Black Oxen was a controversial and best-selling 1923 novel by Gertrude Atherton. Described as "subtle science fiction", the film takes its title from William Butler Yeats: "The years like great Black Oxen tread the world."
Lee Clavering, a playwright in New York, falls in love with an Austrian countess, Madame Zatianny. Janet Oglethorpe, an animated and precocious flapper, is also in love with Lee but he hasn't noticed yet. Unbeknownst to Lee, Madame Zatianny is actually 58 years old, and has retained her youth through a rejuvenating glandular treatment and X-ray surgery. Lee's plans to marry Madame Zatianny are thwarted when one of her former admirers reveals her embarrassing secret and, in the end, Lee discovers happiness with Janet.
