A representation of the Ark of the Covenant. Lost since the time of the Temple of Solomon, the purpose, usage and final resting place of the ark have long been sources of great speculation. Though there have been many theories, the most likely location of the ark is Axum, Ethiopia. "The One True Ark" image © 2004 Doug Elwell, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The Ark of the Covenant is perhaps the most sought-after ancient artifact in history. Like most artifacts, its actual value far exceeds the worth of its constituent materials, but it is not merely because of its beauty, its quality of workmanship, its historical value, or even its religious value that makes the ark so priceless. The true value of the ark is that it is a means of communicating with God Himself.

The Ark of the Covenant was first built during the time of the Exodus, which is believed to have taken place sometime between 1200 and 1400 b.c., most likely during the reign of Pharaoh Ramses II ("the Great"). God ordered its construction, as detailed in Exodus 25:10-25, and even chose the men who would build it: Bezalel and Oholiab, of the tribes of Judah and Dan, respectively. These men, like Moses, had lived in Egypt, and had likely learned the art of the temple during their sojourn there.

The ark was essentially a box made of acacia wood, that was overlaid with gold inside and out. Though the "cubit" measure used by the Israelites and the Egyptians appears to have varied anywhere from 17-22 inches, we will use the standard of 18 inches for a cubit. Based upon the measurements given in the Book of Exodus, then, the ark was approximately 3' 9" long, 2' 3" wide, and 2' 3" tall. It stood upon four feet, with four golden rings that were placed on all four corners, most likely near the top of the box. The text also states that it had a gold "molding" around its rim, to which the rings were likely attached. Two staves also made of acacia wood and overlaid with gold were to be placed through two rings each, in order that the ark might be carried. Interestingly, a device simply referred to as "the Testimony" was then placed within the Ark, and the Book of Hebrews states that a pot of manna and Aaron's staff had also been placed there (Hebrews 9:4). The most important part of the ark was the lid, also known as "the mercy seat". On this lid were fashioned two large angelic figures, or "cherubim", which overshadowed the mercy seat proper. God is described as having appeared "between the cherubim" in order to speak with Moses, and tradition holds that when the ark went into battle, electrical sparks flew from the cherubim and destroyed the enemies of Israel.

As was discussed in last quarter's article on the ancient Osirian Empire, there is significant historical and archaeological evidence for the fact that the ancient Egyptians had actually not only discovered, but mastered the use of electricity. Moreover, recent analysis of how the Ark was designed reveal it to be essentially a powerful capacitor. A capacitor is basically two pieces of conductive material separated by a piece of non-conductive material. In a capacitor, over time one of the pieces of conductive material becomes positively charged, while the other piece of conductive material becomes negatively charged. Moreover, the larger the surface area, and the greater the separation between the two conductive materials, the higher the degree of conductance.

The Ark was built as a wooden box that was overlaid with gold inside and out. Gold is highly conductive, and wood is highly non-conductive, and the gold was flattened out as a sheet to cover the wooden box inside and out. As a result, it covered a fairly large surface area, with both sheets of gold inside and outside the box separated by a modest distance. As a result, the Ark was effectively a very efficient and powerful capacitor, capable of storing significant amounts of electricity. This would of course explain the lethal nature of the Ark, and is part of the reason that is was so closely guarded and its usage so rigidly regimented — anyone touching the Ark who was not properly insulated would most likely be killed instantly.

But the Ark was not merely a means of generating electricity in order to instill fear into the laity, as was one of the purposes the Egyptian priesthoods had put their knowledge of electricity to. The description of how the lid of the Ark was to be constructed describes it as having two angels, or "cherubim" on either side of the lid, their wings overshadowing the lid and connecting with each other at the top. With the body of the Ark accumulating an electrical charge, the cherubim thus likely formed the positive and negative power terminals though which the electrical energy traveled, effectively "completing the circuit". Thus the lid was always electrically charged, ready to be put to use. The question is, to what use was it put?

Interestingly, God is described as actually speaking with Moses from "between the Cherubim", ( Exodus 25:22) effectively making the Ark a two-way video telephone — or, as Belloq correctly put it in Raiders of the Lost Ark, "a radio for speaking to God". Only in this case, Moses could actually see God, and vice-versa. As such, since the Ark is actually capable of being used to communicate with God, it must be carefully guarded lest it be put to the wrong use (let the reader understand).

