Heart racing with adrenaline, eyes burning with the fervor of discovery, he watched as the workers pushed open the final stone door to the inner tomb. A blast of fetid air rushed to meet them, bringing with it the dust of millennia. Taking a torch, he pushed the others out of the way and took the first cautious step into the pharaoh’s inner sanctum.

The walls gleamed like molten gold as the fire reflected off the metallic surfaces. A slow smile spread across his face, the shadows making him appear hollowed and skeletal to the now spooked workers.

“Will you not come inside?â€? he asked, his whisper magnified by the room.

They began to back up slowly, frightened by something that he could not see. Eyes wide with terror, somebody shouted something in their native language, sending two forward to push the door closed with all their might.

The torch went out, and the man screamed.