Smithsonian Magazine: Explore History, Science, Arts & Culture

In the early ninth century, a Frankish courtier used a story of demonic possession to criticize the realm’s leaders for their “manifold sins.”

How a Tale of Demonic Possession Predicted the Decline of an Early Medieval Empire

A new book examines the rise and fall of the Carolingian dynasty, discussing how people across social classes understood the momentous history of their day

Matthew Gabriele and David M. Perry

A cat in a stroller examines ancient Egyptian artifacts at the Shanghai Museum.

Hundreds of Curious Cats Contemplated Ancient Egyptian Artifacts During a Series of 'Meowseum Nights' in China

Smart News

Scientists Find Another Reason Why 2023 Was So Hot: a Decline in Low-Lying Clouds

December 10, 2024 3:13 p.m.

Geneticists Solve the Mystery of Why Some Cats Are Orange—and Why They Tend to Be Males

December 10, 2024 1:57 p.m.

An Ice Age Infant's Bones Reveal Early Americans Ate Woolly Mammoths as a Protein Staple

December 10, 2024 12:44 p.m.

Dorothy's Ruby Slippers From 'The Wizard of Oz' Sell for a Record-Breaking $28 Million

December 10, 2024 12:07 p.m.

The Ten Best Photography Books of 2024

December 10, 2024 9:54 a.m.

Hundreds of Curious Cats Contemplated Ancient Egyptian Artifacts During a Series of 'Meowseum Nights' in China

December 10, 2024 8:00 a.m.

Latest Features

This year's favorites include Light in the Underworld, Juneteenth Rodeo and Sea Beach.

The Ten Best Photography Books of 2024

December 10, 2024 9:54 a.m.

Scientists have discovered the strongest evidence yet that healthy vertebrates can have brain microbiomes.

Fish Have a Brain Microbiome. Could Humans Have One Too?

December 10, 2024 8:00 a.m.

In the early ninth century, a Frankish courtier used a story of demonic possession to criticize the realm’s leaders for their “manifold sins.”

How a Tale of Demonic Possession Predicted the Decline of an Early Medieval Empire

December 10, 2024 6:00 a.m.

More than 3,000 known dragonfly species exist.

14 Fun Facts About Dragonflies, From Their Lethal Hunting Prowess to Incredible Migratory Feats

Updated: December 9, 2024 4:22 p.m. | Originally Published: October 5, 2011

Pages from the diary of Yitskhok Rudashevski

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

The Discovery of a Jewish Teenager’s Holocaust Diary Reveals How Songs, Jokes and Stories Served as Cultural Resistance

December 9, 2024

Smithsonian magazine’s top science titles this year.

The Ten Best Science Books of 2024

December 9, 2024

An annual event for more than 50 years, the Albuquerque International Balloon Festival has grown to become the largest in the United States.

Brighten Your Day With These 15 Photos of Beautiful Balloons From Around the World

December 6, 2024

In our efforts to increase and diffuse knowledge, we highly recommend these titles this year.

The Best Books of 2024

December 6, 2024

Current Issue
December 2024

Smithsonian magazine December 2024 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

A Little Boy Found a Strange Stone on the Beach. Archaeologists Told Him It Was a Neanderthal's Hand Ax

The artifact is now on display at a museum in southern England. Experts say the find is "so rare that most qualified archaeologists would never find one themselves"

2.

An Abandoned Merchant Ship Was Discovered Floating in the Atlantic in 1872. The Mystery of Its Missing Crew Was Never Solved

Speculation about what happened to the "Mary Celeste," found empty on this day in 1872, was so rife that even famed author Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a sensational short story about it

3.

Researchers Thought They Found Amelia Earhart's Missing Plane. It Turned Out to Be a Plane-Shaped Pile of Rocks

Months after capturing a promising sonar image, they learned that the blurry object was nothing more than a rock formation that resembled the aviator's Lockheed 10-E Electra aircraft

4.

A Trove of Gold Coins Stolen From 300-Year-Old Florida Shipwrecks Has Been Recovered by Investigators

Contracted divers found 101 gold coins from the wreckage of a Spanish fleet in 2015, but they only reported 51 to authorities. Now, 37 of the stolen coins have been found

5.

German Archaeologists Discovered the Iconic Bust of Nefertiti in an Ancient Egyptian Sculptor’s Studio. Find Out Why Their Discovery Is Now One of Archaeology’s Most Controversial

For over a century, ever since the bust was found on this day in 1912, the world has debated who should rightfully own this work of timeless beauty

Special Report

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Our Sustainable Future

A hub dedicated to the latest on how global change affects life on Earth today and on what solutions scientists, including those at the Smithsonian, are researching to build a more sustainable planet

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Featured Stories

In Miami, the Nation’s First Chief Heat Officer Charts a Course for Surviving on a Warming Planet

Inside the Effort to Save Earth's Biocrusts

Can the Noise in Sports Arenas Be Turned Into Electricity?

