A Cryptogram in the Phoenician Inscription from Brazil

To understand how circumstances in the 1870’s led the forger of the Paraiba inscription to undertake such a task is not difficult after reading Frank Moore Cross’ article “Phoenicians in Brazil?” BAR 05:01. Yet many of the same circumstances, so masterfully described in that article, could also lead one to conclude that the inscription is authentic. In Book 4, Chapter 42, the Greek historian Herodotus (c. 484–425 B.C.) reports on a fascinating voyage said to have occurred about 150 years earlier. According to Herodotus’ account, in about 600 B.C. by our calendar, Pharaoh Necho of Egypt chartered some ships […]