The Barrows Cave artifacts have been a subject of controversy for some time. There are many sources, such as Wikipedia, that suggest that the artifacts are hoaxes. However, the tide is changing as investigators are digging deeper into the authenticity of Russell Burrows’s claim that a number of artifacts were found in a southern Illinois cave.
A March 4, 2020 article by Frank Joseph in the Atlantis Rising Research Group publications supports that previous researchers could be wrong. The article titled “Burrows Cave’ Controversy” gives some credence to the validity of the Burrows’ artifacts. They pose the question: “Could the Debunkers Have Gotten Ahead of Themselves?”
Russell Burrows and Brian Nettles
Russell Burrows discovered the cave in 1982 and has found some thousands of artifacts in the cave, which he discuses in the interview below.
This month on April 1st, 2023, my good friend and expert on ancient languages Brian Nettles, went to Windsor, CO to interview Russell Burrows. Russell is 87 years old and no longer resides in Illinois. Russell Burrows discovered the cave in 1982 and has pulled some four thousand artifacts from the cavern.
Russell is 87 years old and had a stroke three years ago, so speaking is a challenge for him. I have listed the link to the interview below. For me, it is “Gold,” in terms of uncovering the truth about the authenticity of the Burrows’ Cave Artifacts,
A Burrows Artifact Goes to Russia
In 2015, I was invited to give a lecture, prepare a paper, and chair a panel at an international navigation conference in St. Petersburg, Russia. After learning that I was going to Russia, a friend of ours, Duane Erickson, drove all the way down to Fountain Green from Evanston, WY. to give me a stone from the cave that had been given him by Russell Burrows.
On one side it has the face of Jesus, and on the other side of the stone was depicted the Savior’s hand with a nail mark in the wrist. Duane wanted me to help the Russians, and my colleagues, to know that Christ had been in America. I took the stone with me and shared it with my Russian colleagues. The response was positive.
The image at the top of this article is a picture of that stone showing the nail mark on the wrist of the Savior’s hand. On the other side of the stone with the image of the face of the Savior are the five nails of the crucifixion. It is called the mystic symbol, which is the Native North American’s name for their God, Yod Hey Vau, which sounds like Jehovah. Below the Savior’s image is a symbol which Wayne May believes denotes, “Son of my Right Hand.”
A little side note: When I was in Russia, I included in the paper, “How to be ONE with God”. However, they kindly asked me to remove the religion part, which I did. The unedited paper can be seen at Allans Time publications and I have also written a blog article about it.
The Book of Mormon Controversy
Many members of the LDS church—believe in the Mesoamerica model for Book of Mormon geography. Believing that The Book of Mormon location is in South America, is a factor in labeling Burrow’s artifacts as hoaxes. However, others believe that the Book of Mormon geography is in the “Heartland” of America which includes Illinois and the New York area, where Joseph Smith recovered the plates that he translated. Many artifacts have been found by others besides the Barrows cave artifacts, which support the “Heartland” location for the Book of Mormon.
Brian Nettles
My amazing friend, Brian Nettles, is learning how to read these ancient languages. His website: Book of Mormon Heartland describes some of his work. The following characters were copied from the small plates that Joseph Smith translated are not “Reformed Egyptian.” 
These characters were copied by John Whitmer who occasionally acted as a scribe while Joseph Smith was translating from the small plates in Fayette, New York.
Unlike the Anthon transcript, which was copied and translated by Joseph Smith in Harmony, PA, the “Caractor” document does not include a translation of the characters. Brian Nettles has studied Demotic Egyptian and a “translation” of those “Caractors” is now being made.
Brian focused on 1 Nephi 2-3 as John Whitmer’s handwriting is found in the “Original Manuscript” throughout those chapters. This image is from Brian’s website, and I quote from him. “This document is now mostly translated. It is a mix of early demotic with heratic Egyptian.” Brian was able to read to me from this “Caraters” set from First Nephi chapters 2 and 3.
I quote from my blog article the following: “Interestingly, in 600 B.C. the Egyptians were transitioning their writing system from hieratic to demotic Egyptian.”
Archaeologist Wayne May
Another good friend of mine, Wayne May, archaeologist and owner of Ancient American magazine sent me a JPG picture of an artifact that Russell Burrows had given to him. Wayne has started a new magazine this year (2023), LAND OF PROMISE; Uncovering Ancient America. I posted an image of Wayne May’s Burrows artifact in a previous blog article, which I consider to be the most important blog article I have ever written: Wayne’s artifact by itself disproves the hoax theory for this artifact while validating its authenticity.
The Christian world celebrates Good Friday as the day of Christ’s crucifixion—making only two days that He was in the tomb before His glorious world-changing resurrection on Sunday morning. The artifact shows the three days that he was in the tomb, which is documented in this blog article and was not known by Burrows. In addition, this artifact shows the wound marks on the wrist, which was also the same marking as on the stone I took to Russia and displayed above.
Brian Nettles Interview With Russell Burrows
I consider April 1, 2003, Brian Nettles’s interview with Russell Burrows a Godsend to give validity to the authenticity of Burrows’s four thousand artifacts that he pulled from the cave.
I believe the Lord is in the details with His infinite love in our lives. Russell is an unbiased non-member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He knows nothing of the controversy in this church about the geography of where the Book of Mormon took place. He clears up the controversy. He provides authentication for the thousands of items he found. Here is the link to Brian’s interview with Russell Burrows.
Heartland or Mesoamerica?
As a scientist, I placed on the alter the two theories for the Book of Mormon geography: 1) the Heartland model, and 2) the Mesoamerica model. In the following article, I prove the Mesoamerica model false and the Heartland model true.
Having the same writing system in the Michigan artifacts, as in the Burrows’ cave artifacts gives correlation but not proof. But how could that be? It seems logical and indisputable. To have the Egyptian correlations as well, which gives a significant degree of validation, is fully consistent with the Heartland model for Book of Mormon geography.
For me and with the Spirit to confirm, the strong Book of Mormon story of Christ’s visit to America and the Nephites’ knowledge of the Savior’s three days in the tomb and the infinite atonement gives total authenticity for me for the Burrows’ cave artifacts.
David W. Allan