As such, a search for the Ark itself is quite a dangerous proposition to be sure. Whether it lies in Ethiopia, carefully guarded by the Ethiopian priests, or whether it is buried under Golgotha or the temple mount, or one of the many other places that many have theorized, all of these places are difficult to travel to, and are either heavily restricted to travelers, or off limits all together. And the Ark will defend itself from the unworthy, from those who were not meant to find it, though it may be that the Ark may soon be found, and put to an abominable purpose.

TLC: The Lost Ark
WorldNetDaily: Real-Life Raiders Hunt Ark of the Covenant
WorldNetDaily: New claim over Discovery of the Lost Ark of the Covenant
WorldNetDaily: Seeking the Truth about the Ark
WorldNetDaily: Key to the Ark in an Ancient Book
Mysteries of the Bible: The Ark of the Covenant
Jewish Virtual Library: The Lost Ark of the Covenant
Selamta: Ark of the Covenant
Daily Bible Study:
Raiders Of The Lost Ark
Ark of the Covenant.com
Crystal Links: The Ark of the Covenant
Nexus Magazine: Lost Secrets of the Sacred Ark
Zola Levitt Ministries: Where is the Ark of the Covenant?
Jewish Encylopedia: Ark of the Covenant
Catholic Encylopedia: Ark of the Covenant
Biblia.com: The Ark of the Covenant
The Tabernacle Home Page
Selamta
Israel Ministry of Tourism
InIsrael.com
go2israel.org

The classic drowning of the Egyptian army scene from Exodus 14, as interpreted by the 1956 film classic, The Ten Commandments. Recent discoveries have proven that an Egyptian chariot army had indeed once been drowned in the Red Sea, including the discovery of both chariot wheels and even whole chariots, all covered in coral. Image from The Ten Commandments.

In Exodus 14, there is a mysterious account of how God had made the Red Sea to open up so as to allow the Israelites to pass over, closing it up again after they had passed over in order to drown the pursuing Egyptian army. Until recent years scholars have uniformly ascribed this event to God's miraculous powers, and let it go at that. However, more recently some have begun to scoff at that concept, saying instead that it was merely an act of nature that happened to work in the Israelites' favor, and still others have even gone as far as to argue that the whole story is a myth, existing only in the fertile minds of Jewish storytellers.

Adding to the problem is the fact that for a long time, proof had not been offered as to the exact location of where the Israelites had crossed the Red Sea. Some scholars have even pointed out that the term yam suph, commonly translated as "Red Sea", means literally "Sea of Reeds", which might indicate that the body of water indicated might not be the Red Sea, but one of the lakes just east of Goshen, just southeast of the store cities of Pithom and Ramses which the Israelite slaves had been used to build according to Exodus 1:11. As a result, it has been impossible to prove definitively that the event occurred at all, let alone find out where the actual crossing took place.

The Red Sea actually has two branches, or "gulfs", which extend out northwest and northeast from the sea, creating between them a large peninsula known as the "Sinai Peninsula" that lies between Egypt and Israel. It is most likely that the Israelites had crossed over one of these two gulfs on the way to the Promised Land, but the question is, which one? If it is the northwestern Gulf of Suez, then the Israelites had only to travel a few days through familiar territory in order to reach the crossing point. However, if the crossing point was on the northeastern Gulf of Aqaba, then they first had to travel across the entire Sinai peninsula, a broad expanse of unforgiving desert interspersed with harsh mountainous terrain, before they could cross through the divided waters.

In the Book of Exodus, God tells Moses to maneuver the Israelites around randomly so as to give the Egyptians the idea that they were lost and confused. This might lead one to believe that they spent a fair amount of time traveling around in the deserts of the Sinai, instead of on Pharaoh's doorstep. (Exodus 14:3) However, the Israelites also were described as "hemmed in by the desert", which most likely means that they did not cross over into the Sinai Peninsula, which is almost completely arid. Thus, it is most likely that the "Sea of Reeds" was in or near the Gulf of Aqaba, only a few days' journey from their 400-year homeland in Goshen. The question remains, however, what caused the Sea of Reeds to part and then close again, destroying the Egyptian chariotry?

