that after nearly 1000 years in Palestine (from Joshua 1500 B.C. forward), the Hebrews had to have their backs to the Mediterranean Sea to know their directions? Or that a sea had to be present for them to determine west and east? Such silliness is beyond imagination.

What about when the Lehi colony was in Bountiful, when their backs to the sea would mean they were facing north. Did that mean they thought north was east? This is just as silly as when the colony was traveling down by the Red Sea for quite some time. With the sea to the right, did they then think that they were heading south? Yet, Nephi wrote they were heading south-southeast. And what about when they were crossing the desert known as the Empty Quarter with no sea in sight for years. Did they not know their direction at all? Yet, Nephi wrote they were heading nearly eastward all that time.

Not finished, Sorenson goes on to write: “In Palestine, this model coincided nicely with nature (the coast runs nearly north-south) and also proved neatly translatable to our European uses of the terms east, west, north, and south. (This was not the only model of directions in use among the Israelites, but it was the most fundamental, being deeply embedded in the language.)”

Sometimes we get so carried away with our own knowledge and intellect, we fail to realize how ridiculous our ideas sound. “Deeply imbedded in the language.” When I was a kid, I was taught that north meant a cold, freezing area, such as the North Pole. And that south meant heat, such as the tropics of the South Pacific. But when I was in the southern latitudes as an adult, heading north took me to the hot and humid lands of the tropics. And, conversely, heading south took me to Tierra del Fuego, a cold and forbidding land; however, it had no impact on my knowing direction in my new location.

The point is, no matter how deeply imbedded an idea is in language, thought, or understanding, it does not preclude basic and reasonable thought. To say that the Nephites, once away from Palestine, could not tell directions because their new land was skewed from normal directions is beyond fallaciousness, it is downright disingenuous. As is Sorenson’s further attempts to cloud the issue with how Eskimos, Greenlanders, Assyrians and other groups saw their cardinal directions.

Fortunately for such types of thinking as Sorenson displays, the actual scriptural record betrays their ignorance or deviousness. Let’s take a look at one idea:

“And now, my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director -- or our fathers called it Liahona, which is, being interpreted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it” (Alma 37:38), and that it “pointed unto them a straight course to the promised land” (Alma 37:44), and that it did show them where to go “For just as surely as this director did bring our fathers, by following its course, to the promised land” (Alma 37:45).

If Lehi, Nephi and others had the Liahona, which is a compass, and that it pointed out directions, why would they not have known the cardinal directions of the land in which they reached and lived? Sorenson’s entire idea of the Nephites not knowing the directions of their land is totally without merit.

What About the Phoenicians?

With a rather flippant approach to history, many Mesoamerican and Great Lakes Theorists claim the Mulekites simply were ferried to the Land of Promise by Phoenician seamen in 600 B.C.

Phoenician Ship authentically reproduced. Note the shallow draft in the left photo and the limited size in the right photo. In addition, most Phoenician ships in 600 B.C. were oar driven and were coastal ships outside the Mediterranean

Perhaps a little understanding of history and seamanship might be of benefit in trying to decide if Pheonician seamen had the ability in 600 B.C. to make such a voyage across the Atlantic.

Babylonian Map of the World 600 B.C.

First of all, the maritime compass was not invented until sometime in the 12th or 13th century—both Chinese and Europeans take claim for such invention. However, wherever the compass came from, and however sailors began to adopt it, its practical uses were immediately obvious. Consider the situation in 1270 that confronted Louis IX, King of France, in launching the 8th Crusade, when he and his crew were blown off course while sailing southeast in the Mediterranean toward the Holy Land.

When the storm passed, their vessel sat at the center of a featureless circle of ocean the circumference of which was the horizon. With clouds still overhead, no sun or stars visible, he had no idea in which direction to sail. Anyone who has ever found himself in the middle of a large ocean with no features visible, may well understand Louis’ predicament.

