The Ark of the Covenant
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This program is presented solely for educational and entertainment purposes. It contains mature adult themes. Listener discretion is advised. The Ark of the Covenant is a golden chest described in the Book of Exodus as containing the tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed. It's said to possess enormous power, enough to destroy the walls of the city of Jericho and to kill anyone who touches it.

It was kept in the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem until it disappeared in 587 BC, and it's never been seen since. It is without a doubt the most prized holy relic of all time, and for over 2,000 years it's been searched for by explorers, treasure hunters, and most famously, the Nazis.

So where is it? Some historians believe it was taken out of Jerusalem and has been hidden in Ethiopia, where it remains today. It is, quite simply, the greatest treasure hunt in history. The hunt for the Ark of the Covenant is probably one of the greatest

treasure hunts of all time. The Ark of the Covenant really is the ultimate treasure quest, and people are still fascinated with that. Where are we going to find it? I think the Ark of the Covenant is still there in Ethiopia. The Ark had three basic uses. One, it's where you kept the Word of God. Two, it's where God lives, so as you go into battle, it's quite intimidating to be taking God with you. Three, to quote the great line in

Indiana Jones, it's a telephonic guide. If this Ark was ever actually seen and could be proved to be the Ark of the Covenant, this would be the biggest archaeological find ever. It's highly probable that the Ark of the Covenant could still be around somewhere if only its hiding place could be found. The Ark of the Covenant is a golden chest described in the Bible as containing the tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed.

as well as Aaron's rod, a jar of manna, and the first Torah scroll. Moses was given very specific instructions by God on how to build it, as he and the Israelites were camped at the foot of Mount Sinai. It was to be made of shittim wood, plated entirely with gold, with a solid golden lid bearing two golden cherubim.

which was to be placed on top, and then two wooden poles were to be used to carry it. For me, one of the biggest stories about the Ark of the Covenant is how specific the instructions are that Moses was given by God, not only for the tabernacle of where the Ark was going to sit, but for the Ark itself. So the Bible is just full of allegory and archetypes, broad, sweeping stories. But here's one that has really specific dimensions.

The instructions that God gave Moses are particularly detailed, both in dimension and in shape. And they go down to the very nearest centimeter, so that following those instructions, as we have them in the Bible, it would be possible to reconstruct a copy of the Ark, which would be indistinguishable from the original.

There's a very good description of it in the Bible. It tells you the size is 150 by 80 by 80. It's covered in gold. It's got four loops on the bottom with poles that are also covered in gold going through it and some cherubs on the top. So we've got a good description of what it looks like. Now, from an archaeological point of view, it's the greatest treasure we could ever, ever find. It was a functional object. The idea was he'd come down from Mount Sinai with his tablets

with the laws, the Ten Commandments on them, and they needed to carry them around. What do you do when you want to carry something around? You make a box. So it has a box, they put the things in, and they put in Aaron's staff, and they carry it with them. Very, very sensible. So I'm quite certain that the story of the Ark of the Covenant does have meaning. The question is, was it really the magical object that they claim it was, and has it survived to the present day?

When Solomon's Temple was built in Jerusalem around 800 BC, a special inner room named the Holy of Holies was constructed to house the Ark and the Ten Commandments, which were placed inside. But in 587 BC, when the Babylonians sacked Jerusalem and Solomon's Temple, there's no record of what became of the Ark of the Covenant.

Has the Ark survived to this day? And I think it's possible if it was being looked after. If it was being left buried underground, perhaps under Jerusalem in one of the flooded tunnels, well, I think it's very unlikely. The wood would have rotted away. The gold might still be there to be collected. It might still be the angels. Perhaps the stones inside it might still be there.

Gold is really resilient. Now, there's no reason why that couldn't have survived to this day. Granted, the wood would have been a bit, you know, 3,000-year-old wood is going to erode, but there's still a strong possibility. And look what you see in the Cairo Museum with all these wood chests coated in gold. It's the same sort of thing, and they look damn good today.

I think the Ark of the Covenant really existed as a real historical item. We definitely see examples of this from ancient Egypt, of boxes that exactly fit the description that we see described in the Bible. The actual Ark of the Covenant could possibly have survived, partly because the whole thing is covered in gold. And if you want to preserve something, the best way to do it, cover it in gold. The gold will not degrade in any way. So if anything's going to survive from biblical times, it's going to be the Ark of the Covenant.