Of all of the theories concerning the miracles of the Book of Exodus, one recent theory has stood out prominently above the rest: that the explosion of the Thera volcano on the island of Santorini in the Mediterranean may have been responsible for most if not all of the plagues that were described in Exodus 7-11. The exploding volcano on the island of Santorini would have sent huge amounts of hot ash and sulphur into the atmosphere, which might have caused the Nile to turn red. So powerful was this volcanic explosion — an explosion that is believed to have been one of the most powerful in Earth's history — that it might have set off other volcanic action in the region which may have aided in the contamination of the Nile. All but the final plague, the killing of the firstborn of Egypt, could be explained by the effects of the volcano on the land of Egypt, as could the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night.

But of all the malificent effects that the eruption of Thera could have brought upon Egypt, one is most relevant to our understanding of the destruction of Pharaoh's chariots in the Sea of Reeds: the creation of a form of tidal wave called a seiche. Right before the seiche strikes, it will cause the water before it to recede like a tide going out, though a seiche goes out — and returns — much more quickly than a tide. Along with the mighty east wind which the Lord sent to dry the now-exposed land, a seiche that temporarily flooded the area between the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba could possibly explain the sudden, destructive wall of water that destroyed Pharaoh's chariots.

However, a recent possible discovery has added a new twist to the search for the Red Sea crossing point. An amateur archaeologist by the name of Ron Wyatt is believed to have discovered the crossing point not in the Gulf of Suez, but in the Gulf of Aqaba, over a natural land bridge that is just beneath the surface of the gulf near Nuweiba. Though some doubt his claims, others point to the images of chariot wheels encrusted with coral that Ron and others had taken while investigating the natural land bridge. However, these discoveries will need to be evaluated before Wyatt's claims can be validated and the final location of the Red Sea Crossing can be established.

The Sinai Peninsula has several tourist destinations and leisure diving facilities available, primarily along its southern coastline, which is often referred to as the Egyptian Riviera. Though this region is likely safer than most areas in the Near East, as always it is wise to consult the U.S. State Department advisories before planning your trip to Egypt's Sinai peninsula.

WorldNetDaily: Pharaoh's Chariots Found in Red Sea?
Wyatt Archaeological Research: Red Sea Crossing
Wyatt Archaeological Research: Where Was the Red Sea Crossing?
Wyatt Archaeological Research: Pihahiroth, Migdol and Baalzephon
Wyatt Archaeological Research: The "Red Sea"
Wyatt Archaeological Research: Significance of the Wheels
Bible Revelations: The Exodus
City Scientists Say Red-Sea Miracle Can Be Explained
Daily Bible Study: The Walls Of Water
Miracles of Exodus
The Exodus Case
BBC: Moses
FreeRepublic: Biblical Plagues and Parting of Red Sea caused by Volcano
The Christian Resource Institute: The Yam Suph "Red Sea" or "Sea of Reeds"?
Mystae.com: "Crossing the Sea of Reeds"
AnchorStones: Mt. Sinai/Horeb: In Arabia
Pinkoski.com: The Real Mt. Sinai Has Been Found!
Travel Egypt
AllSinai.info
Red-Sea Guide and Search Engine
CamelDive.com

A Neanderthal skull. Neanderthal man was first discovered in Neanderthal, Germany, hence the name. Neanderthals have been proven to have coexisted alongside homo sapiens for thousands of years, destroying the evolutionary theory that they are our ancestors. They died out around 26,000 b.c., probably from being outcompeted for food by homo sapiens. Image from BBC News.

Once again the evolutionary zealots have been proven wrong. Neanderthal man, once thought to be one our immediate ancestors, has now been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt to be not an ancestor of homo sapiens, but a form of mankind that had been created and had developed parallel to homo sapiens. However, though the already dubious theory of evolution may have been dealt a mortal blow by these findings, the final destruction of evolutionary theory may open up a Pandora's box of speculation about our origins that many may find disturbing.

