Izapa Stela #5
Location: Izapa (es-ah-pa) in Chiapas, Mexico
Description: From The Messiah in Ancient America – “Izapa Stela 5 is possibly one of the most important graphic depictions of the tree of life. Dated to the late Preclassic phase, about 300 – 50 B.C., it is the earliest Mesoamerican depiction of the tree of life discovered so far. The tree, the river, the path, and the rod of iron are clearly portrayed on the stone.” [9] The tree of life, filthy river, path, and rod of iron are all a part of Lehi’s vision in the Book of Mormon. In addition, Nephi, Lehi, Sariah, Laman, and Lemuel are also believed to be depicted.
Read about Lehi’s Vision in 1 Nephi Chapters 2 and 3.
Key:
- Tree of Life with fruit
- Someone partakes of the fruit from the Tree of Life
- Someone blinded (hood over head) by the temptations of the world
- Sariah
- Lehi pointing to the Tree of Life
- Laman (or Lemuel) with back to the Tree of Life
- Lemuel (or Laman) with back to the Tree of Life
- Nephi pointing to the Tree of Life
- Sam
- The straight and narrow path and the rod of iron
- River
Drawing of Izapa Stela 5. Drawing by Madman2001, Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. Retrieved April 23, 2011. Numbers in red added.
