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Dark Ages

AI Panoramic view of the castle during the Dark Ages. Source: DIGITALSHAPE/Adobe Stock

Why the Dark Ages Weren't Really All That Dark

For hundreds of years, a period often referred to as ‘the Dark Ages’, covering the 5th to the 10th centuries, was looked down upon by historians, especially during the Renaissance and Enlightenment...
King Arthur statue at Tintagel Castle, one of the mysterious Celtic Kings of legend. 	Source: Alex / Adobe Stock

The Royal Burials of 65 Celtic Kings Identified in England and Wales

Researchers in England had always known there was something special about these 65 graves. Now, a new paper explains that these are likely the resting places of powerful post-Roman period Celtic...
The causeway found on Berlin is remarkably well preserved. Source: Morgenpost.

700-year-old Causeway Found Under Central Berlin Street

Located in Berlin-Mitte in the German capital, Stralauer Straße has a storied history which is now known to stretch back to the medieval founding of Berlin in the year 1237. Excavations in January...
Dark Age Britain is the name given to the post-Roman era, remembered as a time when British kingdoms descended into a fight for supremacy. Source: Stanislav / Adobe Stock

‘Just’ War and Martialism in Dark Age Britain

Dark Age Britain has been remembered as a time of great chaos and constant war. After the Romans withdrew from Britain in 410 AD, taking the stability of their imperial structures and large armies...
Statue of King Arthur at Tintagel. Source: Ian Capper / Gallos / CC-BY-SA-2.0.

King Arthur: A Very British Messiah?

King Arthur is undoubtedly one of the most enduringly popular heroes to come out of the medieval era, and he has meant many things to many people for hundreds of years. Over time, the mythology of...
A ‘Cult of Saints’ Meant Plentiful Sainthoods For Celtic Aristocracy

A ‘Cult of Saints’ Meant Plentiful Sainthoods For Celtic Aristocracy

Dark Age Britain was apparently full of “saints”…well, at least hundreds of people gained membership into the ‘cult of saints’ at that time. Up to 3-4 percent of aristocrats may have been awarded...
Early Medieval Europe – Dark Age Death Practices Spread Quickly

Early Medieval Europe – Dark Age Death Practices Spread Quickly

A new study suggests that Europe has been ‘global’ for over a millennium. The evidence for this claim comes from a set of shared cultural practices spread over a wide area in early Medieval Europe...
New Date for Chedworth Roman Villa Mosaic Changes English History

New Date for Chedworth Roman Villa Mosaic Changes English History

Scientific dating methods occasionally rewrite history, and this is certainly the case at the UK Chedworth Roman villa. Using precise radiocarbon dating techniques, scientists have been able to...
Golden Age By Juan Carlos Barquet

Long Lost Golden Age - Just a Myth?

The myth and folklore of ancient cultures speak of a vast cycle of time with alternating dark and golden ages; Plato called it the Great Year. Most of us were taught that this cycle was just a myth...
Mighty Anglo-Saxon Warrior Grave May Throw Light On the Dark Ages

Mighty Anglo-Saxon Warrior Grave May Throw Light On the Dark Ages

The discovery of a 1400-year-old warrior buried in a British field is being hailed as a major discovery and is providing new insights into the so-called Dark Ages and early English history...
Study finds that medieval remedy found in 1000-year-old medical text could hold key to treating antibiotic-resistant infections. Source: shaiith / Adobe Stock

Medieval Remedy Could Treat Antibiotic-Resistant Infections

A possible medical breakthrough has been made by experts, all thanks to a 1000-year-old medieval English medical text. A treatment, that dates to the Dark Ages , is helping researchers to treat a...
Main: Representation of a man firing a medieval longbow. (Oksana Volina / Adobe stock).     Inset: Exit wounds seen on the cranium used in the study. (Oliver Creighton / University of Exeter)

Study Reveals Medieval Longbows Were As Devastating As Modern Guns

A study has revealed the amazing power of the English medieval longbow. British researchers have found that they caused horrific injuries, based on their study of human remains. They have likened the...
The Sutton Hoo movie that will tell the story of the famous Anglo-Saxon treasure is due to come out on Netflix soon. Right: A replica of the Sutton Hoo helmet produced for the British Museum by the Royal Armouries. (CC BY-SA 2.5). Left: The original Sutton Hoo helmet. (CC BY-SA 2.0)

New Sutton Hoo Movie Rights the Wrongs of Archaeological Snobbery

The new Sutton Hoo movie, called The Dig, that is due to be released on Netflix is going to tell the real story behind one of Britain’s greatest archaeological discoveries. It dramatizes the...
Representation of life in medieval Europe at a vineyard. Source: ruskpp /Adobe Stock

How Bad was Life in Medieval Europe Really?

When we think about the life in medieval Europe, we tend to conjure up grim and dismal images of war, poverty, sickness, and the Dark Ages . But was it truly so dark? Is there more to it, or are we...
Left; Whitehawk woman Right; Neanderthal Woman Reconstruction Exhibition, Brighton.

Facial Reconstruction Brings People Face-to-Face With Their Ancient Ancestors

Detailed data and minute details have both fed into an exhibition taking place In the English city of Brighton, that offers people a chance to see not only physical cultural items, but their ancient...
Medieval castle

Were the Dark Ages Really Dark?

The idea of a worldwide Dark Age or universal decline in man’s knowledge may be difficult to accept because the broad deterioration of ancient civilizations didn’t happen at an even pace in all...
3,500-Year-Old Gemstones from Kuwait Shed Light on One of the Oldest Civilizations in the Middle East

3,500-Year-Old Gemstones from Kuwait Shed Light on One of the Oldest Civilizations in the Middle East

A group of Danish archaeologists from Moesgaard Museum discovered some fascinating 3,500-year-old gemstones and the remains of a jewelry workshop in Kuwait. They hope that this discovery will provide...
Burnt Hill Fort in Dark Ages Scotland Was Likely the Stronghold of the Mysterious Rheged Kingdom

Burnt Hill Fort in Dark Ages Scotland Was Likely the Stronghold of the Mysterious Rheged Kingdom

For years, scholars thought a Scottish Dark Ages hill fort that met a violent, fiery end was a stronghold of the Pictish people. But new research shows Trusty’s Hill was likely the royal stronghold...
The Oldest University in the World May Not Be Where You Think And the Founder May Also Surprise You

The Oldest University in the World May Not Be Where You Think And the Founder May Also Surprise You

Although many people would imagine that the oldest university in the world is in Europe or China, it’s not. The oldest standing university on Earth is in Morocco. Founded in 859 AD, Al-Qarawiyyin is...
The Cat Came Back: A More Than Magical History – Part II

The Cat Came Back: A More Than Magical History – Part II

Cats have been on the human scene for 9,000 years. We came out of the caves, and they were there with us. Ever since, cats have been immortalized in art. They have been painted in fresco, sculpted in...
Detail of the Wenhaston Doom

The Wenhaston Doom: A Surprising Medieval Relic, Doomsday Message—and a Reminder of Pre-Christian Traditions

A ‘Doom’ is a remarkable survival of a type of church decoration once common in the Middle Ages but largely destroyed during the iconoclastic excesses of the English Protestant Reformation during the...
Cosmology and the Great year

Cosmological discoveries lend support for legendary Great Year

Ancient cultures around the world believed that consciousness and history move in a vast cycle of time with alternating Dark and Golden Ages - Plato called it the Great Year. Today we know it as one...