The Mask of Apollo

Nikeratos, an Athenian tragic actor, carries an old mask of Apollo as a professional talisman and moral guide. His career takes him through Greek theatres and brings him into contact with Plato and Dion, whose plans for Syracuse promise a rare alliance between philosophy and political power.

In Syracuse, Dionysius II proves unable to become Plato's philosopher-king, and court intrigue drives Dion into exile. Nikeratos witnesses Dion's return, the civil conflict and his assassination before later meeting the young Alexander, whose abilities suggest a different but unrealised possibility for Plato's political ideals.