Meilan Solly

Meilan Solly

Meilan Solly is Smithsonian magazine's senior associate digital editor, history.

Stories from this author

Researchers claim that they "defrosted" two ancient nematodes, which began moving and eating. If the claims hold up, it will be a scientific discovery for the ages

Ancient Roundworms Allegedly Resurrected From Russian Permafrost

Skeptics cite possibility of ancient samples’ contamination by contemporary organisms

MASTODON MAXIMUS. CUV. [Cuvier]; Orra White Hitchcock (1796–1863); Amherst, Massachusetts; 1828–1840; pen and ink and watercolor wash on cotton, with woven tape binding

Art, Science and Religion Blend in Exhibition Honoring Illustrator Orra White Hitchcock

Orra’s paintings and drawings depict the natural world in colorful detail

Salvador Dalí, "Gala Placidia. Galatea of the Spheres," 1952

Why Gala Dalí—Muse, Model and Artist—Was More Than Just Salvador’s Wife

Barcelona exhibition draws on 315 artifacts to unravel the myths behind central surrealist figure

Tracey Emin, "Death Mask," 2002

This Initiative Is Loaning Artwork Back to the Communities They’re Most Associated With

Britain’s National Portrait Gallery’s ‘Coming Home’ initiative will loan portraits to the towns and cities most closely associated with their subjects

Rosa Parks lived in her brother's Detroit home after fleeing the south

Rosa Parks’ Detroit Home Is Now Up for Auction

Parts of the tiny home where the civil rights activist lived with 17 family members are expected to sell for between $1 and $3 million

"Portrait of Harriet Tubman," 1868-69

Library of Congress Puts Spotlight on 440 Snapshots Culled From Archive of 14 Million

About 300 of the images have been newly digitized, and 200 of these are free for public use

An artist's rendering of the Lingwu Amazing Dragon

‘Amazing Dragon’ Fossils Unearthed in China Rewrite Story of Long-Necked Dinosaurs

The dino family emerged 15 million years earlier than previously thought

Willem de Kooning photographed in studio

Art Dealer Discovers Six Alleged Willem de Kooning Paintings in New Jersey Storage Locker

Boxes labeled with artist’s name were found among the 200 abandoned works

The spider’s tastes are shifting away from springtails, triggering a cycle of events that could serve as a welcome deterrence to Arctic climate change

How the Wolf Spider’s Diet May Help Keep the Arctic Cool

As temperatures rise, the spider dines differently, resulting in a cascade of effects in the Arctic

Archaeologists unearthed a 14-room home, likely used by a commander of Emperor Hadrian's Praetorian Guard, back in March

Construction on Rome’s Newest Subway Line Is Revealing a Trove of Ancient Treasures

Archaeologists have unearthed 2,000-year-old barracks, a military commander’s home and thousands of artifacts

Yves Klein's "Jonathan Swift" stands alongside the Blenheim Palace's collection of Old Master portraits

See Yves Klein’s Experimental Art Take Over the Palatial Blenheim Estate

Paintings and sculptures rendered in Klein’s signature blue stand alongside Old Masters, 18th-century baroque stylings

To physicist Michael Pravikoff, the study is more about scientific curiosity than a tangible threat to public safety

California Wine Shows Traces of Fukushima Fallout

Although cabernet bottled after the 2011 disaster contains double the amount of pre-Fukushima radiation, researchers say levels pose no health risk

The new horticultural center will be built at the RHS flagship garden in Wisley, Surrey

One Million British Botanical Treasures Will Be Digitized

Artifacts in the sprawling collection include a Chilean potato plant collected by Charles Darwin and 18th-century lavender

Political cartoonist Thomas Nash lampooned Victoria Woodhull as "Mrs. Satan" in this 1872 sketch featured in Harper's Weekly

New York Museum Sorts Through Its Collections to Highlight 15 “Rebel Women” of the 1800s

Museum of the City of New York’s latest exhibition puts the spotlight on these 19th-century women who defied Victorian ideals

Researchers used 1,000 years’ worth of built-up sediment found at the bottom of the valley’s Lake Huilla to create a timeline of the area’s population—and depopulation

This Lake Tells the Story of Ecuador’s Decimated Indigenous Quijo Civilization

In 1541, roughly 35,000 Quijos lived in the valley. By the 1580s, they had vanished, leaving little evidence of their existence behind

The Cairns Broch site in Orkney, Scotland

Archaeologists Find 2,000-Year-Old Wooden Bowl, Strands of Hair in Northern Scotland

The Iron Age artifacts were sealed in a subterranean chamber of the Cairns Broch, a tower-like stone structure

The Meghalayan Age’s “timestamp” is an isotopic shift found in a single stalagmite growing from the floor of the Mawmluh Cave in Meghalaya, India

Welcome to the Meghalayan Age, the Latest Stage in Earth’s 4.54-Billion-Year History

Geologists say the stage began 4,200 years ago, when a global mega-drought devastated agricultural societies

To create her dazzle camouflage design, Auerbach used a process known as marbling, or swirling pools of ink on paper to generate fluid patterns

NYC Fireboat Rebranded in Vibrant Dazzle Camouflage to Commemorate WWI

Vessels cloaked in clashing colors, patterns attempted to confuse U-boat commanders by distorting their perception of a ship’s speed, size and location

Archaeologists unearthed the 14,400-year-old breadcrumbs while excavating a pair of stone fireplaces in northeast Jordan

Archaeologists Discover Evidence of Bread Baked Before Advent of Agriculture

The bread, which was found in northeast Jordan, dates back about 14,400 years and likely resembled modern-day wraps

"Wheat Field with Cypresses," based on Vincent van Gogh

This Is What Robotic Art Looks Like in 2018

The 2018 RobotArt competition fielded more than 100 submissions entered by 19 teams from all over the world

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