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National Museum of Natural History

Smithsonian Voices

Two women stand in a field, holding bundles of grasses with a rainbow coloring the sky in the background.

To Bridge Heritage and Science, the Smithsonian’s Inclusive Education Programs Empower Learners Through Culture and Community

Through Indigenous weaving workshops and environmental science projects, the Smithsonian engages in co-learning projects to support culturally responsive education

Emma Saaty | November 27, 2024

A white, fluffy dog stands in front of a brown mural with other dogs

NMNH in Review: Top Discoveries by Museum Scientists in 2023

Indigenous woolly dogs, ground sloth pendants and more headline-grabbing findings by scientists at the National Museum of Natural History

Emma Saaty & Jack Tamisiea | January 4, 2024

A blue bird with white and grey spots lies against a white background.

Celebrate the Holiday Season with the Museum’s Stunning Collection of Blue Specimens

Learn how this rare hue shows up in the natural world with some of the Smithsonian’s bluest specimens

Ellyn Lapointe | December 12, 2023

A landscape shot featuring a cloudy gray sky, snow-covered mountains in the distance above a turquoise expanse of glacial ice on the horizon and a dark blue expanse of water in the foreground.

Community Archeology Helps Bridge Gap Between Science and Tradition

Researchers and Indigenous people teamed up to use oral legends and science to discover an archeology site

Lyric Aquino | October 28, 2022
A giant replica of the Aedes mosquito, a known vector for the disease yellow fever, has been waiting for visitors to return the National Museum of Natural History’s “Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World” exhibit. (James Di Loreto, Smithsonian)

Don’t Miss These Objects When the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum Reopens

Whether you're a seasoned visitor or a newbie to the natural history museum, there are plenty of things for you to explore.

Abigail Eisenstadt | June 15, 2021
The original photos from late 1800s by famous snowflake photographer Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley, are stored in the Smithsonian Archives. His pictures were instrumental in helping scientists examine snow’s crystalline properties. (Erin Malsbury, Smithsonian Open Access, Wilson A. Bentley)

Why Scientists Find Snowflakes Cool

Mineralogists study snowflakes to learn more about how water in its solid phase behaves.

Abigail Eisenstadt | December 21, 2020
The Chaco Canyon chocolate-drinking jars have a distinct shape, with connections to similarly shaped Mayan vessels. After testing distinguishable jar fragments from an excavated trash pile in in the canyon, archaeologists determined all of the drinking jars were used to consume cacao. (A336494, A336499, A336493, James Di Loreto, Smithsonian)

What Chocolate-Drinking Jars Tell Indigenous Potters Now

These chocolate-drinking jars are living proof of a dynamic pottery-making tradition that continues in descendant tribes of the Chaco Canyon Puebloans today.

Abigail Eisenstadt | July 7, 2020
Four views of a Shee aan. SI Catalog #E7899. (Brittany M. Hance, Smithsonian)

3D Technology May Revive this Ancient Hunting Tool

Smithsonian scientists used 3D technology to help revive the ancient Tlingit Shee aan.

Eric Hollinger & Nick Partridge | October 25, 2017
A team of Smithsonian scientists excavating the Hart Chalet site found a double tournois copper coin minted for French King louis XIII in 1634.  In pristine condition, it would have looked similar to this 1638 double tournois coin. (Images courtesy of the National Numismatic Collection, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. Image composite by Anna Torres)

Some Archaeological Dating can be as Simple as Flipping a Coin

The appearance of European artifacts in the arctic helps archaeologists date Inuit sites.

William W. Fitzhugh | October 20, 2017
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