In an excavation site scientists uncover the body of a gladiator from the ruins of Pompeii, stone-encrusted with a bronze medallion bearing a strange Etruscan inscription. Carlo Fiorillo, Italian archaeologist, speculates the robust body may hold some life; medical researcher Paul Mallon scoffs at the idea. But people left alone with the seemingly petrified "faceless man" keep dying of crushed skulls; and Paul's artist fiance, Tina, starts having strange visions.