Alistair Throckmorton

Alistair Throckmorton is an archaeologist and the father of Theodosia Elizabeth Throckmorton. His history combines painstaking research with a professional betrayal: after a colleague claimed credit for a discovery he had helped make, the British Museum declined to support him. His later work on Amenemhab’s tomb brings that history into the present, but the decisive measure of his character comes when he reaches Theodosia underground and looks to her before looking at the tomb.

Archaeological Work and an Earlier Betrayal

When Theodosia was two, Alistair spent years researching the likely whereabouts of the tomb of Thutmose III, a powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian New Kingdom period. He and Henrietta Throckmorton travelled to the Valley of the Kings, leaving their daughter with Grandmother Throckmorton. The expedition was a success in archaeological terms, but a colleague betrayed them, and Victor Loretti claimed the official discovery.

The loss was compounded by the British Museum’s response. Alistair was working for the institution at the time, but it refused to back his claim and accepted Loretti’s as the discovery. He then left the museum and joined the Museum of Legends and Antiquities. The account establishes the professional consequence plainly: his research had identified a likely tomb location, yet the recognition attached to the work went to someone else. Theodosia wonders whether this history might have left him bitter, but when she studies his face she sees no apparent sign of it.

Research on Amenemhab

In the years that follow, Alistair develops a theory about the location of Amenemhab’s tomb. Amenemhab had served as Thutmose III’s Minister of War, and some attributed the pharaoh’s military conquests to the minister’s brilliance. Alistair’s interest in the tomb therefore extends beyond locating another burial: the figure he is investigating is connected to explanations of the pharaoh’s campaigns and reputation.

The work remains ongoing when Henrietta returns with the expedition’s finds. As she opens a trunk, Alistair and Theodosia crowd around to see what she has brought back. Henrietta confirms that the material was all there as Alistair had said it would be and praises his research. He rubs his hands together in anticipation, while Theodosia notices that Henrietta still has her gloves on. The moment presents his scholarship as active, collaborative work: his theory has helped guide the expedition, and he is eager to examine its results. Nigel Bollingsworth interrupts to ask whether the expedition has brought treasure; Henrietta answers that it has, before opening the trunk.

Father and Daughter

Alistair’s relationship with Theodosia appears through small, practical moments rather than extended declarations. At Charing Cross Station, after they have said goodbye to Henry and watched his train leave, Alistair claps his hands and proposes that he and Theodosia visit Grandmother Throckmorton. Theodosia understands that his cheerful manner does not change her own expectation that the visit will be dreadful. The exchange gives their shared family life a lightly comic texture: he tries to frame the outing positively, while she recognizes the effort and remains unconvinced.

His voice also identifies him when he catches up with Theodosia during her attempted passage aboard a ship. Theodosia hears him call her by her full name, and the captain’s attention turns toward her arriving parents. Even in this brief episode, Alistair’s role is unmistakable: he is part of the family search that brings her situation to light.

The Tomb and His Priorities

When Alistair reaches the bottom of the shaft in the tomb, he does not look around at the archaeological surroundings. His attention fixes on Theodosia, whom he regards as more precious than any artifact, and he steps toward her to ask what has happened and whether she is all right. Theodosia is so affected by this sympathy that she blinks back tears and wants to throw herself into his arms and tell him the whole story.

That story includes how close she came to being killed, the discovery that there had been a traitor among their group, and the continuing danger posed by Von Braggenschnott, who has a gun. Alistair has not yet heard the account in the moment described, but the contrast is clear: while the tomb contains the evidence and objects that have driven the expedition, he first attends to his daughter’s safety. His injured leg makes his insistence on being the first down the ladder a practical concern, yet it does not keep him from reaching her. The scene brings his archaeological identity and his paternal one into sharp relation: the researcher enters the tomb, but the father’s gaze finds Theodosia before the discovery.