Overview

The golden plates are, in Latter-day Saint belief, an ancient record engraved on gold-coloured metal leaves from which Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, first published in 1830. According to the tradition, the plates were shown to Smith by an angel named Moroni, kept for a time, and then returned; eleven named witnesses signed statements affirming that they saw or handled them. This is a foundational sacred narrative for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the wider Latter Day Saint movement, held by millions of adherents.

Because the plates are not available for examination, and because their existence as a physical object cannot be tested by the ordinary methods of archaeology or manuscript study, the site records the artifact as legendary in existence and debated in authenticity. These labels describe the state of independently verifiable evidence; they are not a judgement on the religious truth of the account, which the site neither endorses nor denies. The belief is presented here respectfully and on the tradition's own terms alongside the historical discussion.