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Ceramist Emily Rossheim uses luminescent underglazes to make her bowls shimmer.

What’s Up

Using shadows and the moon, Olson determined the moment Ansel Adams photographed Autumn Moon. When conditions recurred 57 years later, Olson was ready.

Forensic Astronomer Solves Fine Arts Puzzles

Astrophysicist Don Olson breaks down the barriers between science and art by analyzing literature and paintings from the past

After a year in graduate school in New York City, Eudora Welty returned to her native Mississippi and began taking pictures (Home by Dark).

Eudora Welty as Photographer

Photographs by Pulitzer-Prize winning novelist Eudora Welty display the empathy that would later infuse her fiction

"I still wonder why that young woman gave up her seat. It's not as if our bodies bear visible proof of our years."

Do Not Go Gentle

The feisty man’s guide to aging anything but gracefully

None

Poles Apart

"That cigar bit [that] folks like to tell about is phony," said W.D. Jones, whose photograph of Bonnie was seized in a police raid.

The Irresistible Bonnie Parker

A pistol-wielding, cigar-chomping bank robber hams it up shortly before she and Clyde Barrow met their violent end

The North Atlantic Treaty was signed by President Harry S. Truman in Washington, D.C., on 4 April 1949 and was ratified by the United States in August 1949.

April Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

Frederick Cook and Robert Peary both claimed they discovered the North Pole.

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Who Discovered the North Pole?

A century ago, explorer Robert Peary earned fame for discovering the North Pole, but did Frederick Cook get there first?

After a stint as a military barracks, Hohensalzburg Fortress was opened to the public in the 1860s by Emperor Franz Josef.

Salzburg’s Hohensalzburg Fortress

One of Europe’s mightiest castles, this fortress dominates Salzburg’s skyline

At the City Hall Music Festival, people drink, munch, and mingle before the opera begins.

Austria

Austria Delights Music Lovers

For centuries, Austrians’ passion for music has been heard in tiny town squares, Vienna’s concert halls and Salzburg’s Baroque churches

Architecture Hall in Tirol Tyrol Austria

Hall: In the Shadow of Innsbruck

The former salt-mining center is a luxurious town with amusements for all ages, and medieval town center rich with history

Sacher torte is Vienna's most famous dessert.

Austria

Wining and Dining in Vienna

Sacher tortes, wiener schnitzel, and autumn wines are the treats to have when visiting Austria’s capital city

Medieval Market Hall, High Street, Chipping Campden, Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom

Chipping Campden Walk

This short journey features famous monuments and historic estates

A hungry goat eats Rick Steves' map at the Cotswold Farm Park.

Fun Sights in the Cotswolds

Three spots you might miss but shouldn’t on a visit to the Cotswolds

When approaching a roundabout (traffic circle) in the British Isles, drivers often see a sign that charts the exits.

Go Left, Young Man: Driving in Great Britain and Ireland

With a few tips and good directions, drivers need not fear getting behind the wheel

This rugged group of six islands off the tip of Dingle Peninsula seems particularly close to the soul of Ireland.

Ireland’s Blasket Islands

On these six islands off the tip of the Dingle Peninsula, traditions of ancient Gaelic culture still survive

Dick Mack's pub Dingle Ireland County Kerry

Pubs: Ireland’s Watering Holes

A center for socialization, pubs offer eats, drinks, entertainment and their own vocabulary

Slea Head Road curves along the coast on the Dingle Peninsula.

Dingle Peninsula Loop Trip

By car or bicycle, this self-guided tour offers spectacular views and plenty of Irish history

The chef at this Tuscan restaurant doubles as a butcher—he cuts the steak before he grills it.

Tuning In to Tasty Italy

There are theories about eating out in Italy that can improve any meal

If you don't go to the Palio itself, you can catch one of the trials before the event.

Siena and its Crazy Horse Race

Il Campo, the main square of Florence’s next-door-neighbor, is urban living at its best

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