Articles by Alison McLean from Smithsonian Magazine

The Louvre’s Priceless Masterpieces

Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo are just two of the works housed within the walls of this fortress-turned-royal palace-turned-museum

January 2008

December Anniversaries

Momentous or merely memorable

December 2007

November Anniversaries

Momentous or merely memorable

November 2007

After three months of battling the U.S. 7th cavalry—which is charged with moving his people to a distant reservation or killing them—and a 1,700-mile trek toward Canada, Nez Perce chief Joseph surrenders, October 5, 1877.

October Anniversaries

Momentous or merely memorable

October 2007

August Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

August 2007

July Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

July 2007

Princess Alexandrina Victoria, 18, ascends to the British throne when her uncle, King William IV, dies June 20, 1837.

June Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

June 2007

A player wearing an old-fashioned catcher's mask

April Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

April 2007

March Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

March 2007

February Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

February 2007

December Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

December 2006

Federal wildlife biologists announce on November 6, 1981, that a black-footed ferret, a mammal feared extinct, has been discovered alive and well and living in Wyoming. The 2 1/4-pound male, found at home in a prairie dog burrow, is fitted with a radio collar and released. By 2006, captive breeding and reintroduction helps the wild population rebound to some 700 animals in five Western states.

November Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

November 2006

November Anniversaries

Momentous or merely memorable

November 2005

This Month in History

November anniversaries, momentous or merely memorable

November 2003

Together They Stay A World Apart

For the Hutterites, the way to heaven lies through faith, communal living and a lot of hard work

November 1, 1998

Picasso Takes on the Masters

A book by Susan Galassi explains why the artist with an eye on the future kept returning to the art of the past

September 30, 1997

The Decorative Art of India's Painted Prayers

July 1995