Episode 1

In 1905, archaeology in Egypt is a rich man's game, the preserve of aristocrats and tycoons... except for the lone figure of Howard Carter.

Carter is a genius and someone that even expert archaeologists turn to for advice. One of them is Maggie Lewis, a member of the New York Met Museum's dig team. Maggie is fond of Carter and tries to get him to join her dig but Carter is determined to plough his own furrow.

Maggie brings to Carter's attention a faience cup and sets the archaeologist off on a trail of discoveries that points to something incredible. Carter becomes convinced that there is a royal tomb that's forgotten by history and waiting to be discovered. He believes the tomb belongs to the boy king Tutankhamun, a little known Pharaoh whose legacy has been lost to the sands of time. Maggie dismisses Carter's theories out of hand but he pursues it with single-minded determination.

Only one man has enough faith in Carter's brilliance to financially back him, Lord Carnarvon. He and Carter form the unlikeliest of partnerships: the dashing maverick aristocrat and the outcast genius, who had no formal training in archaeology. Together they join forces to unearth the greatest archaeological marvel the world has ever seen...

Carnarvon's teenage daughter Evelyn is swept away by the magic of the Valley of the Kings and she believes Carter's theory of a lost tomb. An off-hand comment from Evelyn leads Carter to think that the tomb might be right under their noses, in the centre of the Valley of the Kings.

But the outbreak of World War 1 means that Carter's dream has to be put on hold – perhaps forever.