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September 5, 2008 11:50:54 PM CDT

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Paging Indiana Jones: Scholar Finds Ark

Posted Feb 22, 08 11:03 AM CST in Arts & Living,  World 

(Newser) – A real-life Indiana Jones says he has found the Ark of the Covenant—not on the set of the latest Raiders of the Lost Ark movie, but on a shelf in a museum storeroom in Zimbabwe. The alleged ark is an old drum with an uncharacteristic charred hole on its bottom and remnants of carrying rings on the corners, Time reports.

A British professor traced the ark through the oral history of a southern African clan descended from the temple priests of ancient Judaism. Tudor Parfitt says the original ark destroyed itself 400 years ago, according to clan legend, and was replaced by the Zimbabwe drum, "the last thing on Earth in direct descent from the Ark of Moses."

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This gilded bas-relief at the Auch Cathedral illustrates the legendary ark of the covenant. A real-life artifact of supposed similar origins has been recovered in Zimbabwe.   (Wikimedia Commons)
A late 19th-century artist's conception of the Ark of the Covenant.   (Public Domain)
In this undated promotional photo provided by Paramount Pictures, actor Harrison Ford comes face-to-face with a cobra in a scene from the first of four Indiana Jones adventure films, "Raiders of the Lost...   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Ark of the Covenant -- Lost or Hidden Away   (vincentyeo88 (YouTube))
The Ark is opened in this memorable scene from "Raiders of the Lost Ark."   (LiberalTom (YouTube))

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

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