In the story, a British antiquary named Somerton follows a coded message, hidden in a stained glass window, which leads him to a location in Germany where a large amount of gold is hidden. When he takes the treasure, Somerton finds that a ghost will not allow him to have any rest until the gold is put back in its original hiding place. Readers should be aware that "The Treasure of Abbot Thomas" contains a large amount of Latin text, not all of which is translated immediately.