Smart News History & Archaeology

The replica bones and teeth in place

Once Plundered by Thieves, Ancient Cave Reopens with 3-D Replicas of Stolen Fossils

It took multiple attempts—and two broken printers—to get the recreations right

Napoleon Bonaparte was born on this day in 1769 in Corsica. As a young man at school, one instructor said that he "has always been distinguished for his application in mathematics."

Napoleon's Lifelong Interest in Science

Napoleon was a Frenchman of his time, which means he was interested in how science could do good–he just took it farther than most

Thanks to Disney, this story is so ubiquitous that 'Bambi' is a common shorthand for 'baby deer.'

If You Think ‘Bambi’ Seems Too Mature For Kids, You’re Not Wrong

The popular novel was even a Book-of-the-Month Club selection

Florence Harding put up with a lot during her life, including Warren G. Harding's constant philandering.

Florence Harding, Not Eleanor Roosevelt, May Have Created the Modern First Lady

She did things her own way, and helped to set a precedent for the First Ladies who followed her

Big Ben to Fall Silent During Four-Year Renovation Project

It is the longest time that Big Ben has been paused during its 157-year history

The Fruitcake.

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Untouched, Century-Old Fruitcake Found In Antarctica

Even generations of penguins refused to touch the concoction believed to have been brought south by the Terra Nova Expedition

Winston Churchill and FDR aboard the HMS 'Prince of Wales,' Churchill's ship, when the Atlantic Charter was released.

Months Before Pearl Harbor, Churchill and Roosevelt Held a Secret Meeting of Alliance

The two leaders met in a warship off the coast of northern Canada to talk strategy

Still image from "Don't Be a Sucker," first released by U.S. War Department in 1943.

WWII Anti-Fascist Film Goes Viral After Charlottesville

“Don’t Be A Sucker,” which was released in 1943, urged viewers to take a stand against divisive, prejudicial rhetoric

Casey stands at bat in a 1912 illustrated version of the poem.

‘Casey at the Bat’ Leaves a Lot of Unanswered Questions

Was there a Casey? Where did he strike out? Does it really matter?

Almost since ballooning was invented, people were talking about trans-Atlantic crossings, but it took until 1978 for a crossing to be successful.

A Brief History of Trans-Atlantic Balloon Crossings

Fifteenth time’s the charm, evidently

Alcatraz Island as it looks today.

Alcatraz Wasn't Always 'Uncle Sam's Devil's Island'

Though it was a prison for more than a century, it didn't become the famous maximum-security penitentiary until 1934

The engraved bones found in Gough's Cave

New Research

New Analysis Indicates Early Britons Engaged in Ritualistic Cannibalism

A zigzag pattern on an arm bone indicates around 15,000 years ago, humans in Britain may have consumed others as part of a funeral rite

'Vasa' can be visited today at the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Bizarre Story of 'Vasa,' the Ship That Keeps On Giving

'Vasa' sunk in front of horrified onlookers on this day in 1628, claiming 30 lives

The Louvre Pyramid was completed in 1989 and is part of the entrance to the modern Louvre art gallery.

Three Things to Know About the Louvre's History

The home of the Mona Lisa has a history that's almost 1000 years long

Salicylic acid, the main ingredient in aspriin, is found in a number of plants, including jasmine, beans, peas and clover as well as willow trees.

Aspirin's Four-Thousand-Year History

It's 2000 B.C. and you have a headache. Grab the willow bark

Students of the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania.

U.S. Army To Return Remains of Three Native Boys Who Died at Assimilation School

The Carlisle Indian Industrial School was founded by a military officer who wanted to “kill the Indian … [and] save the man in him”

The sport of angling ("angle" is an old work for "hook") was a popular 1600s pastime that had a number of guides written about it.

This Obscure Fishing Book is One of the Most Reprinted English Books Ever

'The Compleat Angler' is much more than an instruction manual on fishing. It's a Walden-like meditation on nature and friendship

Joseph Goebbels viewing the 1937 Degenerate Art Exhibition.

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Eighty Years Later, Two Exhibits Confront the "Degenerate Art" Purge

In 1937, the Nazis confiscated modernist art from museums and put it up for ridicule in an exhibit that still reverberates today

This Is What Global Dissent Sounds Like

A new project maps almost 200 recordings taken in 27 different countries over the past 26 years

One of the cats involved in the Acoustic Kitty Project was a grey-and-white female.

The CIA Experimented On Animals in the 1960s Too. Just Ask ‘Acoustic Kitty’

Turns out that cats really don't take direction well

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