Even the most rudimentary of magnetic needles would have allowed his ship’s navigator to determine the direction of the winds that had blown the ship off course, and thus to turn it back where he knew land would be. And once Sardinia came into view, they would have been able to compare its coastal features with what appeared on their chart, and then with the compass and their wind rose (cardinal points), would have been able to chart the course for the port of Cagliari.

Unfortunately, Louis did not have a compass on board. Consequently, he floundered for several days until a land feature just happened to come into view. Eventually, he was able to conclude his voyage to the Holy Land. However, had Louis been in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean—a far larger ocean than the Mediterranean—he might never have found his way, sailing endlessly into the vast open ocean until his water and food was depleted.

It was during this decade that European merchants had begun slipping through Muslim shipping lanes in the Straits of Gibraltar and out into the Atlantic on trading voyages to Portugal, Spain, England the Netherlands—all contiguous land masses. These voyages in the 1270s skirted the western edge of the known world, opening new oceanic horizons for European sailors and others from the Middle East who plied the waters of the Mediterranean.

In 1291, prompted by the lure of the open ocean that had not yet been conquered, two Genoese brothers, Ugolino and Vadino Vivaldi, came up with an ambitious plan. They fitted out eight galleys—provided by Pope Nicholas IV of the Papal empire—with food, water, and supplies; gathered up a crew, including two Franciscan monks, and in May set sail from Genoa for the open ocean. An entry in the Genoese Annals of that year describing their eventual destination in which they planned to sail “through the Ocean Sea to parts of India and to bring back useful merchandise.” Were they emboldened by their compasses and intending to reach India by sailing across the ocean to the west? Nobody knows, because the brothers never came home.

In the fourteenth century, the ship building abilities were expanded to include Carracks and Caravels, sturdy deep-hulled ships capable of moving out of coastal waters and into the deep ocean. With the advent of the compass, and later the astrolabe, such voyages were undertaken, first around Africa, and eventually with Columbus across the westward sea—the Ocean Sea.

To believe that 600 B.C. Phoenicians, with their coastal vessels and their limited experience in sailing back and forth across the Mediterranean, were capable of deep sea voyages is beyond the concept of any experienced seaman. There were no charts prior to about the 1200s, and as has been pointed out in previous posts, the world map consisted of a simple T-O model.

In addition, to think that any such accomplishment would have gone unnoticed within the sailing community of Europe and the Mediterranean nations is foolhardy. Even under penalty of death, early 16th century maps of Columbus’ and Vespucci’s voyages were smuggled out of Seville and Lisbon and could be purchased on the “black market” where seamen paid a very high price to obtain.

It is one of the reasons why places like Mesoamerica and the Great Lakes, etc., cannot be considered as locations for the land of Promise—the winds and currents which drove all shipping even into the 14th century A.D., determined where ships sailed and where they made landfall. The manner and route that all these Theorists claim brought the Lehi Colony to their supposed area of the Land of Promise simply was not possible in that era—1800 years later, man was still subject to sail “before the wind” and go where the winds and currents took him.

To find the location of the Land of Promise, we must first find out where a sailing ship “driven forth before the wind” would have gone, leaving the south coast of Arabia and heading to the Western Hemisphere. That is the first step—the only step—to first locate the place where Nephi’s ship landed!

Why Discuss Ancient Maps?

One might ask why we have spent the past several posts drawing attention to the limited knowledge had by seamen of the world in which they sailed as late as the time of Columbus’ discovery of what later became known as the Americas. One might also wonder of what importance such maps pose to us today. And one might wonder why we should become aware of such ancient development in map making.

The point of all of this is one thing. Those who, today, consider themselves knowledgeable enough to pick off the tops of their heads a maritime route taken by ancient peoples might want to realize that the map they know and are used to today, was hidden from view to those very same ancients.

Ships of Discovery: The invention of heavy and technically sound ships like Carrack and highly maneuverable ships like Caravel in 15th century allowed the Portuguese and Spanish explores to make long and difficult voyages across the Atlantic and along the coastline of West Africa.

The newly discovered sea route from Europe to India was not placed on a map until 1502. That map also showed, for the first time something no one had suspected before then, which was that India was a peninsula that extended southward into the Indian Ocean.

