The Idol

In the early 80's, an episode of the show "Antiques Roadshow" ended in tragedy when the auction house caught on fire, killing everyone inside. For years, there was no indication of what started the fire, but the recovery of a camera that was being used to film the episode offers a look into the last few minutes before the fire started.

It was near the end of the episode, and an appraiser, James, had come to the table of a disheveled, tired looking man named David, who had with him a strange bronze idol of some monstrous being. Everyone else in the room was notably keeping their distance.

James looks at the idol, appearing rather nervous. He tells David that this "a bit out of his range" and asks David why he didn't take it to a museum. David ignores the question and asks James what the idol is.

James explains that this is an idol made by the Tcalans, an offshoot of the Mayan civilization, which started their own culture around 2800 B.C. The Tcalans had a separate religion from the Mayans, which was dubbed "Zharkanism" by archaeologists.

James briefly explains that the Zharkanism was a monotheistic religion, in which the creator of the Earth and humanity was an evil being called "Zharka". The Tcalans believed only an evil being would create a world with so much pain and suffering. They reasoned that all good in the world was a result of Zharka being asleep, and so they constantly sacrificed humans, Tcalans and outsiders alike, to ensure Zharka would remain in that state.

James then says that he believes David's idol may actually be a depiction of Zharka, who had been described in ancient texts as having a skull-like face, two cranial horns and a tail. James gives an estimate that he could easily sell this to a museum for upwards of 5 million dollars.

David is completely unfazed, and prepares to get up and leave. James then remarks about the idol "Besides, I'm sure you'll be glad to be getting rid of that ugly thing". David then starts shuddering and tells James "You shouldn't talk about it like that..."

People scream in terror as James suddenly bursts in to flames, along with the building around them, as the camera falls to the ground. This is the last viewable scene on the tape.

Some research was made as to how the wreckage was dealt with. The burned bodies of all the attendants where found, along with several destroyed antiques.

No remnants of the idol where found.