Between the two world wars|on a hike in the English countryside|Professor John Hill takes refuge from a violent storm in a cave. There he nearly loses his life|but he also makes an astonishing discovery - an ancient manuscript housed in a cunningly crafted metal box. Though a philologist by profession|Hill cannot identify the language used in the manuscript and the time period in which it is was made|but he knows enough to make an educated guess - that the book and its case are the fruits of a long-lost|but advanced civilization.

The translation of the manuscript and the search for its origins become a life-long quest for Hill. As he uncovers an epic that both enchants and inspires him|he tracks down scholars from Oxford to Paris who can give him clues. Along the way|he meets several intriguing characters|including a man keenly interested in obtaining artifacts from a long-lost civilization that he believes was the creation of a superior race|and will help him fulfill his ambition to rule other men. Concluding that Hill must have found something that may help him in this quest|but knowing not what it is and where it is hidden|he has Hill|his friends at Oxford|and his family shadowed and threatened until finally he and Hill face off in a final|climatic confrontation.

A story that features a giant pirate and slaver|a human chameleon on a perilous metaphysical journey|a mysterious hermit|and creatures both deadly and beautiful|this is a novel that explores the consequences of the predominant ideas of the 20th Century.