Fifteen Years of Research Down the Drain?

In September of 1960, LIFE magazine had an amazing article on the June 1960 expedition to the boat shaped object. That article would change forever the way people would view the subject of NOAH’S ARK.

I have acquired an original copy of that magazine and it was fascinating to read the details of that expedition. I can’t remember reading or hearing about this article when I was in the 10th grade but maybe some of you did. Let us know if you remember it. There was someone who did read this article in LIFE magazine and he would be instrumental in verifying that this site was in fact the remains of NOAH’S ARK!

That man was Ron Wyatt. In 1960 he read that article at the age of 27. He believed that the events recorded in the book of Genesis, including the story of Noah and the flood, were true. After reading that article in LIFE magazine, he believed that it was possible that some of the remains of that great ship could still exist today.

He began to study the subject and very soon realized that there were a lot of preconceived ideas out there as to what the remains should look like and where it should be found. He studied everything he could find on the subject and to his surprise there was little information on the subject and much of it was questionable and unsubstantiated. So when he discovered what the Bible said about the subject he got really excited. In Genesis 8:4 it says,”And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, UPON THE MOUNTAINS OF ARARAT.”

Wow! This verse did not exclude the boat-shaped object in the magazine article from being the remains of Noah’s Ark. The object was located about 20 miles south of Mount Ararat which would qualify as being in the Mountains of Ararat.

During his studies he came to the conclusion that if the ark had landed on the volcanic Mount Ararat it would have been destroyed long ago. In 1980 the eruption of Mount St. Helens would convince him of his original belief that nothing would remain of the ark if it came to rest on Mt, Ararat.

He also figured out that if Mt. Ararat was under water and the waters slowly descended as described in Genesis 8:4 and 5, the ark would not have landed on that mountain. Water displacement would have caused the ark to go around the mountain and it would have been impossible to come to rest on Mt. Ararat.

Well, you can imagine what went through his mind with this information. What excitement! I know I would have been excited. I only wish I had read that article back then.

There was another fact that increased Ron’s heart rate a little and that was the length of the object. The LIFE magazine article stated that the length was about 500 feet long. Most people were stating that the ark should be 450 feet long. Why the difference? Well, Ron researched the cubit and found that the Egyptian cubit was 20.62 inches long. He came to believe that because Moses was an Egyptian he would have used the Egyptian cubit in his description in the Bible. So, 300 cubits long would be 515 feet. He would later discover a detached section on the stern of the ship which would make it exactly 515 feet long. But right now 500 feet was much closer than 450 feet. All of this research convinced him that it was worth going to Turkey and study the object for himself.

But how would he find it? A description in the article of 20 miles south of Mt. Ararat for the boat shaped object was not much to go by.

In 1975 Ron found out who went on that expedition in 1960 and contacted them. To their surprise Ron wanted to go to the site. They all tried to discourage him from going and were adamant that nothing was there. All of them were sure except one. Who do you think that was? That’s right, Dr. Arthur Brandenburger, the photogrammetry expert from Ohio State University who still believed it was a ship.

Fifteen years of research down the drain?

There was just one more hurdle for Ron to overcome. After 15 years of research all he had to do now was get directions to the site. His heart was pounding. He was talking to the very people who had been there. Now he would find out how to get there himself. But when he asked them for directions, their answer left him stunned. None of them knew how to get there. If you remember, they had ridden many hours on horse back and were led by the Turkish military so they couldn’t give him any information as to its exact location.

As you can imagine, Ron was tremendously disappointed. He had completed 15 years of research. He had learned so much and was convinced that this could be the remains of Noah’s Ark. He had contacted those who had been there but alas, he didn’t know much more now about its location than he did before.

I personally had the opportunity to interview Ron Wyatt back in 1992 at a public meeting with over 350 people in attendance. I went into that interview with a lot of skepticism about him and his claims about what he had found. However, after that meeting I was a believer and determined that one day I would go to Turkey and see for myself. So, I can understand a little about how Ron felt. Here is one of mankind’s greatest discoveries sitting there waiting to be excavated but it might as well be on the moon. Or so I thought until one day my wife and I finally got to go there. That’s an exciting story for a later article.

And that’s a “Closer Look”

Finally after 17 years Ron decided to go over to Turkey and see if he could find the object on his own. That will be the subject of our next article in a “Closer Look”.

Don’t Forget to check out the rest of the web site and take a special look at the upcoming Noah’s Ark tour information on the front page. You will be able retrace Ron’s steps and discover for yourself that, “Noah’s Ark is Found.”