Not only has DNA testing proven that Neanderthals are in no way related to homo sapiens, it appears that they did not even interbreed with modern man. Some recently discovered Neanderthal skeletal remains in Croatia were found to be more gracile, like homo sapiens, leading some scientists to believe that at least some Neanderthals interbred with homo sapiens, creating a taller, but less robust hybrid form of human. However, more recently, mitochondrial DNA testing on the bones of several Neanderthal specimens proved conclusively that Neanderthals and modern humans were not related at all. Moreover, additional DNA testing concluded that, like homo sapiens, Neanderthalensis arose from a small group of individuals who then multiplied and then covered the face of Earth, almost as if divine beings had designed the various "races" of mankind as genetic "race cars" in order to see whose "car" was fastest most efficient, and ultimately better. In this case, homo sapiens won, outcompeting and eventually destroying Neanderthal man, and the God who created him was proved to be superior.

Some theorists have discussed the possibility that the Neanderthals may have been at least a partial explanation for the giants that have been described in the myths and legends of various races as having been bred by "the gods" in order to achieve their goals of world domination over other "lesser" races. However, though the Neanderthals were in fact stronger and more robust than homo sapiens, they were, unlike the giants, actually shorter on average than modern man. Thus, at least in the form we know him today, Neanderthalensis was probably not the origin of the stories of the giants of old found in the Bible and other historical documents from around the world.

There is one mystery of the Bible that the existence of Neanderthal man might answer, however: that of "who was Cain's wife?" In the book of Genesis, when Cain was driven away after murdering his brother Abel, it is said that Cain's wife then gave birth to a son. Though that sounds fairly normal, until this point in the text, there was no mention in the text of any women being born. And though some have posited that Cain simply married one of his sisters, the problem of incest and the concomitant birth defects that are inevitable after 1-2 such couplings has never been competently addressed.

Therefore, some have supposed, there was a race of beings that were already in existence by the time of Adam and Eve, a concept that we have discussed in previous articles at length. It is quite possible that Cain, after having left the presence of Adam and Eve, took a wife from among this other race of preexisting peoples, and started "the line of Cain". Another possibility was that Cain was himself representative of a variant strain of humanity that was warlike and nomadic, just as the Neanderthal were. Moreover, the protruding brow ridge of Neanderthal man may have been remembered in the Hebrew tradition as a "mark" that had been placed on Cain, showing him to be different from others. Neanderthal man was in fact very warlike, and was even cannibalistic, so there is little surprise that it was out of this line that the fallen angels bred the giants.

The first Neanderthal skull and bones were found in Neanderthal, Germany. Though the original cave has since been destroyed due to mining, the Neanderthal Museum has done a good job of recreating the environment and maintaining the story around the first discovery of one of man's ancient competitors. Germany is also a good year-round tourist destinations, particularly in the fall around Oktoberfest, and during the Bayreuth Festival. Safe, clean and friendly, Germany is always a good choice for your next vacation destination.

Encyclopedia.com: "Neanderthal man"
Neanderthal QT VTR
BBC News: "Late Neanderthals
'more like us'"
"Blow to Neanderthal breeding theory"
"DNA clues to Neanderthals"
"Neanderthals not human ancestors"
"Neanderthals survived longer than thought"
"Neanderthals were cannibals"
"Taste for flesh troubled Neanderthals"
"Neanderthals 'had hands like ours'"
BBCi: Walking with Cavemen
National Geographic: Climate Change Killed Neandertals, Study Says
Neanderthals and Modern Humans: A Regional Guide
The Japan Times: Neanderthal Man type site rediscovered
Bible Time Prophecy & Chronology: Neanderthal = Nephilim?
BibleStudy.org: Who was Neanderthal Man?
The Neanderthal Museum
Germany - Wunderbar
All Travel Germany
About-Germany.org
Germany Tourism
eGermany.com
deutschland.de: Tourism
Oktoberfest: Official Site
Bayreuth Festival: Official Site

These steps are part of a sunken part of Japan's history, from the Kamakura Period (1192-1333). Records from the period do in fact record land sinking around 1247, apparently taking many with it. These structures are nearby one of Japan's most famous districts, Shizuoka Prefecture, and also near Tokyo. Image from Asahi.com .

Back in 2002 we looked at the submerged ruins recently discovered off the shores of Okinawa, near the island of Yonaguni from which was derived the name "Yonaguni Monument". This monument has caused division among scientists, who are unable to make a definitive decision as to whether or not the Yonaguni Monument is in fact man-made, or a naturally occurring object caused by the swift currents in the region.

