The Navigator

by Clive Cussler

Around 900 BC, a Phoenician ship sails to an abandoned colony and investigates a concealed treasure. It is followed by another ship and the two crews clash. Neither ship survives the battle. Meriwether Lewis's death is connected by Thomas Jefferson to the theft and destruction by parties unknown of a manuscript of word lists about Native American languages. Concerned, he founds the Artichoke Society.

During the final days of the Iraq War, looters steal antiquities from the National Museum of Iraq. Other thieves use this as cover to remove an item for a foreign buyer.

Austin and the NUMA team are looking for icebergs when they become involved in stopping a raid by pirates who are backed by Viktor Baltazar, who believes he's a descendant of King Solomon. At stake is a Phoenician statue known as The Navigator.