The "Stone-In-Hat" Translation Method in Art

It may sound silly, but one of the reasons I started the "Translation Witness Account" project is because I want a nice picture of Joseph Smith translating the Book of Mormon by use of his seer stone and hat.¹ Perhaps it really doesn't matter in the long run; it seems to be a small detail of a miraculous translation. Still, I find it fascinating and strange. The stone-in-hat method isn't typically described in detail among Mormons, but it hasn't been altogether ignored, either. Usually it is simply stated that Joseph translated the book "by the gift and power of God" using the "Urim and Thummim."² This description can be confusing because the title "Urim and Thummim" was applied to all translation devices—the Nephite "Interpreters" found with the plates as well as the various seer stones Joseph used. Moreover, Joseph appears to have adjusted the translation method over time, according to the accounts of witnesses.³

No official LDS art depicts the stone-in-hat method. Various versions show separating curtains, the plates in open view to scribes, Joseph reading the plates like a book, and other possible anomalies compared to various witness statements.⁴ It isn't clear whether artists who have tried to depict the translation were aware of the stone-in-hat method. Several LDS leaders have mentioned it in official Church publications, however, including B.H. Roberts.⁵ More recently, Elder Russell M. Nelson noted:

The details of this miraculous method of translation are still not fully known. Yet we do have a few precious insights. David Whitmer wrote:

“Joseph Smith would put the seer stone into a hat, and put his face in the hat, drawing it closely around his face to exclude the light; and in the darkness the spiritual light would shine. A piece of something resembling parchment would appear, and on that appeared the writing. One character at a time would appear, and under it was the interpretation in English. Brother Joseph would read off the English to Oliver Cowdery, who was his principal scribe, and when it was written down and repeated to Brother Joseph to see if it was correct, then it would disappear, and another character with the interpretation would appear. Thus the Book of Mormon was translated by the gift and power of God, and not by any power of man.”⁶

This post includes some of the art I have collected depicting the translation of the Book of Mormon. Because art can be a powerful teaching device, having something like an official depiction of the stone-in-hat method would help familiarize members of the Church with what otherwise might surprise them. Later this week I'll be posting a paper I have been working on regarding "Visual Culture, the Myth of Photographic Truth, and LDS Church Art."

The last three pictures demonstrate non-conventional styles and approaches depicting the translation. I'd like to see the stone-in-hat method presented in the former, more conventional style. In the end why does it matter? Familiarity would be one good reason. It would also help to have depictions that don't border on the homemade or cartoony.

Here's one that depicts Joseph using the breastplate and the "spectacles."

The Children's Friend magazine featured a comic strip called "Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon." This image is available under “Coloring Pages by Topic" in the Friend section of LDS.org. In the pane depicting the translation itself the plates are nowhere to be seen, although they might be blocked by Joseph in the chair, and there is no breastplate. His right hand is brought up against the side of his face as though concentrating.

 Where's Liz Lemon-Swindle when you need her? Thoughts?

There are many other depictions of the translation, I might add more later.

FOOTNOTES:

[1]
The TWA project aims to gather all known witness statements regarding the translation of the Book of Mormon. Currently there is no single place to review all known witness explanations of the translation, so TWA will provide the most comprehensive source of witness statements possible in one convenient location.

[2]
Joseph Smith was reluctant to share specific details about the translation process. See BHodges "Joseph Smith's Descriptions of the Book of Mormon Translation," lifeongoldplates.com, 28 September 2009. W.W. Phelps appears to have been the first to use the name "Urim and Thummim" to describe the implements of interpretation in print. See "The Book of Mormon," 1/8 Evening and Morning Star (January 1833): 58.

[3]
See Mark Ashurst-McGee's excellent thesis, "A Pathway to Prophethood: Joseph Smith Junior as Rodsman, Village Seer, and Judeo-Christian Prophet," (Master's Thesis, University of Utah, Logan, Utah, 2000). See also Brant Gardner, "Joseph the Seer—or Why Did He Translate With a Rock in His Hat?" FAIR Conference address, 2009.

[4]
David Keller has compiled the curtain statements at fairblog.org. See "TWA Project: The Curtain Accounts," 24 October 2009.

[5]
Roberts discussed the seer stones in his Comprehensive History of the Church (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press, 1965), 1:129.

[6]
Russell M. Nelson, “A Treasured Testament,” Ensign, Jul 1993, 61, citing David Whitmer, An Address to All Believers in Christ, Richmond, Mo.: n.p., 1887, p. 12.

Picture captions:
1. "Joseph Smith Translating," Harold T. Kilbourn, circa 1970.
2. "Joseph Smith Translating the Book of Mormon," Del Parson, 1996.
3. "Joseph Smith Translating the Golden Plates," Harold T. Kilbourn, 1978.
4. "Joseph Smith Translates the Golden Plates," Robert Barrett, 1988.
5. From Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, 25:2 (Summer 1982), p. 48.
6. From Grant Palmer's An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, p. 3.
7. From the anti-Mormon site imagesoftherestoration.org.
8. I need to get the exact source on this, it looks to be from one of the comic book-style Church publications for children.
9. This image is available under “Coloring Pages by Topic" in the Friend section of LDS.org.