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Latest Features

Dozens of Smithsonian Institution professionals share their favorite reads from this year.

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Smithsonian Scholars Pick Their Favorite Books of 2021

This composite photograph shows the bison herd with one of the newly discovered petroglyphs overlaid on the sky.

HISTORY

Bison in Canada Discover Ancient Petroglyphs, Fulfilling an Indigenous Prophecy

This glass fish was found in a fairly modest private house in Amarna, buried under a plaster floor along with a few other objects. It may once have contained ointment.

SCIENCE

A Brief Scientific History of Glass

Purdue University's INSPIRE Research Institute for Pre-College Engineering tests toys for how well they develop STEM skills in kids.

INNOVATION

Engineers Pick the Ten Best STEM Toys to Give as Gifts This Year

This 1925 painting depicts an idealized version of an early Thanksgiving celebration in Plymouth.

HISTORY

How to Tell the Thanksgiving Story on Its 400th Anniversary

In "New Glass Now," at the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Renwick Gallery, works by 50 artists, including the hot-sculpted glass work of James Akers, (above: TThe Wild One (B), 2018) amplify the stunning advancement of the artform since the last major survey.  

AT THE SMITHSONIAN

Two New Shows Reflect the Shining Versatility of Glass

Travel by way of these ten titles.

TRAVEL

The Ten Best Books About Travel of 2021

The term “Crusade” has always been an anachronism—a way of looking back at complex, often disconnected movements with a wide array of motivations, membership, tactics and results and organizing them into a single coherent theology or identity. Pictured: A 19th-century painting of the 1177 Battle of Montgisard by Charles-Philippe Larivière

HISTORY

The Many Myths of the Term 'Crusader'

Current Issue

Smithsonian magazine December 2021 issue cover

Most Popular

1.

History

Is the Old Testament Historically Accurate?

Beneath a desert in Israel, a scholar and his team are unearthing astonishing new evidence of an advanced society in the time of the biblical Solomon

2.

History

Bison in Canada Discover Ancient Petroglyphs, Fulfilling an Indigenous Prophecy

Reintroduced to Wanuskewin Heritage Park in 2019, the animals' hooves uncovered four 1,000-year-old rock carvings

3.

Smart News

Amateur Archaeologist in Switzerland Unearths 2,000-Year-Old Roman Dagger

Lucas Schmid's find led to the discovery of hundreds of other ancient artifacts linked to a 15 B.C.E. battle between imperial and Rhaetian forces

4.

History

The True Story of Catherine the Great

Hulu's "The Great" offers an irreverent, ahistorical take on the Russian empress' life. This is the real history behind the period comedy

5.

Innovation

The Ten Best STEM Toys to Gift in 2021

These expert-approved gifts teach robotics, coding and engineering thinking through stories and play

Smithsonian Voices
Conservation Commons

Leftovers and Turkey Takeovers in This Week's Earth Optimism

National Air and Space Museum

National Air and Space Museum To Temporarily Close March 2022 to Finish Brand New Galleries

National Museum of American History

The Workers' Turkey

National Museum of American History

Reviving Indigenous Food Cultures

National Museum of American History

Does Thanksgiving Have Room for Both Thankfulness and Mourning?

National Museum of the American Indian

'If You Lived During the Plimoth Thanksgiving' by Chris Newell Exposes New Truths About a Major American Holiday

See All

Special Report
<p>Artist's rendering of "Futures," an upcoming exhibition at the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Building</p>

Futures

The Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Building reopens on November 20 with a thought-provoking exploration of what lies ahead for humanity

View Full Report

A New, Interactive Sculpture by Suchi Reddy Illuminates Our Hopes and Fears About the Future

From Floating Cities to Biodegradable Burial Pods and Flying Cars, the Smithsonian Envisions a Multitude of Futures

Secretary Lonnie Bunch on What Excites Him About the Smithsonian's New Futures Exhibition

Smithsonian Channel

Preview thumbnail for video 'How the Meaning of Thanksgiving Has Changed

How the Meaning of Thanksgiving Has Changed

Play
Preview thumbnail for video 'Manta Rays Are Smart Enough to Give These Fish Instructions

Manta Rays Are Smart Enough to Give These Fish Instructions

Preview thumbnail for video 'These Traditional British Sweets Have the Best Names

These Traditional British Sweets Have the Best Names

Photo of the day

Antelope Canyon in Page, Arizona is one of those places that you must visit once in your life. It is a natural wonder that can make you feel like you're in another world. Antelope canyon lights and shadows

History

This composite photograph shows the bison herd with one of the newly discovered petroglyphs overlaid on the sky.