However, a more recent discovery of underwater ruins is less ambiguous. These stone structures exist in Sagami Bay, near Shizuoka Prefecture, off the northeast coast of Japan. Hyakurensho, a record of the Kamakura Period of Japanese History that lasted from (1192-1333), describes land sinking in 1247 in what is now the southeastern part of Shizuoka Prefecture and the Izu islands. Scuba divers have found numerous stone structures as much as 150 feet below the surface. These structures includes stone walls, steps, and flagstones, and are found as far as 2/3 of a mile off the coast of Atami

The Kamakura Period was one of the more colorful periods in Japanese history. It is called the Kamakura Period because the seat of Imperial Power had been moved to Kamakura, a city just southwest of modern Tokyo, away from its traditional place in Kyoto. The Emperor had officially conferred the title of shogun to Minamoto Yoritomo after his defeat of the Taira family made him the undisputed master of the Japans. There in Kamakura Minamoto set up what is now called Kamakura Bakufu, or "tent government", which was Japan's first military-controlled government.

The Kamakura Period was one of the more colorful periods in Japanese history. It is called the Kamakura Period because the seat of Imperial Power had been moved to Kamakura, a city just southwest of modern Tokyo, away from its traditional place in Kyoto. The Emperor had officially conferred the title of shogun to Minamoto Yoritomo after his defeat of the Taira family made him the undisputed master of the Japans. There in Kamakura Minamoto set up what is now called Kamakura Bakufu, or "tent government", which was Japan's first military-controlled government. The shogunate form of military government was to last until 1868.

It was during this period that several movements took place in Japanese society that remained dominant for many centuries. Perhaps the greatest of these movements was the rise of a warrior class, the samurai. Largely a reaction against the decadent lifestyle of the Imperial Court, the samurai ethos — and that of the Kamakura government in general — was one of a spartan lifestyle based upon a rigid codes of honor and unquestioning loyalty. The samurai were considered one of the upper classes in society, but they were also expected to give their lives in the service of their lord without hesitation, and even commit ritual suicide, seppuku, if they failed in their duty to their lord. Another major class were the Buddhist monks, who were extremely skilled martial artists. Very militant in their Buddhism, they began to use this skill to expand their sphere of influence from the religious to the political. It was only through the vigorous machinations of the Oda daimyo Oda Nobunaga that their power was finally defeated in 1559, and the monks forced to peacefully assimilate into the increasingly polyglot Japanese culture.

After Yoritomo's death in 1199, regents of the Hojo clan maintained control of Japan by redistributing the land seized by their conquests to those who had supported them in their quest to maintain the government in Kamakura. They nearly lost this power to the Mongols who, due to hostile weather, were forced to call off invasions twice, in 1274 and 1281. The latter attempt was thwarted by the famed kami kaze, "divine wind", a typhoon that struck suddenly and sank the entire Mongol fleet. If not for that typhoon, it is likely that the Hojo would have been defeated, and modern Japan would still be a province of China, so the divine wind has ever since been a prominent force in Japanese myths and legends. The sinking of the land off of Shizuoka Prefecture, then, was only one of many great events that had taken place during the Kamakura Period.

Japan is another excellent all-around tourist destination, world-renowned for its high-quality tourist facilities, beautiful scenery, fascinating history, and clean, crime-free cities. Festivals take place all over the islands year round, including the Sanja festival in May, in Tokyo near Sagami Bay. The temperate month of May might be the best time for the experienced diver to explore the underwater ruins, or for the landlubber, to experience authentic historic Japan.

Medieval ruins found off Atami?
Sagami Bay Description
The Dawn Light over Sagami Bay
Dive Japan: Sagami Bay
JapanDiving.com
3Routes Japan Scuba Diving Directory
Dogs Breath Divers: Japan
ShoreDiving.com: Japan
Cyber-Diver.com: Japan
Japan-Guide.com: Kamakura Period
Middlebury College: The Kamakura Period
Frommer's: The Kamakura Period
Shizuoka Prefecture
Shizuoka Guide
Outdoor Japan: Shizuoka Prefecture
JLGC: Shizuoka Prefecture
Japan-Guide.com
About.com: Japan for Visitors
About.com: Japan for Visitors
Explore Japan: Japan National Tourist Organization
JapanZone
Explore Japan!
Japan Airlines: Useful Travel Info
Japan Travel & Tourist Information
Japan.com