It's one of the great mysteries of our time, the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant. But where is it? Perhaps the strongest claim is that it was brought nearly two and a half thousand years ago to Ethiopia, and it's still here today. It's supposed to be everywhere. It's supposed to be in Roslyn Chapel. It's supposed to be at Rennes-le-Château. It was in Egypt. All these famous places. And yet the amazing thing is that there's every possibility that it could be here.

in little old Ethiopia. For centuries, Ethiopian Christians have claimed that the Ark of the Covenant rests in a small chapel in the northern town of Aksum. According to the ancient Ethiopian text, the Kebra Nagast, the Queen of Sheba had a son with King Solomon, who was called Menelik. When he was old enough, he went to Jerusalem to see his father, and in the process replaced the Ark of the Covenant with a replica.

and brought the original back to Ethiopia, where it rests today. It sounds like the plot of a Hollywood movie. But is it true?

Well, the outline of the story of Queen Makeda, the Queen of Sheba, who visited Solomon, that they were romantically involved, as a result of which Makeda found herself pregnant. The son that she bore when she had returned to Ethiopia was named Menelik, which means "the son of the wise man."

and that he, when he grew up, went to Jerusalem at his father's invitation and was given a replica of the Ark to take home with him. However, on the way back, he discovered from one of his companions that the replica had been left in Jerusalem and that what they were carrying to Ethiopia was the real Ark of the Covenant from Solomon's temple.

When the Babylonians were sacking Jerusalem, and of course they destroyed Solomon's temple, I think if it was there in the first place, that Menelik could well have taken it, rescued it, and taken it first to Egypt and then to Ethiopia. On a remote island in the middle of Lake Tana in Ethiopia, it's claimed that the Ark stood for hundreds of years after it was stolen from Jerusalem by Prince Menelik.

Could this really be the final resting place of the world's most priceless relic? This show is sponsored by BetterHelp. Sometimes it's hard to remind ourselves that we're all just trying our best to make sense of this crazy world we live in. And here at Forbidden History, we certainly explore some wild and dark stories, which isn't always easy. This month, we'd like to say thanks to you for listening along, even when those stories might take an unexpected turn.

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That's BetterHelp.com/ForbiddenUS The Ark of the Covenant is a golden chest described in the book of Exodus as containing the tablets of stone on which the Ten Commandments were written. It was kept in the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem until it disappeared in 587 BC and it's never been seen since. So where did it go?

Ethiopian Christians claim that it was brought to their country by Menelik, the son of the Queen of Sheba, who stole it from King Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem. This belief is enshrined in the country's holiest text, the Kebra Nagast, and every Ethiopian church keeps a replica of the Ark as its most sacred possession. Journalist Jamie Theakston is on a quest to find out whether the Ark of the Covenant still exists today.

and whether it was really brought to Ethiopia. He started by meeting Ethiopian historian Daniel Kibret in the country's capital, Addis Ababa. So, do you believe the Ark of the Covenant is here in Ethiopia? So, I believe that it's in Ethiopia, basically because of a historical document that was written in the 13th century.

and that was a book called in Ethiopic, the Kebranagast, the glory of kings. So that book says that the Ark of the Covenant was removed from Jerusalem by the son of King Solomon, who later became an Ethiopian king. And then he brought the Ark to Ethiopia and first he placed it in the Lake Tana area in one of the islands.

Then eventually it was taken to Axum. But as far as I'm aware, there are replicas of the Ark of the Covenant in all Ethiopian churches. Yeah, there are replicas, but what kind of replicas? They are not replicas in shape, size and material. They are replicas symbolically.

So, in form they differ because the Ark that is found in one church differs in size, in shape, in material from another church. But the Arks that are found in several churches, they are believed to perform the same kind of activity, miracle, whatever that the original Ark of the Covenant performs. Okay, so these replicas of the Ark, they're absolutely vitally important

They are as important as the actual Ark of the Covenant for the Ethiopian Christians. So there's a very strong belief in the Ark of the Covenant with Christians? Definitely. All Christians, you know, since time immemorial, believe the Ark of the Covenant is kept in Aksum.

