Written as a history of the Grail, the author shows how the idea of the Holy Grail dates from pagan sacrifices by the Babylonians, Greeks, Nordic peoples and the Celts and looks at some of the artefacts that people have claimed to be the Grail. The Biblical and post-Biblical accounts of the Grail continued fitfully through the Dark Ages then flowered in the early Middle Ages through the legends of King Arthur. The Knights Templar claimed to have discovered the Grail in Palestine and brought it to Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland. In this book the author traces the histories of these various artefacts and assesses their varied claims, the Glastonbury bronze bowl and the Saint Elizabeth cup from Egypt being two examples.