indicated by the text of the Book of Mormon. The statement was issued in response to reports that the name of the Smithsonian Institution was being improperly used to lend credibility to the claims of those looking to support the events of the Book of Mormon. Book of Mormon narrative Kings After the Nephites arrived in America to the reign of Mosiah II (c. 592–91 BC), the Nephites were ruled by kings. Nephi's brother Jacob explains that subsequent kings bore the title "Nephi". Judges The last Nephite king was Mosiah II. About 91 BC, he declared that, instead of naming a new king, he would finish out his reign as king, after which the Nephites would elect judges to govern them. There were at least three levels of judges: one chief judge, several higher judges, and several lower judges. (Some passages speak of multiple "chief judges", probably synonymous with "higher judges"; for example, Alma 62:47; 3 Nephi 6:21.) Judges were paid according to the amount of time they spent officiating. Mosiah II set the rate at one senine of gold (or the equivalent senum of silver) for one day's work (Alma 11:1, 3). He also arranged for checks in this system to avert corruption as much as possible: After announcing the governmental shift from kings to judges, Mosiah explained the principle behind the change: The system of judges lasted for 120 years, when it was briefly overthrown for about three years (c. 30–33 AD) by an aristocratic cadre, led by a man named Jacob. It was replaced by a loose system of tribes and kinships, which lasted until Jesus appeared in America and established a society that approached the ideals of Zion. The society endured for about two centuries before the people fell into wickedness again. After 4 Nephi, no mention is made of whether the Nephites used judges or kings. Mormon mentions that "the Lamanites had a king" (Mormon 2:9). His inclusion of that detail, phrased as it is, can be seen as a contrast to the Nephites having a chief judge. Since no change in government form is specifically mentioned after 4 Nephi, it is possible that the Nephites continued to use judges until their destruction in about AD 385. See also Angola (Book of Mormon) Genetic history of indigenous peoples of the Americas Historicity of the Book of Mormon Linguistics and the Book of Mormon Three Nephites