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Smithsonian Videos

Preview thumbnail for video '10 Fun Facts About Jellyfish

10 Fun Facts About Jellyfish

Preview thumbnail for video 'The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

The Ultimate Skywatching Guide for Every Season

Preview thumbnail for video '10 Enchanting Butterfly Facts Revealed!

10 Enchanting Butterfly Facts Revealed!

Photo of the day

One of many bridges in old Summer Palace in Beijin.

History

In the early ninth century, a Frankish courtier used a story of demonic possession to criticize the realm’s leaders for their “manifold sins.”

How a Tale of Demonic Possession Predicted the Decline of an Early Medieval Empire

A new book examines the rise and fall of the Carolingian dynasty, discussing how people across social classes understood the momentous history of their day

Pages from the diary of Yitskhok Rudashevski

The Discovery of a Jewish Teenager’s Holocaust Diary Reveals How Songs, Jokes and Stories Served as Cultural Resistance

Smithsonian's picks for the best history books of 2024 include The Barn, Eden Undone and The Wide Wide Sea.

The Ten Best History Books of 2024

Science

A view of the soft-bottomed Los Angeles River below the 400-foot-long Taylor Yard Bridge in Elysian Valley. The newest Taylor Yard parcel, currently fenced off as it undergoes toxic remediation, can be seen on the far right.

How the Arrival of an Endangered Bird Indicates What’s Possible for the L.A. River

Could the waterway that the city was built around make a comeback?

By examining the fossils of ancient creatures, scientists are able to see the origins of features that make mammals different from other animals.

How to Make a Mammal in Nine Evolutionary Steps

A photo of Neptune, taken by the Voyager 2 probe, with the colors rebalanced to represent its truest appearance

The Six Most Amazing Discoveries We’ve Made About Neptune

Innovation

Thirty-six homes—the world’s last topped with a traditional eelgrass roof—all sit here on Laeso.

Could Eelgrass Be the Next Big Bio-Based Building Material?

On the island of Laeso in Denmark, one man is reviving the lost art of eelgrass thatching and, in doing so, bringing attention to a plant that has great potential

John Larson's original polygraph, a gift to the Smithsonian from the Berkeley Police Department, where Larson was the first rookie cop with a PhD.

Why the Creator of One of the First ‘Lie Detectors’ Lived to Regret His Invention

“Cité Mémoire” is a digital multimedia installation illustrating the moments that have shaped Montreal’s last 400 years.

Cities Are Projecting Their History Onto Streets and Buildings After Dark

Arts & Culture

The theme of this year's creepy doll contest at the History Center of Olmsted County is "Circus After Dark."

The Creepy Doll Contest Is Back—and It's Time to Cast Your Vote for the Most Terrifying Toy

Step right up and see the spooky circus dolls—from creepy clowns to frightening fortune-tellers—in a Minnesota museum's vintage toy collection

Mask, Jackson Pollock, 1941

Before He Created His Vibrant Drip Paintings, Jackson Pollock Took Inspiration From Pablo Picasso

The Ofaerufoss waterfall is part of the Nyrdri-Ofaera River, meaning the “impassable northern river.” The river flows into Eldgja, or the “Canyon of Fire.”

Go Chasing Waterfalls With These 15 Awe-Inspiring Images

Travel

“Cité Mémoire” is a digital multimedia installation illustrating the moments that have shaped Montreal’s last 400 years.

Cities Are Projecting Their History Onto Streets and Buildings After Dark

Pedestrians in Montreal, Grand Rapids and other locations can time-travel thanks to installations that map historical scenes directly onto the cityscapes

The Ofaerufoss waterfall is part of the Nyrdri-Ofaera River, meaning the “impassable northern river.” The river flows into Eldgja, or the “Canyon of Fire.”

Go Chasing Waterfalls With These 15 Awe-Inspiring Images

Sculpted monsters, open tombs and dramatic depictions of supernatural combatants make visiting the Sacro Bosco more akin to braving a Renaissance version of a haunted house.

Discover the Mysteries of Italy's Park of Monsters, a 16th-Century Garden Filled With Strange, Colossal Stone Creatures

At the Smithsonian

Pages from the diary of Yitskhok Rudashevski

The Discovery of a Jewish Teenager’s Holocaust Diary Reveals How Songs, Jokes and Stories Served as Cultural Resistance

Yitskhok Rudashevski documented his life while hiding from Nazis, as well as folklore told in his community that “must be collected and preserved as a treasure for the future”

This year's list includes Clouds in Space, The Manicurist's Daughter and The Ministry of Time.

The Best Books of 2024, as Chosen by Smithsonian Scholars

A sculptor's rendering of "Lucy," Australopithecus afarensis, at the Houston Museum of Natural Science on August 28, 2007, in Houston, Texas.

What 'Lucy,' One of the World's Most Important Fossils, Has Taught Scientists in the 50 Years Since Her Discovery