Marie, a cashier at the Viennese Grottenbahn (Grave Railway) Zum Walfisch, and Baron Christian von B. fall in love, but the dancer Valette, who always wears a mask over her face, interferes in their relationship. Christian eventually follows Valette to Paris. When he tears the golden mask from her face, he is shocked to discover that Valette is disfigured by an illness. He returns to Vienna to die, but Marie is able to save him at the last moment.
In this film, the ride through the Grottenbahn is associated with a journey into the inner self.
