Tomas WeberSep 4, 2026 – 5.00amOn a baking-hot afternoon in January, Aaron Davis climbed out of a white Toyota Land Cruiser that had arrived at a village of clay-walled huts. It was the peak of Sierra Leone’s dry season. The ground was a rich ochre and dotted with deep, round shafts – mines that villagers had dug to prospect for gold and diamonds. Davis had come in search of a different kind of treasure.On our way to the village, in the east of the country, we had driven past plantations of oil palms and cashews, and a railway carrying iron ore to the coast as part of a Chinese-backed mining venture. Davis, who wore a biker bandanna around his neck to protect it from the sun, had allowed me to join him on condition that I keep the name of the village secret. There were rumours that other foreigners had been poking around.1843 magazineSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Fetching latest articles