Book of Mormon geography
A river that runs north, a city on its bank, and a wall in the jungle.
Robert C. Roylance and Dr. Richard E. Terry propose that the lands of the Book of Mormon lie in the Maya lowlands of northern Guatemala and Belize. On their reading, the River Sidon is the Río de la Pasión, the city of Zarahemla is the Maya site of Ceibal on its banks, the land of Nephi is the Salamá Valley in the highlands to the south, and the hill Cumorah is Cerro Achotal near the Río Hondo.
The model in brief
Where the authors place the record
The Pasión River Model starts from the Book of Mormon's own descriptions of distance, direction and terrain, then looks for a place where they fit together. The authors name specific Maya sites for specific cities, and they name a test that could fail.
- River SidonRío de la Pasión, Guatemala
- ZarahemlaCeibal, on a bluff above the Pasión
- MantiCancuén, the river port upstream
- Hill RiplahCerro Chabilchoch, in the hills south of Manti where the Pasión rises
- AntionumUxbenká, southern Belize
- Land of NephiSalamá Valley, Baja Verapaz
- Waters of MormonSprings near the Biotopo del Quetzal
- Narrow neck of landThe earthwork between Tikal and Uaxactún
Episodes
Twelve short episodes
Each episode walks one part of the model, from the River Sidon to the last Jaredite war. There are two versions of the series; the Grok version plays by default.
The River Sidon
A river in northern Guatemala starts in a cave and runs north. Could it be the River Sidon? This opening episode lays out the Book of Mormon's geographic clues and why, on the Pasión River Model, the evidence points to the Pasión River, with Ceibal on its banks as Zarahemla.
Zarahemla Rising
From Mulek's escape from Jerusalem to a fast-growing city on a riverbank in the Petén. Ceibal's rise, peak and emptying are weighed against the record of Zarahemla. Not proof, but on this model a remarkable fit.
Manti and the Hill Riplah Ambush
Around 74 BC a Lamanite army took a hidden route around the head of a river. This episode follows the model upriver to Cancuén as Manti and looks at where the evidence points for the hill Riplah and its ambush.
Follow the story on a map
Eleven chapters walk the record from the Sidon to Cumorah, with every proposed site and its episode.
Open the map → BOOKMaya and Olmec Connections to the Book of Mormon
The 2026 book by Robert C. Roylance and Dr. Richard E. Terry that sets out the model in full.
About the book → LIBRARYDocuments & maps
The authors' earlier papers on individual places, wars and peoples, and the original maps.
Browse documents →A fair hearing
What is strong, and what is still open
Some of the model rests on independently dated events, such as the AD 378 arrival of Teotihuacan forces at Tikal. Other parts are debated, such as reading seasonal wetlands as seas. We show both.
Guide to the Pasión River model
Ask MORONI: questions answered from the sources
MORONI knows every page, episode, map place and document on this site. Type or speak a question in any language; it cites its sources and notes where other models see things differently.