🔐 What were the Kinderhook Plates?

In 1843, six men claimed to have unearthed ancient metal plates from a burial mound. They were eventually brought to Joseph Smith. Critics have claimed Joseph was fooled by what was eventually revealed to be a fraud. What is the truth of this claim?

🔐 What were the Kinderhook Plates?
The front and back of facsimiles of four of the six “Kinderhook plates” (Wikimedia Commons public domain image)