Josh Gates Gets Hard Proof Of The Lost Ark Of The Covenant’s Current Location l Expedition Unknown

I’m off to meet with a new researcher with another compelling theory that the Ark made its way out of the city before the Babylonian Invasion, not only out of the city but to another continent, Africa. Welcome to Ethiopia, a country still marred by memories of famine, but in reality, a place of bounty and historical riches beyond compare, a true melting pot of cultures and religions.

Ethiopia has been the stage for some of the most mysterious kingdoms in history. One of them had its capital in the northern city of Axum.

I’m here to ask local historian Sisai Sagai why this dusty city is Ground Zero for modern seekers of the Lost Ark. I want to understand how the Ark comes from Jerusalem, from the Temple of Solomon. How does it get to Ethiopia?

Queen of Sheba—she’s the queen of the Aksumite Kingdom. Queen Sheba traveled to Jerusalem to meet King Solomon. During her stay in Jerusalem, they became two lovers and they had a baby called Menelik.

Menelik grew here in Axum. The Lord says that when Menelik grew to adulthood, he returned to his father in Jerusalem. There, a high priest had a vision that Menelik should bring the Ark back to Ethiopia.

He took the Ark from Solomon’s Temple and brought it here to the Kingdom of Axum.

The Bible is silent on this, right? The Bible doesn’t tell this story. Everything is mentioned in the Ethiopian Kebra Nagast (The Glory of Kings). Yes, this is the Ethiopian holy book. It’s like a Bible. I can show you the evidence. The Ark is here in Axum.

[Music]

Sisai takes me just outside of the city to see one of the oldest churches in Africa. We’re going up there, yes?

The Abba Pantalian church contains ancient manuscripts related to the Ark.

It’s a holy place. The church is perched on Axum’s highest point.

Sisai: “Why can’t the power of the Ark reveal itself closer to sea level?”
The Ark works many mysteries.

What a view. Worth the walk.

The documents we seek are kept in a sacred chamber of the monastery, and the priests are kind enough to bring them into the light.

So, this is one of the old books here in this monastery. It’s about 1,600 years old.

It reads me the crucial passage about the Ark. This is the part that says Solomon and Queen Sheba made a child together. Does it explicitly say that the Ark came here?

Yes, this is what they explained to us. It’s incredible. Thank you for showing this.

To the people of Ethiopia, the scriptures of the Kebra Nagast are taken as gospel. But it isn’t only the locals who believe that the Ark is here in Axum.

Sisai and I hike back to town to meet his friend and my next contact, biblical investigator Bob Cornuk.

Bob has been coming to Ethiopia for nearly two decades, investigating the Ark, and he’s formed tight connections with the community here.

“I first came here about 19 years ago to disprove that the Ark was here. But I started talking to the monks, I started looking at evidence, and it all fit. The more I come here, the more confident I get that their story has merit. They claim that the Ark—the actual Ark and the Ten Commandments—are not far from here.”

“In town?”

“In town. In Saint Mary’s of Zion church.”

“Now, does anybody get to go in and actually see it?”

“Only one man gets to go in and see it—the guardian of the Ark.”

“And who is the guardian?”

“He’s appointed by the church. He’s considered the only one holy enough to be in front of the Ark of the Covenant. He lives in there, and he’ll live in there till the day he dies.”

“And if I go up to the guardian with a checkbook and offer a million dollars?”

“It doesn’t do anything. Not any amount of money will ever gain you access.”

I don’t have a million-dollar check to offer. I work in cable. But if they believe the Ark is there, I have to try and see it.

Saint Mary’s of Zion Church is the most holy church in all of Ethiopia. We enter the gates of Saint Mary’s, a tightly knit complex of chapels and churches.

And somewhere in the middle of it all is, reportedly, the Ark of the Covenant.

“Is it possible to walk to the gate?”

“We are not allowed to cross the line to go closer to the temple.”

“I understand. How often does the guardian come out from that building?”

“He never leaves that compound in his entire life. There’s such a holy terror in their heart that if they violate that, they believe that God will kill them right on the spot.”

“Is it possible, you think, to see if we might be able to maybe try to get an audience with the guardian?”

“We can try, uh, Deacon.”

“Okay, great. Just a second.”

We’re making a request to meet one of Ethiopia’s most reclusive holy men in one of the world’s most restricted places. And it looks like we’re about to get an answer.

The Deacon says he’s not coming out.

This is it. No access beyond here.

No access.

Like so many others before us, we’ve been turned away. To the faithful, the Ark is sitting about 50 feet away from me. It’s maddening. How can we determine if the legend is true without getting a look inside?

Well, historian Bob Cornuk believes he can prove the Ark is here. All we need to do is examine ancient clues that are hiding in plain sight.

“That is unbelievable. This is the Stella field of Axum, a collection of ancient columns covered in enigmatic inscriptions from nearly two millennia ago.”

“This is outrageous to me, just the design of these things. Almost like science fiction.”

They believe these huge monoliths were raised by the fiery presence of the Ark. The mysterious Kingdom of Axum was a powerful trade center in the ancient world, even though Axum thrived hundreds of years after the Ark vanished from Jerusalem.

I’ve already seen Ethiopian texts that claim the sacred chest was brought here. As for the columns, they range from small to the largest one on earth.

But there’s one stone monument in particular that Bob wants me to see.

“There’s a stela that’s fallen over. It’s not that grand in size or elaborate, but there’s something pretty interesting underneath it.”

“Underneath it?”

“Yeah, right on the other side.”

Ah, it’s carved.

“It looks like a pedestal with something on top of it.”

“This is a 2,000-year-old photograph in stone of the container of the Ark of the Covenant.”

“That’s crazy.”

“That is really cool. And be careful for you, because last time a man was underneath that, a snake jumped down and bit him.”

“Really?”

“He was in the hospital for two days.”

“Bob, that falls under the category of, ‘You should have told me two minutes ago.’”

“Better late than never, man. Alright, let’s get the hell out of here.”

If Bob is correct, this second-century design would be one of the oldest depictions of the Ark and could be proof that it was brought here to Ethiopia.

Thank you.