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TIMELINE OF THE ARK
1400 BC- The Ark was constructed by Moses on Mt. Sinai. Between- Carried before the Israelites during their desert journeys. The Ark was placed in a small temple when the Israelites reached the Promised Land. 1050 BC- Philistines defeated the Hebrews in battle and captured the Ark, which they took back to their home city of Ekron. When they placed it in their temple, the idol of their god Dagon was found the next morning with its head and hands mysteriously gone. The Philistines themselves were afflicted with painful leprosy-like sores until the Ark was returned to the Hebrews. 1000 BC- King David brought the Ark to Jerusalem where its prescence helped reinforce the city as the political and religious center of the nation and helped unify the tribes of Israel. 957 BC- David's son, Solomon, biult the First Temple to house the Ark. It was placed within the Holy of Holies, the temple's innermost sanctuary, which could only be entered by the high priest on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Between- May have been taken to Ethiopia by Solomon's son, Menelik. Or may have been taken by other warring nations such as the Egyptians and Pharaoh Shishak (Ramses III) who looted Israel and took all of its treasures. 586 BC- Babylonian emperor Nebuchadrezzar II sacked and destroyed the First Temple, as a prelude to enslaving the Hebrews. But in the biblical list of all the war-booty that the Babylonians took back with them to their homeland, the Ark is not mentioned, which suggests that it had already disappeared. Between- The Ark was sought after greatly during the Crusades by many including the Knights Templar of France. Men have searched for the Ark for many years, and have made claims, but none with any real significance. 2001 AD- Archeologists are still, to this day, searching for the Lost Ark, which, if found, would be the greatest artifact ever discovered.
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