The coastline of several of the new discoveries jutted up out of the ocean at one point and disappeared back into the water at another. There was no linking of these discoveries nor any understanding that these lands connected to one another. As South America began to take shape in the minds of the map makers, it astonished people throughout Europe in its “monstrous size” that “literally dwarfed Europe.”

In the first decade of the 16th century Peter Martyr wrote upon seeing the map of the new continent of South American for the first time: “This continent extends into the sea exactly like Italy but is dissimilar in that it is not the shape of a human leg. Moreover, why shall we compare a pigmy with a giant? That part of the continent beginning at this eastern point lying towards Atlas (moving southward) is at least eight times larger than Italy; and its western coast has not yet been discovered.”

Maps became of such a commodity to seamen wanting to sail to the newly discovered lands that they were smuggled out of Portugal at the risk of death and sold for high amounts of gold. But such maps were necessary for someone sailing toward an unknown land, because seamen in that era well understood what is lost on modern man today who looks at a map and say, “They went that way.” Seamen knew they could not sail long distances across open sea without taking established routes. They couldn’t just point their bows toward the west and take off—Europeans had not been able to do that since the beginning of sailing because of the winds and currents pinning them against the mainland. Columbus had discovered, and others followed suit, a way where the winds and currents were behind them sailing in both directions.

A valuable knowledge to seamen over two thousand years after Lehi set sail for the Land of Promise. A knowledge of winds and currents that were still vitally important even in the 19th century, four hundred years after Columbus reached the New World.

It is simply foolhardy for modern man to say that the Lehi Colony “then sailed across the Pacific to reach Mesamerica” as Hugh Nibley did, or that “Lehi weaved his way through Indonesia, past the islands of the Pacific, and to Central America,” as so many Mesoamerican Theorists claim.

Even Columbus himself found that weaving his way through islands was extremely dangerous and ran his own ship, “Santa Maria,” aground off Hispaniola and had to be abandoned. The “Santa Maria” was a deep ocean vessel and had three masts (fore, main, and mizzen), each of which carried one large sail. The foresail and mainsail were square; the sail on the mizzen, or rear, mast was a triangular sail known as a lateen. In addition, the ship carried a small square sail on the bowsprit, and small topsail on the mainmast above the mainsail. Most of the driving force of the craft was from the largest mainsail with the remaining sails used for trimming. The “Santa Maria” also had a crow’s nest on the mainmast, a raised stern, and a forecastle in the bow of the ship—and simply could not just “weave its way through the island,” anymore than Lehi’s ship would have been able to do.

No, Nephi’s ship sailed where the currents and winds to it. The colony was “driven forth before the wind” where the wind blew constantly toward the Land of Promise, and there is only one place in the entire Western World where the wind blows constantly toward it from the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, and that is the western coast of South America.

Americus Vespucci—promoted to the very first pilot major of Spain’s House of Trade controlling all navigation and chart making—was caught in 1510 for leaking copies of his official chart to others. King Ferdinand was so angry, he wrote on June 15 to his agents in Seville, that “Vespucci must be found and made to swear that he will not again commit or consent to a proceeding so irresponsible and so promiscuous, but will issue maps only to such persons as the monarch or the House of Trade may order.”

Two thousand years after Lehi sailed, experienced seamen with the most advanced ships, would be buying charts of winds and currents on the “black market” in order to reach the newly discovered lands just three thousand miles from the Azores across the open seas.

Lehi’s voyage would have covered some 15,000 miles taking the most direct route by sea where the winds and currents continually blew from Arabia to South America. One of the reasons they did not need charts (other than having the Liahona of course) is there was no obstacles, islands, land mass, etc., along their entire journey across the Southern Ocean.

The Fourth Part of the World

As early as the 7th century, Saint Isidore of Seville, considered “le dernier savant du monde ancien”—the last scholar of the ancient world, upon whom all later histories of Spain and Portugal were based, drew in his Enclypedia: “Elymologiae,” around 600 A.D., the so-called Vatican map, one of the first T-O maps.

