Finding the Ark Of The Covenant

Today the Conspiracy Files team discuss the ancient Biblical artefact known as the Ark Of The Covenant, and decide where it could be hidden, if it actually exists at all.

The Ark Of The Covenant is a gold-covered chest described in the Book of Exodus as containing the two stone tablets featuring the Ten Commandments.

According to various ancient sources it also contained Aaron's rod (a stick carried by Moses's brother that is said have miraculous powers) and a pot of manna, the substance miraculously supplied as food to the Israelites in the wilderness.

The Ark has been linked to several of the miracles in the Old Testament. It was carried before the Israelites during the Exodus and is said to have cleared dangers including poisonous animals from their path. The Bible also says that it halted the RiverJordan allowing the Ark-bearers to cross. Furthermore, when the Israelites besieged Jericho, they carried the Ark around the until the walls fell down, allowing easy conquest.

One of the strongest claims about the Ark's current location is that before the Babylonians sacked Jerusalem, it had found its way to Ethiopia, where it still sits in the town of Aksum, in the St. Mary of Zion cathedral. Church authorities, however, say only the guardian of the Ark, is allowed to see it, and they have therefore disallowed all requests to study its authenticity.

A second claim is that the Ark was hidden in passages beneath a temple in Jerusalem before the Babylonians destroyed it in 586 B.C.

And there are several further claims about its location, as the team discuss above.