Smart News History & Archaeology

On January 19, Borthwick Castle will host a six-course medieval banquet complemented by talks from local historians

How to Enjoy a Medieval Feast at Borthwick Castle, Former Refuge of Mary, Queen of Scots

The special event is timed to coincide with the U.K. release of the Stuart queen's latest biopic

Heavily Abridged ‘Slave Bible’ Removed Passages That Might Encourage Uprisings

The rare artifact is the focus of a new exhibition at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

The shell mound erected above the woman's grave prevented acidic soil from destroying her remains

Archaeologists Identify Oldest Known Human Burial in Lower Central America

The unusually muscular young woman was buried in what is now Nicaragua nearly 6,000 years ago

In this 2018 photo provided by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History, INAH, a skull-like stone carving and a stone trunk depicting the Flayed Lord, a pre-Hispanic fertility god depicted as a skinned human corpse, are stored after being excavated from the Ndachjian–Tehuacan archaeological site in Tehuacan, Puebla state, where archaeologists have discovered the first temple dedicated to the deity.

Archaeologists Find First-Known Temple of ‘Flayed Lord’ in Mexico

While the rituals associated with the site may not be entirely clear, identifying the ruins of a temple to the deity Xipe Tóte is an important discovery

President Barack Obama greets Richard Overton, with Earlene Love-Karo, in the Blue Room of the White House, Nov. 11, 2013.

Richard Overton, Nation's Oldest Living Combat Veteran, Dies at 112

The beloved World War II vet didn't let old age stop him from enjoying his 12 daily cigars, whiskey-spiked coffee and butter pecan ice cream

Jeanne Calment in 1895

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Was the World's Oldest Person Ever Actually Her 99-Year-Old Daughter?

Jeanne Calment made history when she died at the age of 122 in 1997, but a new investigation claims her daughter actually assumed her identity in 1934

Ice merchants stored imported blocks of frozen Norwegian fjords in this massive egg-shaped structure

Cool Finds

London Archaeologists Unearth Subterranean Georgian-Era Ice Store

The entrance to the cavernous chamber, which was used to hold ice before the advent of modern refrigeration, was covered up following the Blitz

All of the 45 crewmembers were younger than 30

Laser Scan Reveals Fate of Nazi U-Boat Sunk Near Outer Banks Coast

The July 15, 1942, sinking of submarine U-576 resulted in the deaths of all 45 men onboard

Pithiviers as seen in 1941

Museum to Be Built at Site of Nazi-Occupied France’s First Concentration Camp

Some 16,000 Jews were detained at Pithiviers and neighboring Beaune-la-Rolande before being sent to death camps

Simcha Rotem speaking in front of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising memorial during the revolt anniversary ceremonies in 2013.

Simcha Rotem, Who Fought in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Has Died at 94

Rotem helped survivors of the rebellion flee through the sewers

Cool Finds

Preserved Horse, Saddled, Harnessed and Ready to Flee, Found in Villa Outside Pompeii

Archaeologists found ornamental pieces of a harness and saddle, suggesting the horse was ready to ride when the volcano blew its top

The 1999 discovery of the Nebra Sky Disc, a 3,600-year-old bronze object adorned with gold renderings of celestial bodies, sparked resurgence of interest in deceased prince, who was buried at same archaeological site

This Bronze Age Regicide May Be World’s Oldest-Known Political Murder

The prince of Helmsdorf’s skeleton revealed three brutal injuries, including one that suggests he knew his killer and attempted to fend off the attack

Susan Hiller, "Belshazzar's Feast, the Writing on Your Wall," 1983-4

Tate Britain's Female-Led Exhibition Is a Hopeful Sign of What's to Come

Will 2019 be the year more women artists get shown in art museums?

The Kindertransport memorial in Gdansk.

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Germany to Compensate Child Refugees Who Escaped the Nazis on the Kindertransport to Britain

The program brought an estimated 10,000 Jewish children from Nazi-controlled Europe to safety in Great Britain

The 1938 Christmas greeting would've only held significance for those "in the know"

Christmas Card Addressed to Bletchley Codebreakers Discovered

The lost holiday message features the only known photograph of operatives’ September 1938 meeting, the enigmatic “Captain Ridley’s shooting party”

3D printed model of Pumapunku

Archaeologist Reconstructs Ruins of Tiwanaku Temple in Bolivia Using 3-D Printing Technology

It was like an ‘elaborate lego set,’ says UC Berkeley's Alexei Vranich

The researchers are quick to point out that their findings don't suggest a link between brain size or shape and behavior, but instead offer an exploration of the genetic evolution of modern brains

Neanderthal Genes Influence Contemporary Humans’ Skull Shape, Brain Size

Individuals carrying these ancient ancestors' DNA are more likely to have slightly elongated, rather than rounded, brains

Only one of the letters included in the scrapbook has been previously published

Kurt Vonnegut’s Unpublished World War II Scrapbook Reveals Origins of ‘Slaughterhouse-Five’

Volume features 22 letters from author to his family, photographs of the razed city of Dresden, telegrams and news clippings

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We Finally Know What Sank the U.S.S. San Diego During World War I

After six visits to the ship and sophisticated modeling, historians have concluded that a German mine sunk the cruiser off the coast of New York in 1918

“Nellie Bly: The Virtual Reality Experience” tracks Bly’s travels from Egypt to Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, San Francisco and beyond

VR Experience Lets You Join Nellie Bly on Her 72-Day Trip Around the World

The Newseum, Vive collaboration catalogues the intrepid reporter’s record-breaking journey

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