The Hyborian Age

by Robert E. (Robert Ervin) Howard

"The Hyborian Age" by Robert E. Howard is an essay written in the 1930s that maps the fictional prehistory underlying his Conan the Cimmerian stories. Created to maintain consistency across his tales, Howard's detailed chronicle traces cataclysmic events, the rise and fall of ancient civilizations, and the racial origins of his invented nations. This ambitious world-building exercise links his Kull and Conan narratives into a shared universe, borrowing liberally from actual history and myth to craft a sprawling prehistoric saga that spans thousands of imagined years.