Synopsis: Alternate History. Purports to be translated from a Greek manuscript, but is original with this author. Invents a mythology combining Egyptian and Greek elements, including a descent into and return from the land of the dead. Responsible for the construction of various "invented" histories of Freemasonry and Afrocentrism. "Sethos became the hero of this improbably influential fantasy novel... It is a key source of a popular web of conspiracy theories positing a secret pagan subculture of Freemasons, devotees of Satan, and environmentalists dedicated to the overthrow of Christianity." Artemis Gallery: "The book purports to be a translation of an ancient manuscript that Terrasson has found in an unnamed and mysterious nation; he writes that the author is an anonymous Greek in the second century CE. This is very much in the tradition of historical fantasy authors of his time. Sethos, an Egyptian pharaoh who was originally described by Herodotus, is the hero of the story; in Terrasson's version, he combines elements of Masonic ritual and ancient Egyptian mythology. ... The book was hugely popular, translated into English in 1732 (other languages soon followed) and went on to inspire a variety of things, most notably the Egyptian setting and themes of Mozart's opera The Magic Flute."