The City of Teancum Lay in the Borders by the Seashore

Alan C. Miner

When the Lamanites finally took the city of Desolation, the Nephite armies found refuge at the city of Teancum "in the borders by the seashore" (Mormon 4:3). According to John Sorenson's Mesoamerican theory, the location of Teancum could be around the site of Pilapan, some dozen miles away from the modern-day Minatitlan, Mexico on the Gulf coast. [John L. Sorenson, An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon, pp. 345-346]

Joseph Allen places the city of Teancum relative to modern-day Acayucan, Mexico, his proposed city of Desolation. Acayucan is about 28 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. [Joseph L. Allen, Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon, p. 232].

According to Richard Hauck, "the west sea (or Pacific Ocean) must have been adjacent to the city of Desolation, for during a major battle in A.D. 362 the Lamanite dead were "cast into the sea" (Mormon 3:8). By comparing his cover maps, I presume the city of Teancum was somewhat to the northwest of the [modern-day] city of Arriaga, Mexico near the [Pacific] coast. [Richard Hauck, Deciphering the Geography of the Book of Mormon, p. 188, inside front cover, inside back cover]

[See Geographical Theory Maps]

Geographical [Theory Map]: Mormon 4:2 The Lamanites Take Desolation (364 A.S.)

Step by Step Through the Book of Mormon: A Cultural Commentary

References