''Search for the Lost Treasure of Afghanistan'' is a 2007 documentary film, in which travel writer and explorer Tahir Shah heads off to Afghanistan, on a quest to find the alleged hidden treasure of

Ahmad Shah Durrani Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahm ...

. Following the clues in a notebook which was allegedly left to Shah by his ancestors, he teams up with Reza, a young Afghan archeologist and attempts to solve the mystery of the alleged treasure of Ahmad Shah. This film documents some of the adventures that occurred during three trips to Afghanistan between 2005 and 2006. In 1740 Nadir Shah of Persia swept through Afghanistan into

Mughal India The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

during the reign of emperor Muhammad Shah. After sacking its capital at Delhi, he plundered the treasuries of the Mughal emperors, and hauled the wealth westward, over the Hindu Kush, towards his kingdom of Persia. During the journey back to Persia Nadir Shah was murdered in his tent by his own guards. The young soldier

, who was to become first king of modern Afghanistan and the founder of the

Durrani Empire The Durrani Empire ( ps, د درانيانو ټولواکمني; fa, امپراتوری درانیان) or the Afghan Empire ( ps, د افغانان ټولواکمني, label=none; fa, امپراتوری افغان, label=none), also know ...

, found himself in possession of the looted treasure. Ahmad Shah died an agonizing death soon afterwards succumbing to cancer of the face. Legend has it that his death was the result of the curse of the Koh-i-noor diamond. With the knowledge that his health was deteriorating, Ahmad Shah is alleged to have concealed the bulk of the treasure before his death. For almost two and a half centuries, Afghans and their rulers have searched for the alleged treasure of Ahmad Shah. A century ago, Amir Abdur-Rahman sent convicts to hunt in the dangerous tunnels commonly found in the region. More recently,

Al Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

's henchmen have been thought to be looking. Tahir Shah's family lived in Afghanistan for more than a thousand years as rulers, warriors, and mystics. Shah shares the same name as the first king, as well as a common ancestry. His father, Idries Shah, was Afghanistan's most famous writer of modern times, and was also preoccupied with the alleged lost treasure. His own fascination for riddle led him to write a bestselling novel about the alleged treasure of Ahmad Shah, ''

Kara Kush ''Kara Kush'', subtitled ''The Gold of Ahmad Shah'', is an adventure novel by the Anglo–Afghan writer, thinker and teacher in the Sufi mystical tradition, Idries Shah. In Afghan-Turki, kara kush means "eagle" and in the book this refers to the ...

''. This documentary was filmed on location in Afghanistan. It was directed by Swedish director

David Flamholc David Flamholc (born 27 September 1974) is a Swedish filmmaker and director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), ...

and produced by

Caravan Film Caravan Film is a London, UK based independent film production company headed by feature and documentary filmmakers Leon & David Flamholc. They produce both documentaries and feature films, as well as shorts and animation. Documentary films * ' ...

References

2007 documentary films Films by Tahir Shah {{2000s-documentary-film-stub