The Elder Scrolls: Tamriel

Buried beneath the snow near Winterhold, Saarthal is one of Skyrim’s oldest and most significant Nordic ruins—believed to be the first city founded by humans in the province. Destroyed during the Night of Tears, the ruin now lies beneath layers of ice and time, partially excavated by the College of Winterhold as part of an arcane research effort. Central to the Under Saarthal quest in the College’s storyline, the ruin reveals not only ancient Nordic catacombs and draugr-infested halls, but a mysterious, glowing orb of immense magical power known as the Eye of Magnus. As the Dragonborn explores deeper, cryptic visions and magical anomalies hint at the involvement of the Psijic Order and secrets that predate recorded history. Saarthal is more than a tomb—it is a crossroads of ancient magic, buried trauma, and cosmic mystery, where the past and future of Skyrim’s magical legacy are bound together beneath the ice.