The study of nearby resolved galaxies is a source of transformational insights into the mechanisms that regulate galaxy formation and it currently provides our only empirical window on how star formation proceeds in the smallest dark matter haloes. To date, the most precise measurements of ancient star formation rely on the detection of the oldest main sequence stars. The challenging observational requirements for such a detection impose severe limitations on the quantity and quality of old star formation histories at our disposal. In this talk I will describe a new approach, aimed at expanding the capabilities of ancient star formation history measurements via modelling of th e old horizontal branch stars. I will present recent results on the ancient past of Local Group dwarf spheroidal galaxies revealing the complex formation history that they experienced. I will show that, thanks to its brightness, the horizontal branch has the potential to deliver very precis e star formation histories, for a large sample of galaxies and covering a cosmologically representative parameter space, constituting a treasure trove for the archaeological characterization of the Local Volume.