Oliver cowdery copied the entire book of mormon onto a second manuscript, known today as the printers manuscript. The book of mormon, unlike most books, was better written in its original manuscript form except for misspellings. The original manuscript of the book of mormon and the. The original manuscript is the text written down by scribes as joseph smith translated the book of mormon. Church releases book of mormon printers manuscript. Restoring the original text of the book of mormon fairmormon.
The original manuscript of the book of mormon was copied to a printers manuscript in order to prepare it for publication. These are the first couple of pages of the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. Volumes 12 are offered for the first time as a threebook set from byu studies while supplies last. So the printers manuscript, which is included in this volume, is the most complete early text of the book of mormon, elder snow said, adding that the manuscript was copied primarily by the prophets scribe, oliver cowdery for use by e. Smith reportedly placed the original dictation of the book of mormon in the cornerstone of a house in nauvoo, illinois, in 1841. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades of storage in a. All but one line of the printer s manuscript has survived it is in the archives of the rlds church in independence, missouri.
The joseph smith papers project has released its eleventh volume. Book of mormon printers manuscript is now online church news. Royal skousen collected and examined the existing fragments of the original manuscript of the book of mormon to produce a critical text. The lds church purchased the manuscript from the community of christ on wednesday, sept. The original manuscript of the book of mormon and the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. The book of mormon an account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi wherefore it is an abridgment of the record of the. The printers manuscript of the book of mormon was used to set. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon is available for purchase today. He didnt know that it was the printers manuscript that was a copy of the dictation manuscriptnot that its. Elder snow expressed gratitude for the care taken of the manuscript by the community of christ for more than a century. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints, headquartered in salt lake city, utah, recently acquired the printers manuscript of the book of mormon from. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the.
Book of mormon printers manuscript now online lds365. Book of mormon printers manuscript is now online church. The printers manuscript at this time was deteriorating. Whitmer believed that he had the book of mormon manuscript. From the printers manuscript, the 1830 edition of the book of mormon was typeset. The original and printers manuscript book of mormon. The earliest text and his printers manuscript volumes, this book is an indispensable resource for studies of the book of mormon that rely on an accurate and original text. The printers manuscript is the earliest surviving copy of about 72 percent of the book of mormon text, as only about 28 percent of the earlier dictation copy survived decades of storage in a cornerstone in nauvoo, illinois, said elder steven e. Lds church buys printers manuscript of book of mormon for. Uncovering the original text of the book of mormon. The printers manuscript was handwritten by a follower and was used to create the first printed edition of the book of mormon in 1830. It is enclosed by folding the casing and then by sliding it. Thats how many changes byu linguistics professor royal skousen said he made to the book of mormon while transcribing its printers. The original book of mormon transcript the book of.
Original printers manuscript of the book of mormon sold. Snow, lds church historian and recorder, in an lds church news release. David whitmer, one of the witnesses to the book of mormon was living in the town at the time, and had the printers manuscript of the book of. The mormon newsroom reported that the church of jesus christ of latterday saints has purchased the printers manuscript of the book of mormon from the community of christ church. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints recently published for the first time a copy of the book of mormons printers manuscript, a copy of the original manuscript that was used, according to a release, by the compositors and printers at e. Lds church buys printers manuscript of book of mormon. A strong case can be made for the authenticity of joseph smiths account of the coming forth of the book of mormon first, the eyewitness testimony of those directly involved with the translation unanimously agree that joseph was not copying from another book or manuscript, but rather the text of the book of mormon as he peered into the sear. Church historians press, 2015 and revelations and translations, volume 3, part 2. Church buys printers manuscript of book of mormon from.
For a transcript that includes the redactions, consult the facsimile images available by clicking on the book icon to the left of the images. A pdf of the printer s manuscript of the book of mormon. The printers manuscript of the book of mormon rests on a table in this early 20thcentury photograph. The manuscript will, according to both churches, be on. Lds church acquires printers manuscript of the book of. The release of this volume is a landmark event not only in regards to the content. Skousen considered this ecumenical group a metaphor for the universal appeal of the book of mormon, scripture for the whole world. Church history department releases book of mormon printer. Only 28 percent of the original manuscript has survived, but the handwritten printers manuscript is virtually 100 percent extant. It is enclosed by folding the casing and then by sliding it into an additional case. Lds church acquires book of mormon printers manuscript the.
