 There are hints of the concept of using brainwashed people to reenact the past in some of de Camp's previous works.In his earlier science fiction novel "Lest Darkness Fall" (1939), the main character considers the possibility that instead of being thrown back in time he has found himself in a Rome that Benito Mussolini has forced to imitate the 6th century, but dismisses the idea as impractical.In the earlier fantasy novel "The Carnelian Cube" (1948) by de Camp and his collaborator Fletcher Pratt an actual reenactment of the Biblical siege of Samaria by the Assyrians is performed, directed by astrology-guided archaeologists using drafted and hypnotized participants.