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The existence and location of the Ark of the
Covenant has remained one of the most enduring mysteries in
archaeology. Professor Tudor Parfitt from London's School of
Oriental and African Studies will reveal where he believes the Ark
is. Parfitt is well-known for discovering that the Lemba tribe in
Zimbabwe is one of the lost tribes of Israel. Follow this global
quest-detective as he decodes ancient texts and pieces together
clues. Ultimately he builds a picture of what he thinks the Ark
looks like and where it is. The journey takes viewers through
Israelite wars, Philistine shrines, Solomon's Temple and Africa to
the final, critical clue which led Parfitt to its current location.
Deut 10:1: "At that time the Lord said unto me, Hew thee two tables
of stone like unto the first, and come up unto me into the mount,
and make thee an ark of wood."
Deut 10:2: "And I will write on the tables the words that were in
the first tables which thou breakest, and thou shalt put them in the
ark."
Deut 10:3: So I made the ark out of acacia wood and chiseled out two
stone tablets like the first ones, and I went up on the mountain
with the two tablets in my hands.
The Bible describes the Ark as made of shittah-tree wood (acacia),
known to the Egyptians as the Tree of Life and an important plant in
traditional medicine containing in many cases psychoactive
alkaloids. It was 1.5 cubits broad and high, and 2.5 cubits long,
conforming to the golden ratio. (~130 x 78 x 78 cm or 4.27 x 2.56 x
2.56 ft, using the Egyptian royal cubit). The Ark was covered all
over with the purest gold. Its upper surface or lid, the mercy seat
(Hebrew: כפורת, Kaporet), was surrounded with a rim of gold.
On each of the two long sides were two gold rings, wherein were
placed two wooden poles (with a decorative sheathing of gold), to
allow the Ark to be carried (Num. 7:9; 10:21; 4:5,19, 20; 1 Kings
8:3, 6). Over the Ark, at the two extremities, were two cherubim,
with their faces turned toward one another (Leviticus 16:2; Num.
7:89). Their outspread wings over the top of the Ark formed the
throne of God, while the Ark itself was his footstool (Ex. 25:10-22;
37:1-9). The Ark was placed in the "Holy of Holies," so that one end
of the carrying poles touched the veil separating the two
compartments of the tabernacle (1 Kings 8:8). The Book of
Deuteronomy describes the Ark as a simple wooden container with no
mention of ornaments or gold. Similarly, the Quran makes a reference
to the Ark as a wooden box with holy relics inside
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