["Cultural Anthropology, Volume 41, Issue 1, Page 82-106, February 2026. ", "\nABSTRACT\nThis article explores a widely circulated legend in Afghanistan in which foreigners are believed to create shrines to conceal buried antiquities. It represents one of several narratives in which locals express mistrust of foreign motivations and geopolitical deception. Building on recent scholarship on speculative undergrounds and conspiracy theories, this article examines how Afghans use folktales to explain obscure events and convey anxieties about literacy, knowledge, and exploitation. Narratives of deception flourish in marginal spaces, such as unknown shrines, which often become sites of doubt, uncertainty, and storytelling. In this legend, foreigners sometimes assume the role of a trickster, reflecting the “intelligent outsider” motif common in Afghan stories that speak to local simplicity and cunning intelligence. This article argues for increased scholarly attention to folktales within the context of conspiracy theories and lived geopolitics, as these stories offer valuable insights into the everyday values, fears, and experiences of people living in unstable environments.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n"]