Every Ethiopian church possesses one or more symbolic replicas of the Ark of the Covenant. They're known locally as tabets, and they are paraded on the heads of the priests on special holy days.

In fact, they're just slender wooden boxes which contain replicas of the Ten Commandments in stone. But is there worship of these tablets? Because the original Ark of the Covenant, created by Moses, is hidden away in their country. British writer Graham Hancock, in his book "The Sign and the Seal," suggested that the Ark spent several years in Egypt before it came to Ethiopia via the Nile River.

where it was kept on an island on Lake Tana for about 400 years before finally being taken to Axum. That island was Tana Kirkos and life hasn't changed much here for centuries. There are a number of priests, holy men and other religious figures living here, completely cut off from modern society, with no electricity, no phones and very little contact with the outside world.

Journalist Jamie Theakston is on a quest to find out whether Ethiopia's claim to have the real Ark of the Covenant is true. And a high priest on the island, known as Gabriel, agreed to show him around. There are a number of houses and other buildings dotted around the small island, as well as the main church, which is said to date back several centuries.

And this is where the Ark of the Covenant was kept, right? Yeah. Ark of the Covenant before the Jesus Christ. It lived in this highland above 800 years before the Jesus Christ.

So there were sacrifices here on this island? What kind of sacrifices? Sheep and goat sacrifice. So this is a very holy place here? Holy of holy. The holiest of holy. Really? And how long has there been a monastery here?

The priest then shows Jamie where on the stones that the sheep and goats were ritually sacrificed over 2,000 years ago in front of the Ark of the Covenant.

This one sacrificed stones by Jewish people, kills cow, goat and sheep. The blood sacrifice by a papyrus like this one, Holy Ark and a tent.

So they would flick the blood onto the Ark of the Covenant? Yes, yes, yes. The High Priest leads Jamie to the island's treasure vault and shows him what they believe to be ancient relics brought to the island with the Ark of the Covenant over 2,000 years ago, including the actual breastplate that the High Priest is said to have worn and a large bronze dish used for ritual sacrifice. If we follow the history of the Ark,

into battle situations or an inadvertent touching of it when it was being carried across the river by a man who meant no harm but was struck dead.

I think that some of the descriptions might lead us to believe that there were plates of metal rather like a very high-powered battery. So perhaps if the Ark was technology rather than magic, but technology from the Lord alone knows where, then it might have been able to give out electric shocks. I can imagine if you were carrying an Ark,

out in the sunlight, bright sunlight, you know, in the Middle East. You're going to get a high charge on that arc. And if someone comes out who's earthed and touches it, he's going to get one hell of an electric shock, which could kill him, could possibly stop his heart. So there could be some truth in that story.

According to Ethiopian tradition, when Menelik, the son of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon, stole the Ark from the Temple in Jerusalem, he brought it back to a remote island in the middle of Lake Tana in Ethiopia, where it was said to have remained for several centuries, guarded by the monks who lived on the island. Journalist Jamie Theakston has gone there to see the evidence for himself.

And the high priest has agreed to show him some ancient holy relics that he says were used in the worship of the Ark on the island over 2,000 years ago. So these items in here came with the Ark over 2,000 years ago? There appears to be archaeological evidence to support the oral tradition that the Ark of the Covenant went to Ethiopia, to the island at Tana Kirkos.

But in recent times, the priests have shown that they have a breastplate that they claim came with the Ark of the Covenant. So they have Jewish artifacts and relics, which, if nothing else, indicate that relics from antiquity from the Jewish community made their way to this remote island in Ethiopia.

So this is like a breastplate. So the priest would have worn this during the ceremonies. Yes. And this came with the Ark of the Covenant, same time. So this is how old? Before Jesus Christ, about 800 years. 800 years BC. Wow. It's very old. And this one is the blood sacrifice.

So this dish would have been used during the ceremony? So this collected blood? Yeah, blood sacrifice. Blood in here. Blood in here, blood in the corner. And this is made of, is it iron? Bronze. Bronze. This actual bowl came with the Ark of the Covenant from Jerusalem to Ethiopia. Tanakirkos Monastery by blood sacrifice.