Bison in Canada Discover Ancient Petroglyphs, Fulfilling an Indigenous Prophecy

Reintroduced to Wanuskewin Heritage Park in 2019, the animals' hooves uncovered four 1,000-year-old rock carvings

The term &ldquo;Crusade&rdquo; has always been an anachronism&mdash;a way of looking back at complex, often disconnected movements with a wide array of motivations, membership, tactics and results and organizing them into a single coherent theology or identity. Pictured:&nbsp;A 19th-century painting of the 1177 Battle of Montgisard by&nbsp;Charles-Philippe Larivi&egrave;re

The Many Myths of the Term 'Crusader'

This 1925 painting depicts an idealized version of&nbsp;an early Thanksgiving celebration in Plymouth.

How to Tell the Thanksgiving Story on Its 400th Anniversary

Science

This glass fish was found in a fairly modest private house in Amarna, buried under a plaster floor along with a few other objects. It may once have contained ointment.

A Brief Scientific History of Glass

Featuring ingots, shipwrecks and an international trade in colors, the material’s rich past is being traced using modern archaeology and materials science

Astronomers and planetary scientists interested in understanding how often or when the weather patterns occur use past and present images to compare how the planets change over time.

Say Cheese, Outer Planets! Hubble Captures New Images of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune

Heavy rainfall in China this summer led to severe flooding&mdash;something more cities are dealing with as the warming climate affects the intensity and frequency of precipitation.

This New Tool Lets You See Floods From Around the World, Dating Back to 1985

Innovation

The much-lauded exposition-style celebration invites &ldquo;all dreamers, makers, and changers of tomorrow to imagine a more exciting, equitable, and sustainable future.&rdquo;

At New 'Futures' Show, Big Dreamers and Changemakers Activate a Better Way Forward

Smithsonian’s 175th anniversary exposition opens with big-name speakers, family fun and a 21st-century peek into the world ahead

None

What the History of 'Spirit Photography' Portends for the Future of Deepfake Videos

For the Deep Space Food Challenge, teams were asked to design food production technology that would support a crew of four astronauts during long-term space missions without resupplying and achieve the most outstanding amount of food output with minimal inputs and virtually no waste. (Pictured: NASA Astronaut Megan McArthur aboard the ISS) &nbsp;

From an Electric Cow to Space Bread, NASA Announces First-Round Winners of Deep Space Food Challenge

Arts & Culture

Dozens of Smithsonian Institution professionals share their favorite reads from this year.

Smithsonian Scholars Pick Their Favorite Books of 2021

The writings of many fine authors support the research and ambitious undertakings of an Institution rising to the challenges ahead

Swift&#39;s extended version of &quot;All Too Well&quot; surpassed&nbsp;the length of the previous record holder, Don McLean&#39;s 8-minute, 42-second&nbsp;&quot;American Pie (Parts I and II).&quot;

Taylor Swift Sets Record for Longest No. 1 Song, Beating Out 'American Pie' and the Beatles

The black-and-white stills represent the spirit rendered by King Richard, the new film starring Will Smith as the Williams sisters&rsquo; father, coach and mentor.

These Vintage Photos of Venus and Serena Williams Reveal the Truth of 'King Richard'

Travel

Travel by way of these ten titles.

The Ten Best Books About Travel of 2021

With many of our wings still clipped by Covid-19 this year, we needed to travel vicariously through these adventurous reads

To make true Roquefort cheese, the law requires that it must be produced from local ingredients and ripen for months in a cave in southern France.&nbsp;

How Much Longer Will Roquefort Reign as the King of Cheese?

Bound for Chicago with a hold full of Christmas trees, the Rouse Simmons was lost with all hands in a November gale in 1912.

The Newest National Marine Sanctuary Is in Lake Michigan. Here's How to Explore It

At the Smithsonian

Dozens of Smithsonian Institution professionals share their favorite reads from this year.

Smithsonian Scholars Pick Their Favorite Books of 2021

The writings of many fine authors support the research and ambitious undertakings of an Institution rising to the challenges ahead

In &quot;New Glass Now,&quot;&nbsp;at the Smithsonian American Art Museum&#39;s Renwick Gallery, works by 50 artists, including the hot-sculpted glass work of James Akers, (above: TThe Wild One (B), 2018) amplify the stunning advancement of the&nbsp;artform&nbsp;since the last major survey. &nbsp;

Two New Shows Reflect the Shining Versatility of Glass

This 1925 painting depicts an idealized version of&nbsp;an early Thanksgiving celebration in Plymouth.

How to Tell the Thanksgiving Story on Its 400th Anniversary