The original trumpet once held by the iconic Angel Moroni statue found atop the Salt Lake Temple is now officially on display at the Church History Museum of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City.
It rests behind glass and is weathered as a result of its more than century-long exposure to the elements and the hefty fall it took in 2020, when a 5.7 magnitude earthquake jolted the trumpet from the statue’s hands.
Now on display at the Church History Museum just over six years after it fell on March 18, 2020, the historic trumpet forms part of a new interactive exhibit titled “A Firm Foundation,” which was specifically designed for children.
The Angel Moroni statue’s trumpet is “symbolic of the joyful, good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ sounding in every ear,” the church’s Primary general president, Susan H. Porter, told the Deseret News at a media event held Thursday for the exhibit.
“We hope when families come that parents will put away the phone and have fun with their children … (and) we hope that the physical experience will open up conversations that increase that bonding of the child to parent, and both to Jesus Christ.”
The new exhibit — featuring multiple hands-on activities and historical artifacts — is intended to help visitors explore the Salt Lake Temple’s construction and renovation, as well as the significance of building strong physical and spiritual foundations.
It is located on the second floor of the museum and is currently scheduled to remain open there from now through early 2028.
The historic trumpet’s journey after the 2020 earthquake
The 5.7 magnitude earthquake that struck the Salt Lake Valley in March 2020 knocked the nearly 6-foot trumpet off the Angel Moroni statue’s hands just months after the temple’s multiyear renovation project had begun.
As a result, the entire Angel Moroni statue was removed out of precaution, months earlier than planned.
Nearly four years and several seismic reinforcements to the temple later, the gold-leafed statue — now refurbished — was restored to the temple with a lustrous gold trumpet in hand.
This trumpet, however, was not a renewed version of the original.
The original remained untouched and carefully stored by the church, until it was recently put on display at the Harold B. Lee Library on BYU campus this January.
The weathered trumpet remained there until early February as part of an ongoing library exhibit on the Salt Lake Temple renovation, and was later returned to the church’s care.
Now at the Church History Museum, the trumpet lies flat and low to the ground. Children can see it up close and observe evidence of its age and its fall through its dents and patchy, brassy exterior.
“The trumpet is displayed down real low so that kids can get right up next to it and see the craftsmanship of the pioneer artist who created it,” Riley Lorimer, director of the Church History Museum, told the Deseret News at the media event.
“We hope that being able to see the detail of how the trumpet is constructed will give (children and other visitors) a connection to the people of the past.”
What else is on display at the new Salt Lake Temple exhibit for children
Besides the original trumpet, other historical artifacts — such as tools used in the temple’s original construction and canes belonging to Brigham Young — are also on display at the new Church History Museum exhibit, “A Firm Foundation.”
These are accompanied by several hands-on, interactive activities designed specifically for children ages 1-11 to better connect with and understand the Salt Lake Temple’s 19th-century construction and 21st-century renovation.
At some parts of the exhibit, for instance, visitors can test their engineering skills at an earthquake simulation table, operate a child-friendly crane, build the iconic spires of the Salt Lake Temple and create their own stained-glass window designs.
A short animated film highlighting the history of the Salt Lake Temple is also available for viewing as part of the exhibit.
Connecting to the temple and early church history at a young age can “empower (children), right now, to feel like they are valued members of the church and Kingdom of God,” President Porter told the Deseret News.
She added that building her life’s foundation on Christ has “meant everything” to her, and expressed a desire for present-day children to have that same opportunity.
“When you plant those seeds in children early, they’ll grow up with a desire to stay close to their Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ (and) have a desire to one day enter the temple,” she said.
How to plan your visit
The exhibit “A Firm Foundation” will remain on view through early 2028 on the second floor, north gallery of the Church History Museum at 45 N. West Temple St. in Salt Lake City.
Admission to the museum is free, and visitors are welcome to visit the museum and museum store during the following days and hours:
- Monday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
General information regarding holidays and other adjusted hours, plus parking and other items, can be found here. Further information and other FAQs specific to the new exhibit can be found here.
Interested individuals and families may also visit the ongoing Salt Lake Temple renovation exhibit at the Harold B. Lee Library on BYU’s campus.
This exhibit is scheduled to remain open through April and features similarly interactive and informative displays for both young and more mature visitors.
The displays include artifacts, seismic maps, construction photos, reflection questions and an earthquake simulation table, similar to the one at the Church History Museum.
One display at the BYU exhibit also uses augmented reality to enable visitors to see a depiction of the temple’s original foundation, explore its new floor plans and track the progress of the temple’s multiyear renovation.
Learn more about the Salt Lake Temple renovation exhibit at BYU here.
