Surrounded in mystery and tales of demons, the Well of Barhout in Yemen's east – known as the "Well of Hell" – is a little-understood natural wonder.
Closer to the border with Oman than to the capital Sanaa 1,300 kilometres away, the giant hole in the desert of Al Mahra province is 30 metres wide and thought to be anywhere between 100 and 250 metres deep.
Local folklore says it was created as a prison for the demons – a reputation bolstered by the foul odours rising from its depths.
Yemeni officials say they don't know what lies below.
"It's very deep – we've never reached the bottom of this well, as there's little oxygen and no ventilation," said Salah Babhair, director-general of Mahra's geological survey and mineral resources authority.
"We have gone to visit the area and entered the well, reaching more than 50-60 metres down into it. We noticed strange things inside. We also smelt something strange … It's a mysterious situation."
Sunlight doesn't extend far into the structure, and little can be seen from the edge except the birds that fly in and out of its depths.
Videographers seeking close-ups of the inside of the well have said they are almost impossible to capture – local superstition has it that objects near the hole can be sucked towards it.
Mr Babhair said that the well was "millions and millions" of years old.
"These places require more study, research and investigation," he said.
Over the centuries, stories have circulated of malign, supernatural figures known as jinns or genies living in the well.
Many local residents remain uneasy about visiting the vast hole, or even talking about it, for fear of ill fortune from a chasm which, legend has it, threatens life on Earth itself.
Yemenis have had enough bad luck as it is.
The country has been embroiled in a civil war since 2014 between the government and the Houthi rebels.
The United Nations says Yemen is suffering the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with tens of thousands killed, millions displaced and two-thirds of its 30-million population dependent on some form of aid.
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US interest in purchasing territory is not as outlandish as it sounds. Here's a look at some big land transactions between nations:
Louisiana Purchase
If Donald Trump is one who aims to broker "a deal of the century", then this was the "deal of the 19th Century". In 1803, the US nearly doubled in size when it bought 2,140,000 square kilometres from France for $15 million.
Florida Purchase Treaty
The US courted Spain for Florida for years. Spain eventually realised its burden in holding on to the territory and in 1819 effectively ceded it to America in a wider border treaty.
Alaska purchase
America's spending spree continued in 1867 when it acquired 1,518,800 km2 of Alaskan land from Russia for $7.2m. Critics panned the government for buying "useless land".
The Philippines
At the end of the Spanish-American War, a provision in the 1898 Treaty of Paris saw Spain surrender the Philippines for a payment of $20 million.
US Virgin Islands
It's not like a US president has never reached a deal with Denmark before. In 1917 the US purchased the Danish West Indies for $25m and renamed them the US Virgin Islands.
Gwadar
The most recent sovereign land purchase was in 1958 when Pakistan bought the southwestern port of Gwadar from Oman for 5.5bn Pakistan rupees.
Director: Laxman Utekar
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