Before there was Indiana Jones, there was Allan Quatermain King Solomon's Mines Allan Quatermain had been a trader and hunter all his life and knew Africa as well as any white man. When returning to Natal, South Africa, Sir Henry Curtis tracked him down and made him a proposition: Curtis's brother had heard of the famous, fabled diamond mines of King Solomon, and taken an expedition to find it. He has not returned. Quartermain possesses an old map to the fabled mines so, in return for a share of the treasure or a handsome stipend for his son if he dies in the attempt, Quartermain agrees to mount a rescue expedition. They journey over snowy mountains, through deserts, and into battle, but it is when the adventurers reach their destination that they must face Gagaoola, evil, clever and the greatest danger of all. The book was first published in September 1885 amid considerable fanfare, with billboards and posters around London announcing "The Most Amazing Book Ever Written". It became an immediate best seller.