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Stories from Sonja Anderson

The mosaic depicts Alexander the Great fighting in the Battle of Issus.

Experts Are Unraveling the Mysteries of This Breathtaking 2,000-Year-Old Mosaic Depicting Alexander the Great in Battle

The ancient artwork was uncovered during excavations at Pompeii in the 19th century. Now, researchers are conducting a long, intensive analysis

Spanish settlers knocked down all but the foundations of the Temple of the Sun, then built a church atop the Inca walls.

Researchers Have Found an Inca Tunnel Beneath the Peruvian City of Cusco

The dug-out passages may follow the exact path of the Inca capital’s aboveground roads

Maayan Margulis and Shira Lifshitz clean the mosaic.

See the Greek Biblical Inscription Embedded in an Ancient Mosaic Floor Discovered in Israel

Archaeologists think the tiles once lined a Byzantine-era monastery. The complex also included a large warehouse and winepress

The Approach to Venice or Venice From the Lagoon, J.M.W. Turner, circa 1840

Someone Sent a Fuzzy Photo of a Painting to Christie’s. It Turned Out to Be a Rare Watercolor by J.M.W. Turner

After its owner submitted the piece to an online appraisal service, auction house specialists realized it had been misattributed to another artist for decades

The Eaton Fire has devastated the community of Altadena.

Music History and Contemporary Art Destroyed in the Deadly Los Angeles Wildfires

An archive of scores by composer Arnold Schoenberg and the collections of countless contemporary artists have been lost in the blaze

A visitor examines a watch crafted by Abraham-Louis Breguet for Marie Antoinette.

These Fascinating Objects Show How the Palace of Versailles Drove Surprising Scientific Advances in the 17th and 18th Centuries

Titled “Versailles: Science and Splendor,” a new exhibition illustrates how the royal court encouraged innovation during the reigns of Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI

U.S. Surgeon General Luther Terry shocked Americans by announcing that cigarette smoking is a major cause of lung cancer, throat cancer and chronic bronchitis.

When the U.S. Surgeon General Shocked Americans by Announcing That Smoking Kills

The 1964 disclosure marked the first time many smokers had heard about the health dangers of tobacco

Researchers found the pieces covered in newspaper and tucked beneath a staircase in the crypt.

Medieval Crowns and Scepters Discovered Hidden Inside the Walls of a Crypt Beneath a Lithuanian Cathedral

The royal treasures were stashed away at the beginning of World War II. Experts knew the trove existed, but previous attempts to find it had failed

The tomb's walls are painted and carved with images of objects the doctor might have used.

Archaeologists Discover Intricately Decorated Tomb Belonging to a Doctor Who Treated Egyptian Pharaohs 4,100 Years Ago

The chamber holds a stone coffin engraved with the physician’s name and titles, which include “director of medicinal plants” and “chief dentist”

Portrait of Thomas Paine by Laurent Dabos

America’s First ‘Viral’ Post Was Published on This Day in 1776, When Thomas Paine’s ‘Common Sense’ Sparked a Revolution

The Englishman’s pamphlet helped spur the 13 colonies to declare independence from Britain

The coffin was found in a small Roman cemetery.

Construction Workers Discover Ancient Stone Coffin Filled With Plaster While Expanding Highway in England

The intricately crafted coffin dates back more than 1,500 years. Researchers say it weighs around 1,650 pounds, “comparable to an adult male polar bear”

Will Rogers' Western Ranch House was on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Historic Landmarks Razed By Los Angeles’ Deadly Fires

Among the destroyed structures are the ranch established by comedian Will Rogers and a motel owned by notorious publisher William Randolph Hearst

View of the Apple iTunes Music Store, which launched in April 2003, two years after the release of iTunes in January 2001

The Way We Listen to Music Changed Forever When Apple Launched iTunes in 2001

The digital jukebox enjoyed a two-decade reign as the dominant program for storing audio files

The Battle of New Orleans, as painted by E. Percy Moran, showing Andrew Jackson emerge victorious over the British

An Unlikely Army of Militia and Pirates Shocked the World by Defeating the British Army at the Battle of New Orleans

Forces commanded by Andrew Jackson fought the British in the Louisiana port city in the last standoff of the War of 1812

The passage connects the Uffizi Galleries to the Boboli Gardens.

See the Sprawling Secret Passageway Built for Florence’s Elite 450 Years Ago

The 2,500-foot-long Vasari Corridor impressed guests of the Medicis and other leaders that followed (including Benito Mussolini). Now, it’s reopening to the public

Jean-Pierre Blanchard ascends in his gas balloon on July 12, 1785, six months after he and John Jeffries crossed the English Channel in a similar flying machine

On This Day in 1785, Two Men Braved Death When They Flew Across the English Channel in a Balloon

Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries’ harrowing journey was the first aerial crossing between France and Britain

Experts are currently examining the sword in a lab.

Archaeologists Unearth Early Medieval Sword Engraved With Mysterious Runes in a Cemetery in England

Dating to the fifth and sixth centuries C.E., the burials held a trove of grave goods—but the team was particularly impressed by the sword, which was covered in intricate decorations

Captain John Voss, left, aboard the Tilikum in Samoa. “So diminutive,” one Australian reporter wrote of the boat, “one wondered and admired the pluck, perseverance and skill displayed in bringing her across the 9,200 miles of trackless ocean.”   

The Death-Defying Attempt to Circumnavigate the World in a Canoe

How Captain John Voss put his dugout canoe—and himself—to the ultimate test

A 1913 photograph of Maria Montessori

How Trailblazing Teacher Maria Montessori Transformed the Realm of Children’s Education

The Italian physician and educator opened her first school in Rome on this day in 1907

The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge was an immense project with an immense cost.

The Golden Gate Bridge Was a Dream That Turned Into a Depression-Era Nightmare for the 11 Men Who Died During Its Construction

The building of the iconic “industry orange” landmark began on this day in 1933

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