Is steel an anachronism in the Book of Mormon?

The short answer

Steelworking fits the Iron Age setting of Laban’s sword near Jerusalem. Nephi’s bow raises a translation question, since the King James Bible uses “bow of steel” where a modern translation has “bow of bronze.” Shule’s swords and the early Nephite references to working steel raise a separate question. The American artifacts surveyed here do not verify that technology in the setting those passages describe.

• Laban’s sword. Iron Age finds establish steelworking in the region and include an iron sword from the Jericho Valley. Compare the finds
• Nephi’s bow. A biblical comparison gives a plausible reason to consider bronze. The material of Nephi’s bow remains uncertain. Compare the wording
• Shule’s swords. Ether 7:9 describes making steel swords locally. Second Nephi and Jarom also describe working steel after arrival. Read the passages
• American artifacts. Iron-ore mirrors, meteoritic iron beads, and copper smelting establish different skills. Norse iron smelting dates to a later context. Compare the evidence

What to say

“Which passage are we testing? The evidence for steelworking near Jerusalem answers the objection to Laban’s sword. The claim about making steel swords in the Americas needs American evidence from the relevant setting.”

The CES Letter lists iron and steel among materials it says did not exist in the Americas during Book of Mormon times. The strongest version of the objection concerns passages that describe people working those materials after arriving. A find near Jerusalem can answer a different question about what could have existed there around 600 BCE. CES Letter, Anachronisms

Laban’s sword in Jerusalem

In 1 Nephi 4:7–9, Nephi takes a sword from Laban in Jerusalem. He describes a gold hilt and a blade of “the most precious steel.” Ancient steel is iron containing enough carbon to change its properties. It can be present in parts of a blade or tool. Modern industrial production is unnecessary.

Metallurgical examination of objects from Taanach suggests smiths supplying northern Palestine could make carburized iron by the late tenth century BCE. A later study of 59 iron objects found steel in Southern Levantine material from across the Iron Age. The Israel Museum also documents a seventh-century BCE iron sword found in the Jericho Valley. The museum identifies the material as iron. Together, the finds establish that iron blades and steelworking were available in the region by the setting of Nephi’s story. They leave the identity of Laban’s sword unverified. Taanach metallurgical study · Southern Levant microstructure study · Israel Museum’s sword

Nephi’s bow and the word steel

Nephi breaks a bow of “fine steel” on the family’s journey before they cross the ocean. The King James Bible calls a weapon in Psalm 18:34 a “bow of steel.” The New American Bible, Revised Edition renders it “bow of bronze” at Psalm 18:35 and reads the image as a figure of strength. The biblical example establishes that the English phrase can represent something other than modern steel. Nephi’s account is a separate passage. The material of his bow and how it was built remain open questions. 1 Nephi 16:18–23 · KJV Psalm 18:34 · NABRE Psalm 18:35 and note

What Ether and the Nephite record claim

• Ether 7:9 places Shule at the hill Ephraim, says he obtained material there, and explicitly says he made steel swords to arm his followers. This occurs after the Jaredite migration in the narrative. The book supplies neither a securely established calendar date for Shule nor an independently identified location for the hill. Ether 6:12 · Ether 7:9
• 2 Nephi 5:14–15 says Nephi made swords after the pattern of Laban’s and taught people to work iron, copper, brass, and steel. The passage leaves the material of the copied blades unspecified. It still describes working steel after arrival. 2 Nephi 5:14–15
• Jarom 1:8 lists iron and steel in a description of Nephite craftsmanship, tools, and weapons. Mosiah 8:10–11 describes corroded sword blades separately from breastplates of brass and copper. Rust suggests a possible ferrous material. It does not give the blades’ carbon content. Jarom 1:8 · Mosiah 8:10–11

These passages put different claims on the table. The text describes particular groups working steel. It does not assign steel to every sword in later wars. The language in Ether makes local manufacture the harder question. An imported heirloom could account for one blade in the Americas, but it would leave the making of Shule’s swords unexplained.

What American artifacts establish

• Olmec magnetite mirror. Researchers identified the polished material as magnetite, an iron oxide. The mirror shows that artisans worked iron-bearing minerals. Smelting ore to extract metallic iron is a separate skill. Optical and chemical analysis
• Hopewell beads from Illinois. Analysis links the beads’ material to a meteorite. Artisans fashioned iron that was already metallic. This leaves production of steel from ore unverified. Journal of Archaeological Science study
• West Mexican copper metallurgy. Researchers date the region’s early copper and copper-alloy tradition to around 600–800 CE. The furnaces and artifacts document a different metal and a later regional industry. West Mexican technological chronology · Michoacán smelting investigation
• L’Anse aux Meadows. Excavation found a Norse iron bloomery and associated debris. Dated wood puts Norse activity there in 1021 CE. This establishes iron smelting in North America before Columbus in a later, Norse setting. Parks Canada site record · 1021 dating study

Matthew Roper’s 2025 Latter-day Saint survey credits early American artisans with working iron-bearing minerals and meteoritic iron. He rates American steel as unconfirmed. Metals and Metallurgy, entries 72–76

What would resolve the objection?

A securely excavated steel weapon would need a defensible date, intact archaeological context, and material analysis that distinguishes steel from ore, copper alloy, meteoritic iron, and later intrusion. A workshop with evidence of producing or working iron could do more to test the claim of local manufacture than an isolated artifact. Corrosion makes finding intact iron harder. Production can leave slag, furnace debris, or fragments even when the finished blade has deteriorated.

A small operation would leave fewer traces than an industry supplying an entire region. That affects the strength of an argument from silence. So does the choice of search area. The Church takes no position on specific locations in the Americas. A geographical proposal needs a site and a date before it can make a useful archaeological prediction. Church topic on Book of Mormon geography

Another possibility is that the English translation uses “steel” more broadly, as in the KJV bow passage. To apply that explanation to Ether or the Nephite metal lists, identify a plausible material and explain the local manufacture and the text’s distinction between steel, iron, and copper. The biblical example gives a reason to ask the question. It cannot decide the answer for every occurrence.

A reply you could give

“Which passage do you mean? Laban’s sword belongs in Jerusalem, where ancient steelworking fits the period. Nephi’s bow raises a translation question. Ether actually describes people making steel swords in the land they settled, and the early Nephite record also describes working steel. I know of no securely dated American find that verifies that technology in their setting. I take the objection seriously and believe the Book of Mormon is scripture. I would test each claim against evidence from its own place and period.”