The Lost Ark is the golden chest which the ancient Hebrews placed the remains of the Ten Commandments after they were broken. It was transported to the land of Canaan, and placed within the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. The Ark was lost when the Egyptian pharaoh Shu-shep invaded Jerusalem in 980 BC.
Shu-shep returned to Egypt and placed the Ark into the Well of Souls, located in the city of Tanis near the city of Cairo. Tanis was lost when it was swallowed by a sandstorm which lasted an entire year.
To find the Ark, Jones must find the Headpiece to the Staff of Ra and use clues on the headpiece in the Map Room at Tanis to find the location of the Well of Souls. The Map Room is a miniature model of the city of Tanis and will show the possessor of the Staff of Ra where the Well of Souls is located when the sun passes through the headpiece's crystal at 9 o'clock in the morning.
The Staff of Ra is composed of a long pole on which the headpiece is placed. The headpiece is a palm-sized bronze disk with a single red crystal in the center of an image of the Wings of Ra. Inscribed upon one side of the disk is a warning that the Ark was "not for this world," and a measurement of seven 'kadam' for the length of the pole the headpiece must be placed. This is suppose to be about 72 inches, according to Indiana Jones. But on the reverse side of the headpiece it tells the possessor to take away one 'kadam' to honor the God of the Hebrews, making the Staff of Ra six 'kadam' in length.
There are no images of the Headpiece for the Staff of Ra, but Indiana Jones knows the researcher who knows the most about the Lost Ark, Dr. Abner Ravenwood. Dr. Ravenwood of the University of Chicago was one of Indiana Jones' teachers when he was a student. The headpiece is kept by Dr. Ravenwood's daughter, Marion Ravenwood, who owns a bar in Nepal and was once romantically linked to Indiana.
The Lost Ark was hidden in the Well of Souls located in the center of the main temple complex in Tanis. As soon as Indiana and his team begin to open the cover stone on the Well of Souls an unnatural lightning storm rapidly approaches. The inside of the Well of Souls is protected by hundreds of asps and cobras which have to be destroyed before Indiana can reach the stone sarcophagus that holds the Ark.
The Ark is a heavy chest covered in gold and topped with two angels pointing their wings towards each other on the lid. It is carried by inserting two poles along the side of the chest and having several people carry it. The Ark is approximately 3 feet long by 2 foot wide and 4 feet tall based upon estimates of the characters carrying the Ark. Inside the Ark is a fine grey dust which is supposed to represent the smashed Ten Commandments.
The Ark is believed to be a "transmitter to God" according to the main protagonist in the movie. The artifact has many powers. It will burn away any writing on containers which it is placed. Animals who view the container which the Ark is stored will act strangely, such as the snakes in the Well of Souls or rats on a cargo ship.
When opened and the proper ritual is used, the Ark will summon beautiful spirits of women, but will destroy anyone who looks at the spirits. The spirits will turn into death-head ghosts which will destroy anyone who had not payed proper homage to God by looking away when the Ark is open, melting away flesh and immolation of those not showing proper reverence. After it has killed people, it will suck all the corpses into the Ark and reseal itself.
The Ark is taken from Indiana Jones by the United States Army and hidden in a huge warehouse full of crates in the middle of nowhere. Future movies allude that this is located in Area 51.