There are several geographical descriptions in the Book of Mormon that not only occur in one place in the world, but were not described accurately (or not at all) on maps published as of 1830. The inland portions of Mesoamerica were some of the last places on Earth to be explored and mapped accurately, and maps contained gross inaccuracies well past 1860. Some of the information supporting the proofs in this section have only been available within the past few years.
When reading the proofs, consider the inaccuracy of the maps of Mesoamerica that Joseph Smith might have had access to.
Proofs:
Not exactly absolute proofs, but very close:
Summary:
The Book of Mormon has an internal map that matches key features in Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. The travels described follow normal travel patterns (via rivers, valleys, passes through mountains, etc.)
No maps published before the Book of Mormon had all of the key features described in the Book of Mormon. All significant natural forces exist to describe those mentioned in the Book of Mormon. The data to verify tsunamis and volcanism has only existed within the past 5-10 years.
The Book of Mormon geography is accurate according to today's knowledge of Mesoamerica. This could only happen if the people that wrote the Book of Mormon lived in this area and had first-hand knowledge of these features and physical forces.
Discoveries are things I found in the Book of Mormon while developing the maps in 2004 that I've not seen published elsewhere (except for Up and Down and A Glaring Vacancy). Several apply to the Bible as well as the Book or Mormon, and can themselves be considered proofs for the Book of Mormon.
