When Karl Mauch discovered massive stone ruins in the unknown heart of Africa, he was convinced that he had found Ophir, the legendary source of King Solomon's gold. The city must, he felt, have been built by Solomon's men. His ideas were to suit white colonists for generations. But, more recently, supported by the archaeological evidence, black nationalists have challenged these theories and rightly claimed 'Great Zimbabwe' as the work of their forefathers. David Drew treks north across the Limpopo River by jeep and on foot, retracing Mauch's solitary and dangerous route. He recounts how the explorer evaded death and capture to discover southern Africa's greatest stone city.