The story of human origins rests on evidence so fragmentary that all of prehuman evolution could fit into the back of a pickup truck. Every fossil hominin ever discovered, representing millions of years and countless generations, would barely fill a small room.

In the esoteric tradition of Freemasonry, the building of Solomon's Temple required a sacrifice. The master architect, Hiram Abiff, was murdered for refusing to betray his sacred trust, and his death became the foundation upon which the Temple was raised. His body was buried, his word was lost, and his memory was preserved as the central allegory of the Masonic craft.

The Temple of Solomon occupies a unique position in the spiritual geography of the West. It stands at the confluence of the three great Abrahamic faiths, each claiming it as sacred ground.