Lyman Moreau is a gentleman swindler, who in 1833 finds himself well positioned to assume a false identity and claim a shipment of eleven Egyptian mummies due to arrive in New York from the Valley of the Kings. Exhibiting the stolen goods across several states, Lyman seeks his fortune, attracting curious crowds and plenty of danger as well as love, loss, and a growing sense of his own mortality. By the time he reaches Ohio, Lyman is anxious to unburden himself of the remaining collection and finds an eager buyer among the state's Mormon community.