אודות פרק זה
Abstract: The Grammar and Alphabet, often attributed to Joseph Smith, is demonstrably the work of W. W. Phelps. Attributions to Joseph Smith are based on a single late reminiscence, which was not authored nor approved by Joseph Smith. The notion that the Grammar and Alphabet was used to translate the Book of Abraham is not founded on any solid evidence. This creates an ironic situation: attempts to connect this work with the manuscripts of the translation of the Book of Abraham ignore the evidence of the Egyptian characters on the very manuscripts. Nevertheless, despite the Grammar and Alphabet being the work of Phelps, it does contain some Egyptian, as well as Greek. There is demonstrable English influence on the reconstructed language, though the syntax is Latin. The Egyptian Counting document, on the other hand, is actually based on English, rather than Egyptian. None of this is a problem for the translation of the Book of Abraham, because the Grammar and Alphabet is entirely the work of W. W. Phelps.
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