by Barry Unsworth. In 1914, as the nations of the West are making a play for political power and oil in the Middle East, Somerville, a British archaeologist, finds his excavation of a long-buried Assyrian palace threatened by construction of a new railroad to Baghdad, while others--including an American geologist posing as a colleague--try to stake a claim on Iraq's rich oil fields. 30,000 first printing. (Check Catalog)
