in 1974, an English archaeologist called Somerville is fulfilling a lifelong dream: to direct an excavation in the desert of Mesopotamia. Yet forces beyond his control threaten his work. The Great War is looming, and various interes groups - Turkish, German, British and American - are vying for control over the land and its strategic and economic prizes. Ther Germans are securing trade routes with a new railway; a major in the Royal Engineers is working undercover, secretly mapping for the British the areas rich in oil; the Bedouin Jehar takes what he can from his new paymasters. The greatest idealist is sommerville, whose intention is to discover and preserve the land's ancient treasures.