Printers manuscript of the book of mormon is the 11th published volume of the project in. Lds church acquires book of mormon printers manuscript. The book of mormon printers manuscript is now available to see online. The grandin printing press that was used to produce the first 5,000 copies of the book of mormon in palmyra, new york, is on display. The first edition of the book of mormon went on sale in palmyra on march 26, 1830, and smith formally organized a church less than two weeks later. This photocopy of the original manuscript of the printers copy of the book of mormon was made from the original, by scott faulring, for brigham young university. You can zoom in and see the actual manuscript word for word. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, comes complete with pictures of the original handwritten printers manuscript on. Lds church buys printers manuscript of book of mormon for record. Book of mormon central evidences of the book of mormon.
Why bother studying the textual variants in the book of mormon. Book of mormon manuscript correspondence and clippings, 18991949. The following is adapted from publishing the printers manuscript, by megan michaels of the church history department. Part 2 contains the text of the book of mormon from alma 36 through moroni, statements of book of mormon witnesses, and reference material, including a chronology, a biographical register, and a table documenting how the printers manuscript was used in printing the 1830 and 1837 editions of. By the time the printers had finished printing the twentysecond sheet, typesetting would certainly have begun on the twentythird sheet, which corresponds roughly to the thirteenth gathering of the printers manuscript. It is the socalled community of christ who have betrayed the josephite tradition with liberal theology which has led. It is the most complete copy of the original manuscript, deseret news reports. A join statement made by both churches states that the money to purchase the manuscript was provided by generous donors.
This copy is called the printers manuscript p, since it was the one normally used to set the type for the first 1830 edition of the book of mormon. Photocopy of the printers copy of the book of mormon. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, alma 36moroni 10, facsimile ed. Robin scott jensen relates the story of how the whitmer family preserved the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. Grandin, the printer in palmyra, new york, who was contracted to produce the first book of mormon. The two volume series called, revelations and translations, volume 3. The church recently acquired the printers manuscript of the book of mormon from the community of christ in independence, missouri. Printer s manuscript of the book of mormon, 1 nephi 1alma 35, facsimile ed. Lds church releases photos of joseph smiths seer stone kutv. Grandins palmyra, new york, print shop to set type for the first edition of the book of. Printers manuscript of the book of mormon, circa august. Lds lecture to focus on printers manuscript of book of. Willes center for book of mormon studies sponsored three lectures by royal skousen called 25 years of. The printers manuscript is the handwritten copy that was made to take to the printer for typesetting.
Most of this manuscript was destroyed by mold and water seepage. The original manuscript is currently in possession of the community of christ church, independence, missouri. This manuscript was begun no later than april 1829 and finished in june 1829. Book of mormon manuscripts the encyclopedia of mormonism. Book of mormon printer s manuscript 1829 printers manuscript of the book of mormon after the original manuscript was completed, joseph smith instructed oliver cowdery to prepare a second copy for the printers use. Church acquires printers manuscript of book of mormon. It was written in vegetable rather than ironbased ink. Skousens decades if painstaking effort have provided a whole new landscape for critical study of the book of mormon. The original book of mormon manuscript byu studies. We hold the book of mormon to be a sacred text like the bible.
The printers manuscript is the copy of the book of mormon text made by oliver cowdery, hyrum smith, and a third, unknown scribe from the. Scribe 1oliver cowdery scribe 2 unknown scribe 3 unknown reply to critics. Typographical facsimile of the entire text in two parts. Community of christ rlds church sells the book of mormon.
The joseph smith papers website at shows a sidebyside comparison of the pages. A new volume of the joseph smith papers project featuring the printers manuscript of the book of mormon was released tuesday by the church historians press, an imprint of the history. The website shows a sidebyside comparison of the pages. We hold the book of mormon to be a sacred text like the bible on september 20, the acquisition of the printers manuscript of the book of mormon was finalized. A copy of the original was then made by oliver cowdery and two other scribes. A pdf of the printers manuscript of the book of mormon. All but one line of the printers manuscript has survived it is in the archives of the rlds church in independence, missouri. The story of the book of mormon printers manuscript youtube. Church acquires printers manuscript of the book of. Lds church acquires printers manuscript of book of mormon. But beyond this, some surviving, badly weathered fragments of the original manuscript permit a consideration of the book of mormon from a paleographic standpoint. President robin linkhart of the community of christ is given a photo of the original printers manuscript as the lds church, in cooperation with the community of christ announces the release of the printers manuscript of the the book of mormon, during a press conference tuesday, aug.
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