What is Salamander Letter? How Utah bomber Mark Hofmann shook Mormon church's origin with a forged document
The Salamander Letter is a controversial document that questioned the very foundation of the Mormon Church in Utah. What was "potentially devastating" for the Latter Day Saint movement was later proven to be a forgery. 'Murder Among the Mormons', a Netflix true-crime series premiering on March 3 delves into the story of the notorious psychopath forger-turned-bomber Mark Hofmann, who was responsible for threatening to shake the very origin of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, established by founder Joseph Smith, for his own personal gain.
Kenneth W Rendell, a prominent dealer of historical papers, had confirmed at the time that the Salamander Letter was authentic by stating that the ink, paper and postmark were all consistent with the period. He concluded that "there is no indication that the document is a forgery." Investigators believed that Hofmann sold the letter to document collector Steven F Christensen on January 6, 1984, for $40,000 who later wanted to try to authenticate it and then donate it to the LDS Church.
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What was the Salamander Letter?
In the letter, a magical aspect to Smith's life was implied, which was a controversial subject debated among scholars of Latter Day Saint history. The letter was supposedly written by Martin Harris to W W Phelps, an early convert in the Latter Day Saint movement. It claimed that Smith had been led to the golden plates not by the angel Moroni, but by a white salamander. Hofmann's use of a salamander drew upon legends about certain animals having supernatural powers. It is believed that the forger may have been inspired by the early anti-Mormon book, 'Mormonism Unvailed (1834)', which claimed that an amphibian was rumored to have appeared to Smith in conjunction with the recovery of the plates.
"In the fall of the year 1827 I hear Joseph found a gold bible I take Joseph aside & he says it is true I found it 4 years ago with my stone but only just got it because of the enchantment the old spirit come to me 3 times in the same dream & says dig up the gold but when I take it up the next morning the spirit transfigured himself from a white salamander in the bottom of the hole," the letter said.
The letter went on to claim that the salamander transformed itself into a spirit that refused to give Smith the plates unless his brother, Alvin Smith, was also present. Alvin was dead at the time of that Smith was "treasure digging". Investigators believe that Hofmann may have tried to associate the recovery of the gold plates, with a rumor at the time that Alvin's grave was dug up by Smith's family so that his remains can be used in a magical ceremony.
The letter challenged the "orthodox" version of events as related by Smith and the Latter Day Saint movement by pointing to the possibility that Smith had been guided by magic rather than God’s divine hand.
The 1985 Utah bombings
Although the Salamander Letter did not directly play a part in the bombings that killed Christensen, Kathleen Sheets, the wife of Christensen's former business associate, Gary Sheets, it did serve to fuel the notorious ambitions of Hofmann, who was being pressurized to produce a collection of letters purportedly written by a 19th-century church apostle-turned-critic, known as the McLellin Collection, which would have reportedly fetched a hefty sum of $300,000.
The nails-filled pipe bombs were made and delivered by Hofmann, who was seriously injured by a third bomb that exploded in his car. In January 1987, Hofmann pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated murder. Hofmann avoided the death penalty by agreeing to give interviews to prosecutors that dealt mostly with his forgery techniques and his knowledge of Mormon history.