Summary The Frankincense Trail is a documentary series that traces the ancient frankincense trade route of Arabia across the modern world of the Middle East. Intrepid presenter Kate Humble follows the 2,000-mile trail that first connected the Arab world with the West on a quest that is steeped in history, searing with desert heat, and full of characters and adventure. For 3,000 years before the birth of Christ, frankincense was more valuable than gold. Its sweet-smelling aromatic smoke was treasured by Pharaohs and Caesars. Their insatiable demand for frankincense created a trade route from the southern coast of Oman to the Holy Lands. Along its path, men waged war and civilizations thrived and crumbled. The treacherous 2,000-mile journey from the Arabian Sea to the shores of the Mediterranean was undertaken by masterful desert traders. Vast camel caravans carried thousands of tonnes of frankincense across tribal lands constituting the modern-day Middle East. Following the trail, Kate explores ancient skyscraper cities, temples to long-forgotten gods, grand palaces and magical ruins buried in sand yet alive with legend. This episode, Kate Humble crosses the Red Sea from Saudi Arabia to Egypt following the frankincense trail of the Pharaohs. Traveling the length of the Nile, Kate enters Karnak, the world's largest religious site. She looks at the mummy of the once beautiful Queen of the Pharaohs, reveals the death rituals of the Pharaohs in the vast tomb of the Pyramids of Giza, jostles with thousands of ecstatic Christians, and in an extraordinary ceremony in the Sinai desert, she is cleansed of evil spirits.

• Documentary