Joseph Smith Identifies the Lamanite Warrior Zelph at a Mound Near the Illinois River (Zion’s Camp, 1834)

On June 3, 1834, while Zion’s Camp was traversing the Illinois River valley, Joseph Smith and several brethren, including Heber C. Kimball, ascended a high burial mound situated approximately 300 feet above the river’s level. Observing that the summit featured the remains of three stone altars arranged in an ancient order, the men used a shovel and hoe to excavate the earth to a depth of about one foot. They discovered the skeleton of a man, nearly complete, with the stone point of a Lamanitish arrow lodged between two of his ribs, which had evidently caused his death. Joseph Smith later provided revelation regarding the identity of the individual, identifying him as Zelph, a white Lamanite, a large, thick-set man of God, and a warrior who had served under the great prophet Onandagus—a leader known from the Hill Cumorah or eastern sea to the Rocky Mountains. Joseph explained that the curse had been taken from Zelph, at least in part. Participants noted that one of his thigh bones was broken, an injury sustained years earlier when he was struck by a stone from a sling in battle. Zelph was identified as having been killed during the final struggles between the Nephites and Lamanites. Portions of the skeleton, including the arrow and the broken thigh bone, were retrieved; some remains were carried by members of the camp to Clay County, Missouri, as a tangible witness of Book of Mormon history.