So when the Ark left here for Aksum, why were these items left behind? They're without sacrifice in Christianity. Oh, OK. So no sacrifices because Christianity had already started. So this is why they weren't needed. Now, part of the story coming from Tanakirkos is that the Ark was brought there from Elephantine.

and it rested there for centuries before being taken on to Axum. Now, the fact that the other relics are still there, it's rather as if an important visitor had come, had taken off his hat and coat, and had then gone away again, leaving the hat and coat behind. So is this the same age as the Ark of the Covenant? Yes. Same time? Yeah. And it came with the Ark here to the island? Yes. That's incredible.

The priest has one more surprise for Jamie. An ancient ram's horn that could have been used as a trumpet, exactly the same shape and size used in the procession of the ark, as described in the Bible. This is like a trumpet? Yeah. A trumpet. And the priest would have blown these? I've seen depictions of these. The priests would have blown these when the ark arrived, yeah?

They also had these ancient trumpets, and the trumpets that were used, of course, to bring down the walls of Jericho. So they have the sort of artifacts you would expect to come along from Solomon's temple into Egypt and back into Ethiopia. So it's quite curious indeed. And when you're in their presence, it is rather convincing.

I think that there's every possibility that although this Ark of the Covenant is certainly well over 3,000 years old, the fact that it was made of rather hard wood, gold and all manner of other things, it could have survived. It certainly wouldn't have rotted away. Gold wouldn't.

The Ethiopians claim that they have the real Ark is interesting. I mean, basically, they take it to Axum in the Northern Highlands and build a special purpose church for it. It's a nice story. There's some archaeology that might support it, but will we ever know? No one's allowed to see it. If it is in Ethiopia, then it's in a church in Axum, and it is guarded by a guardian monk, one monk that stays there for life.

He is not allowed out of the place, he's not allowed to see it himself, he prays to it, he is fed in the building, and he is the sole guardian of that amazing relic. You have to wonder if the Ark is truly an axiom, because when you look at it,

What are they guarding? They're guarding a tradition. They're guarding national pride. If they were guarding the greatest relic on earth, don't you think they'd have more than one bloke standing there looking proud? I mean, I could storm the Church of Zion and take the Ark of the Covenant. I'm sure of it. So it's not well protected. Westminster Abbey, that's protected. Church of Zion and Axiom, I think it's, they're celebrating a tradition. I don't really think

They believe they have the Ark. In Ethiopia, we are told that the Ark now resides in the church of Our Mary of Zion in Axum, and that the guardian who never leaves the church, there he is in front of the church, in front of the Holy of Holies, guarding this.

and that nobody else is allowed to see it. Now maybe nobody else is allowed to see it because it's simply too holy and nobody else is worthy apart from the Guardian. Or maybe nobody else is allowed to see it because it doesn't exist.

We have the Ark housed in this treasury building in this remote area. And, you know, people that have gone and visited have said, you know, it's not particularly extraordinary. If we had an extraordinary box kept in the middle of nowhere, wouldn't it be in a more secure or aggrandized place instead of just, you know,

guarded by monks in the middle of nowhere. So really, I find it not very plausible. Perhaps it was a copy. Perhaps what they have is an actual artifact that's a copy of the original Ark of the Covenant. But the likelihood that it's the original Ark, I really find problematic. On the 25th of June 2009, the patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia, Abune Paulos, said he would unveil the real Ark of the Covenant to the world.

which he said had been kept safe and secure inside this church. The following day, however, he announced that he would not reveal the Ark after all, but that instead he could attest to its current safety and status. The strength of it being in the church in Aix-en-Mes is so strong because every church in Ethiopia has what's called a tabut, which is actually a replica

of the Ark of the Covenant, or at least the slabs the Ten Commandments were written on, they believe it to such an extent that they parade them through the streets for every religious festival that they have. Faith is an amazing thing.

As interesting as the Aksum story is, the debate about the authenticity of the Ethiopian church's claim to have the original Ark of the Covenant created by Moses on Mount Sinai and not a replica, albeit an ancient one, rumbles on. And the fact that they don't let anyone actually see it has many doubting that it's really there. The fact that in Ethiopia they have probably one of the most famous relics on the planet

You go to Lincoln Cathedral or you go to Westminster Abbey and you are surrounded by officials, by guides, by volunteers. You're not allowed to stand there, you mustn't touch that. And yet, there in Ethiopia, there is one guy who probably is very old by now, all alone, guarding the most sacred relic on the planet. Do you really think so? I'm not so sure.

