Ark of the Covenant
- Kadar A-Sayf: "The Ark... of the Covenant?"
- Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad: "Don't be silly, there's no such thing. It's just a story."
- —Altaïr and Kadar when they find the Ark.[src]
The Ark of the Covenant was a golden casing first hidden under Solomon's Temple, which housed a Piece of Eden, the Apple of Eden.
History
In 1191, the Master Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, along with the brothers Malik and Kadar A-Sayf were sent to the temple to retrieve the Ark. During the mission to retrieve it, Altaïr broke all three tenets of the Creed, particularly in his foolish attempts to kill Robert de Sable, the Grand Master of the Knights Templar, who had also gone to the temple to retrieve the Piece of Eden for himself.[1]
As a result, this failure nearly cost the Assassins everything, as Kadar was killed, Malik was severely injured, and the Templar forces were compelled to attack the Assassin fortress of Masyaf. Nevertheless, Malik was able to deliver the Ark and the Apple it contained to Al Mualim, who kept it safe in the fortress library.[1]
Years later, in 1488, the Ark was used to transport the Apple of Eden from Cyprus to Venice. Though the Apple was retrieved by Ezio Auditore, it is unclear what became of the Ark itself.[2]