Dawn of Time

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Name the day's historical figure from a birth year, two map pins, a role and a portrait.

Play Dawn of Time

on dawnofti.me

Dawn of Time on 21 October 2026 at clue 3 of 5: an unlabelled world map with the birthplace and death place pins close together in Southeast Asia

Dawn of Time is a free daily history game. You get one historical figure a day and five clues in turn, starting with a birth year and ending with a portrait; each wrong guess unlocks the next clue, and the fewer clues you need, the better your score.

About Dawn of Time

Dawn of Time hides one person from history each day and gives you up to five chances to name them. It opens with only a birth year. The second clue drops a pin for the birthplace on an unlabelled world map, the third adds the place of death to the same map, the fourth names the person's main role, and the fifth shows an archival portrait.

You get one guess per clue, typed into a search box and picked from its suggestions, so a misspelt name does not waste a turn. A wrong guess unlocks the next clue, and Next Clue skips ahead without guessing. The score is how early you got there, from 1/5 to 5/5, or X/5 if the portrait does not help either; at the end the game shows the person's dossier with the portrait's credit and licence.

The game was started by Ahsan Riaz in August 2026, and the first numbered puzzle went out on 24 August. The figures come from a set of about 500 people across 3,000 years, built from Wikidata, Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, with dates, places, roles and image credits checked before a person enters the rotation. A blog on the site explains how the set was built and how to read the clues.

A new figure arrives at midnight UTC. Past days stay playable in the archive, and archive games never touch your daily streak. Streaks and statistics are kept in your browser. The game is free, needs no account and shows no ads. It suits players who enjoy Historydle or Historigame and like reading a map as much as recalling dates.

How to play Dawn of Time

Read the birth year and make a first guess if a name comes to mind.
If you miss, study the birthplace pin on the unlabelled world map.
Use the death place, added to the map next, to trace the person's life.
Read the role clue, then the portrait if you still need it.
Submit one guess per clue; the fewer clues used, the better your score.

Screenshots

Dawn of Time title card: the game's name, the line One mystery daily, five clues, and the five clue steps from year to portrait

Tips

A birth year alone narrows the field more than it seems: think of who was active a generation later.
The gap between the two map pins often tells you about exile, empire or emigration.
Save your first guess for a real candidate; every wrong guess costs a clue.