He's a bit like the grail keeper in British mythology. There's one guardian of the grail, and when he dies, another one takes his place. And as long as he's the guardian, he's not allowed out of the precincts of that church for the rest of his life.

It does seem the way that it's apparently just stood there, rather like a wheelbarrow in a garden shed, rather than having any great air of sanctity about it or a great cordon of guardsmen surrounding it or a cordon of priests around it, we have this one lonely monk who might just as well be guarding a box of spring bulbs.

The biggest problem with the Ethiopian claim is that nobody has seen the Ark. They say they've got it, so where is it? They haven't even shown photographs of it, they haven't shown their grand people, they haven't shown Haile Selassie or Mussolini. Basically, they stand in front of it and say, "You can't come and look at it." It leads one to suspect that actually it does not exist.

So was the real ancient Ark of the Covenant from King Solomon's Temple really brought to Ethiopia over 2,000 years ago? And does the world's holiest relic rest inside the Church of St. Mary of Zion? Or was it just a replica that was carried out of Jerusalem? Want to shop Walmart Black Friday deals first? Walmart Plus members get early access to our hottest deals. Join now and get 50% off a one-year annual membership.

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be passed down like mama's recipes. Take a steak, cornbread, cobbler's pie, pie and potatoes. The next level with three sizes of Yeti cast iron skillets. Gear, gifts and product experts. Visit the Yeti store at Scottsdale Quarter today. Ethiopian Christians claim that the Ark of the Covenant was brought to their country over two and a half thousand years ago and that it rests today inside the church of Our Lady Mary of Zion in the small northern town of Axum.

However, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church has so far refused to show it to anyone. They say that the story about the Ark coming to their country is fact and that they don't need to prove it. Journalist Jamie Theakston is on a quest to find out the truth. Do you think that whatever he brought back is here today? I believe whatever is brought here, not only the Ark of the Covenant, everything is kept secret.

What makes the Ethiopian church unique is that everything is always kept secret from the followers, the Christians, even from the priests too. So it might be here, not necessarily in Aksu. There are so many different theories about the last resting place of the Ark, whether it went to Babylon, whether Titus took it to Rome, whoever conquered Jerusalem was credited with having taken it.

Of all the possibilities, the one that I find most probable is that it rests in Axum. The big question is, is the Ark still in Ethiopia or has it gone? There are two theories. Number one,

the Knights Templar of course in the 13th century. They definitely went to Ethiopia. There are definitely crosses, Templar crosses on some of the churches and there is a possibility they were certainly looking for something and they may well have taken it with them and it may be in Scotland. As long as it's a mystery, as long as nobody's actually touching it, looking at it, measuring it, carbon dating it, doing all the things that would be done by archaeologists if they actually had the Ark in their possession,

then the mystery lives on. The truth is, it's too late for the Ethiopian church to retract and say, "Actually, it's not here." It's part of their annual procession. It's embedded in their national pride. That's what they're celebrating, the tradition that it once could have been there. It's too late for them to pony up and say, "Actually, no, it's no longer here."

We really have four possibilities of where the Ark of the Covenant could be today. The first possibility would be that the Babylonians sacked Jerusalem and took it. The second possibility would be that the Romans took it when they sacked Jerusalem. The third possibility is that the Ark of the Covenant is still under Jerusalem, lost under the rubble and bits underneath the structures of the tunnels. And the fourth possibility would be that it's in Ethiopia.

If only we could get permission for scientists with modern equipment, carbon dating items, etc., to look at the object in Axum, I think we would be able to verify at least the age and the constituents of that mysterious bomb.

So is the original Ark of the Covenant that was created by Moses to God's specific instructions really inside the Church of St. Mary of Zion in Aksum in Ethiopia? The religious authorities say yes it is. But many scholars and historians question this claim, saying that it's most likely a copy, if there's actually anything there at all.

But until it's proved either way, there's still a slim possibility and a huge local belief that the world's most holy relic might be locked away behind the walls of a small church in the Ethiopian highlands.