# Did Joseph Smith Fake the Gold Plates? Dan Vogel Breaks It Down

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/welcome-to-the-weekly-mormonnewsroundup-where-al-dives-ruminate-on-the-great-and-spacious-beehive-5440377/did-joseph-smith-fake-the-gold-plates-dan-vogel-breaks-it-down
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Published: 2026-05-06T01:02:00+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/mormonnewsroundup/episodes/Did-Joseph-Smith-Fake-the-Gold-Plates--Dan-Vogel-Breaks-It-Down-e3ip5f4
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/8e53bf90/podcast/play/119362468/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-4-2%2F423302612-44100-2-07c6d257ea836.mp3
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Duration seconds: 1092

## Resource

Hey everyone, I’m Dives, and welcome back to The Mormon News Roundup.Today, we’re breaking down a fascinating deep-dive from historian Dan Vogel on one of the most iconic claims in Mormonism: the Book of Mormon gold plates.His original video runs over an hour—but in this episode, I cut through the noise and give you the most important insights in a clear, digestible format.🎥 Watch Dan Vogel’s Original Videohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEwzcMEzOaU&t=1s👇 What This Video Covers👉 If Joseph Smith fabricated the plates… how would he have actually done it using 1820s technology?In this breakdown, we explore:The real-world difficulty of creating metal plates in the 1820sWhy most witnesses never saw the plates uncoveredHow materials like tin, copper, or shingles could match descriptionsThe strange “greenish” appearance reported by early witnessesA modern tin plate replica experiment matching reported weightWhy the plates may only have needed to look convincing through a cloth or inside a boxAnd what Joseph Smith’s neighbors didn’t say that might matter🧠 Key TakeawayDan Vogel argues something nuanced:Fully gold, engraved plates? Highly implausibleA partially concealed, convincingly weighted object? Much more plausibleThis aligns with historical accounts suggesting the plates were often covered, boxed, or only partially seen, which lowers the bar for what needed to be physically created.💬 Join the DiscussionDo you think the plates were:Genuine ancient artifacts?A physical prop?Something more complicated?Drop your thoughts in the comments 👇Please consider making a donation by joining our Patreon https://www.patreon.com/MormonNewsRoundup Email: kolob@mormonnewsroundup.org Website: https://mormonnewsroundup.org/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonnewsroundup Instagram: htt…

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