Crossroads Roundup: Rare Dark Age Timber Hall Found in England, a Mystery of the Egyptian Pyramids Solved, and More

Our favorite stories on art, archaeology, folklore, and more from this past week.

Welcome to the Crossroads Roundup! This is our weekly roundup of news related to history, art, archaeology, and anything else that our readers might enjoy. While many of our essays are free, the Crossroads Roundup is for paid subscribers only. If you haven’t already, you can sign up below to gain access to the full archive, the Patron Podcast, and the Crossroads Roundup:

The dig near Skipsea in East Yorkshire. © University of York

Archaeologists have discovered an early medieval timber hall in East Yorkshire, England. The find could have massive implications on our knowledge of an otherwise shadowy period.

The fall of Rome had a profound impact on everyday life across the European Continent, but perhaps nowhere felt this disruption as greatly as Roman Britain. While historians debate the extent to which the collapse of the Western Roman Empire was an “apocalyptic” event for ordinary people, I feel the argument could be made for the Romano-Britons.

The years after 410 A.D. are shrouded in darkness, and to this day, historians possess very little knowledge of what happened to the Britons during the 5th century. I know that many medievalists don’t like the term “Dark Ages,” as it doesn’t fully encapsulate the complexities of the early Middle Ages, but the 5th century in Britain certainly qualifies as a Dark Age.

A recent discovery at an archaeological site near Skipsea in East Yorkshire could serve as a torch through that darkness.