Ark of the Covenant

The Ark of the Covenant, also known as the Ark of the Testimony, is a chest described in Book of Exodus as solely containing the Tablets of Stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed.

According to some traditional interpretations of the Book of Exodus, Book of Numbers, and the Letter to the Hebrews, the Ark also contained Aaron's Rod, a jar of manna and the first Torah scroll as written by Moses; however, the first of the Books of Kings says that at the time of king Solomon, the Ark contained only the two Tablets of the Law.

Creation of the Ark

According to the Book of Exodus, the Ark was built at the command of God, in accordance with the instructions given to Moses on Mount Sinai. God was said to have communicated with Moses "from between the two cherubim" on the Ark's cover. Some suggest that there were two arks - a temporary one made by Moses himself, and a later one constructed by Bezalel. 

The Book of Exodus gives detailed instructions on how the Ark was to be constructed: 2½ cubits in length, 1½ in breadth, and 1½ in height (1.31×0.79×0.79 m). Then it was to be plated entirely with gold and a crown or molding of gold was put around it. Four rings of gold were attached—two on each side—and through these rings staves of shittim-wood overlaid with gold for carrying the Ark; and these were not to be removed. A golden cover, adorned with golden cherubim, was placed above the Ark.

The biblical account relates that during the Israelites' exodus from Egypt, the Ark was carried by the priests in advance of the people and their army. When the Ark was borne by priests into the bed of the Jordan, water in the river separated, opening a pathway for all of them to pass through. The city of Jericho was taken with no more than a shout after the Ark of the Covenant was paraded for seven days around its wall by seven priests sounding seven trumpets of rams' horns. When carried, the Ark was always wrapped in a veil, in skins and a blue cloth, and was carefully concealed, even from the eyes of the priests who carried it. There are no contemporary extra-biblical references to the Ark. 

Disappearance

 The Ark traveled around the lands for many years before it disappeared, purportedly into the hands of Babylon. Since its disappearance from the Biblical narrative, there have been a number of claims of having discovered or of having possession of the Ark, and several possible places have been suggested for its location.

<span style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt">One account,  <span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN">written around 100 BC, says that the prophet Jeremiah took the Ark, the Tabernacle, and the Altar of Incense, and buried them in a cave on Mount Nebo (Jordan), informing those of his followers who wished to find the place that it should remain unknown "until the time that God should gather His people again together, and receive them unto mercy."

<p style="text-align: justify; margin: 1em 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN">The Ethiopian Orthodox Church claims to possess the Ark of the Covenant. The object is currently kept under guard in a treasury near the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion and is used occasionally in ritual processions.

<p style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto"> The Lemba people of South Africa and Zimbabwe have claimed that their ancestors carried the Ark south, eventually hiding it in a deep cave in the Dumghe mountains. On 14 April 2008, Tudor Parfitt, taking a literalist approach to the Biblical story, described his research into this claim. He says that the object described by the Lemba has attributes similar to the Ark. It was of similar size, was carried on poles by priests, was not allowed to touch the ground, was revered as a voice of their God, and was used as a weapon of great power, sweeping enemies aside.

<p style="text-align: justify; margin: 1em 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN">French author Louis Charpentier claimed that the Ark was taken to Chartres Cathedral by the Knights Templar.

<p style="text-align: justify; margin: 1em 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN">Several recent authors have theorized that the Ark was taken from Jerusalem to the village of Rennes-le-Château in Southern France. Karen Ralls has cited Freemason Patrick Byrne, who believes the Ark was moved from Rennes-le-Château at the outbreak of World War I to America.

<p style="text-align: justify; margin: 1em 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN">The Ark of the Covenant is alleged to be kept in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, surviving the pillages of Rome by Genseric and Alaric I.

<p style="text-align: justify; margin: 1em 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto"><span lang="EN" style="line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', 'serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN">In 2003, author Graham Phillips suggested that the Ark was taken to Mount Sinai. Phillips claims it remained there until the 1180s, when Ralph de Sudeley, the leader of the Templars found the treasure at Jebel al-Madhbah, returned home to his estate at Herdewyke in Warwickshire, UK, taking the treasure with him.