From the beginning of cosmography, maps were basically illustrated with these three parts to the world: Asia, Europe and Africa. It was believed and argued that no other continents could exist—a “fact” that was taught in Universities throughout Europe as late as the 15th century. The first of these maps is referred to as a T-O map, because of its obvious design. At the same time, the Zonal Map (see last post) was devised to show the five temperate zones in which only two were habitable and that the known world was contained entirely within the northern temperate zone's Eastern Hemisphere.

These three parts of the world, therefore, contained not only the known world, but the habitable part of the world. And, as shown in the last post, the concept of the world as then known, and its organization and makeup, did not allow for any other continents to have existed in the open area of the sea—again, a “fact” that was taught in Universities throughout Europe into and throughout most the 15th century.

The Beatus Map, showing an area for Antipodes, was merely the inclusion of a group of monsters believed to exist in the southern hemisphere in the extremes of the Asian continent, and so placed because no one had ever seen these monsters, and it was unknown where their habitat might be; however, this map and its concept was not taught in universities, nor utilized by any of the main map makers of the time.

The Complex Map, or Great World Maps, were the most famous mappae mundi (maps of the world), and used the T-O model as their base but included coastal, mountain, and river details, along with cities, towns and provinces.

To modern eyes, mappae mundi look superficially primitive and inaccurate. However, mappae mundi were never meant to be used as navigational charts and they make no pretense of showing the relative areas of land and water. Rather, mappae mundi were schematic and were meant to illustrate different principles. The simplest mappamundi were diagrams meant to preserve and illustrate classical learning easily. The zonal maps were a kind of teaching aid—easily reproduced and designed to reinforce the idea of the Earth's sphericity and climate zones. T-O maps were designed to schematically illustrate the three land masses of the world as it was known to the Romans and their medieval European heirs. The larger mappae mundi have the space and detail to illustrate further concepts, such as the cardinal directions, distant lands, Bible stories, history, mythology, flora, fauna and exotic races. In their fullest form, such as the Ebstorf and Hereford maps, they become minor encyclopedias of medieval knowledge.

The point is, that at the time Columbus sailed westward into the Atlantic in search of a western route to China, Japan and the Spice Islands, these T-O maps included the known world. In addition, Columbus had Portolan charts, navigational maps based on realistic descriptions of harbors and coasts, first developed in the 14th century in Italy Portugal and Spain—however, these charts were limited to the western coast of Europe and Africa, where seamen had sailed and drawn what they saw. There was still the belief that there could be no continent to the west of Europe and Africa because of the understanding of how the earth’s seas and land masses developed.

Two things convinced Columbus that he could reach Asia by sailing west—the first was this understanding that no continent or land mass could possibly exist to the west of Europe and Africa in the middle of the sea, and second, that he was convinced the world was smaller than it actually was. He accepted the earlier understanding that a degree on the Earth globe was 53 ½ miles instead of the later 66 miles (actually, the distance is about 69 miles). Thus, he thought the distance would be far less than it actually was to Asia, and that there would be open sea all the way.

When he saw land after 33 days of open sailing, Columbus was convinced he had found the islands of Asia (Indonesia). This belief never left him; however, following Columbus were many others and it eventually became understood that a continent actually did exist in the middle of the sea and eventually became known as America (Amerigo after Amerigo Vespucci).

“There have been known since antiquity that three parts of the world existed. But these parts have in fact now been more widely explored, and a fourth part has been discovered,” wrote the unknown author of “Introduction to Cosmology” in 1507.

There now existed a fourth part of the world. Asia, Europe, Africa, and “Amerigen” or America.

This terminology sounds suspiciously like Ether’s writing in which the Lord told the Brother of Jared: “And it came to pass that the Lord commanded them that they should go forth into the wilderness, yea, into that quarter where there never had man been.” And that quarter where man never had been was the Americas, the western hemisphere, to which the Jaredites were directed and later the Nephites and Mulekites

“And that after the waters had receded from off the face of this land it became a choice land above all other lands, a chosen land of the Lord” (Ether 13:2)

America--the fourth part of the world.