The Treasure Of Ophir

'When I was a small child...(my) imagination was fired by the age-old mystery of that Lost City of Ophir which furnished gold to the temple of Suleiman and as the years passed, I formed an ambition to discover it... In this fascinating book, the author reveals the unfolding story of his life-long quest to find Ophir. First joining the Royal Navy and then embarking toward China, the author begins a series of adventurers that propel him towards his goal: 'I have learnt that Ophir and the Gold of Ophir represent far more than a lost city and a tale of romance. The lost lands of Ophir may awaken the whole of the Middle East; they may bring prosperity to a poverty-stricken peninsula that is larger than India.'

First Published in 2005. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

King Solomon, the Bible's wisest king, was possessed of extraordinary wealth. The grand temple he built in Jerusalem was covered in gold. Over the ages, many have sought to find the source of the great king's wealth -- but none with so much flair, wit, or whimsy as Tahir Shah. Intrigued by a map he finds in a shop not far from the site of the temple, Shah assembles a multitude of clues to the location of Solomon's mines. From ancient texts to modern hearsay, all point across the Red Sea to Ethiopia. Shah's trail takes him on a wild ride by taxi, bus, camel, and donkey to the gold-bearing corners of this storied and beautiful country. He interviews the hyena man of Harar, is hauled up on a rope to enter a remote cliff-face monastery, and stumbles upon an illegal gold mine where thousands of men, women, and children dig with their hands. But the hardest leg of the journey is to the accursed mountain of Tullu Wallel, where legend says the devil keeps watch over the entrance to an ancient mine shaft... Book jacket.