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The first episode of "Lucy Worsley Investigates: The American Revolution" premieres on April 7, with the second installment following on April 14. Note: The upside-down Union Jack as seen here was in the original publicity photograph provided by PBS.

America's 250th Anniversary

In a New Documentary, One of Britain’s Most Famous Historians Reframes the American Revolution as a ‘Messy Divorce’

Lucy Worsley’s PBS series highlights the emotional fallout of the conflict, with a focus on the British perspective

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See the Spectacular Winners of Smithsonian Magazine’s 23rd Annual Photography Contest

This year’s best photos command attention by capturing intimate moments and bold colors

The Philadelphia, a flat-bottomed gunboat, served briefly at the Battle of Valcour Island in October 1776. Thanks to Smithsonian conservators, the Philadelphia is coming back to life in the National Museum of American History.

America's 250th Anniversary

The Gunboat ‘Philadelphia’ Lasted One Day in Battle. It’s Still Telling Us About the Revolution 250 Years Later.

The 29-ton ship went to war against the British, then sat at the bottom of Lake Champlain for 160 years. Now it’s a relic of ragged glory

Easter bunny treats from the Chocolate House, Co Co. Sala and Pastries by Randolph photographed in Washington, D.C.

How the Chocolate Bunny Became the Mouthwatering Mascot of Easter Sweets

In the 19th century, chocolatiers crafted these tasty treats with “complexity and artistry,” says a food curator at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History

Purple martins are long-distance migrants that nest in human-provided boxes across North America.

Purple Martins Rely on Human ‘Landlords’ to Provide Nest Boxes Each Spring. Can That Dynamic Last?

The large swallows have nested alongside human settlements for centuries. Now, the birds’ breeding success depends on caretakers who are beginning to age out of the role

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Why Do So Few Mammals Go Through Menopause? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

An illustration of British General John Burgoyne addressing a group of his Native allies

America's 250th Anniversary

Native Nations Fought in the American Revolution to Protect Their Ancestral Lands. After the War, Settlers Seized Their Territory Anyway

The conflict divided the six tribes of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, most of whom decided to join the British. The former allies clashed at the Battle of Oriskany in New York in 1777

Rotorelief no. 1. This 1935 lithograph, printed on a 7 7⁄8-inch cardboard disc, could spin on a record player to create a hypnotic illusion of three dimensions. 

MoMA Plans a Retrospective for Marcel Duchamp, the Dada Artist Who Was Unimpressed With His Own Masterpieces

The French-American avant garde artist said painting and sculpture exhibitions made him sick. But the collection of 200 of his works may tell the story of art in the 20th century

Onlookers capture photos and videos as the Space Launch System rocket carrying the Artemis 2 crew’s Orion spacecraft Integrity lifts off at 6:35 p.m. Eastern time on April 1.

Spectators Flocked to the Artemis 2 Launch to Witness History Being Made. One Awed Viewer Called It ‘the Best Thing Ever’

Wednesday evening, a human mission to the moon lifted off for the first time in more than 50 years. These 13 photographs capture what it was like to experience the moment

Scientists have discovered that each of the sea star’s tube feet is driven independently using local feedback from the environment.

Sea Stars Can Lose an Arm and Soldier On. What If Robots Could Do the Same?

Bioinspiration looks to nature for clues on how to build more efficient, resilient robots

Original hand-carved hubs for the Purple Heart and Silver Star rest in the jeweler’s toolbox of legendary Providence-based hub carver Elio “Duke” Lossini.

This Massive Collection of More Than a Million Tools Tells the Striking History of Jewelry Making in America

Before computers and A.I., beautiful trinkets were formed with a combination of hubs, dies, finesse and force. Kevin Potter has perhaps the world’s largest assemblage of them

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America's 250th Anniversary

The Spirited Revolutionary Who Led the Fight for Independence in Corsica Also Inspired America’s Colonial Rabble-Rousers

Pasquale Paoli was a “small fish fighting an entire empire.” Four thousand miles away, the founding fathers were watching and taking notes

The tenth-century temple of Banteay Srei, northeast of Angkor, where Clara and André Malraux planned an audacious 1923 heist. The Hindu shrine complex, built from intricately carved red sandstone, is celebrated for some of the finest surviving decorative stonework of the Khmer era.

To Finance Their Lifestyle, a Young French Couple Went to Cambodia to Steal Antiquities. They Did Almost Everything Wrong

Clara and André Malraux conspired to loot the pink temple of Banteay Srei, but their failure started a battle of reclamation

In this “Doonesbury” strip from January 17, 2004, Trudeau makes gentle fun of his own legendary political obsessions.

With ‘Doonesbury,’ Garry Trudeau Found a Way to Inform and Entertain a Generation of Newspaper Readers, One Panel at a Time

A new biography chronicles the history and evolution of the reserved artist who has always let his pen do the talking

"By the way, in the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies," Abigail Adams wrote on March 31, 1776.

America's 250th Anniversary

Abigail Adams Asked Her Husband to ‘Remember the Ladies’ as He Drafted America’s Laws. Here’s What She Really Meant

She wrote the letter that would come to define her legacy on March 31, 1776. But 250 years later, Americans are misinterpreting her open-ended request

The adult female fox, Shadow, was around 5 months old when Stuart first documented and named her in 2022. 

Cascade Red Foxes Are Notoriously Reclusive. So How Did This Photographer Capture These Stunning Images of the Endangered Species?

Even the scientists who study the animals rarely see them except on camera. But Gretchen Kay Stuart spent a season documenting them up close

During a training exercise in Houston in January 2025, the Artemis 2 crew practiced configuring the Orion spacecraft for orbit and its return to Earth.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

It’s Almost ‘All Systems Go’ for Artemis 2 to Take the Next Giant Leap Toward Stepping on the Moon Again

Scheduled to launch this week, NASA’s Artemis 2 is part of the bold 21st-century vision for returning astronauts to the lunar surface

A Route 66 shield marks the storied highway in Needles, California.

When America Found Itself Ready to Roll, Route 66, Stretching From Chicago to Los Angeles, Was the Road of Endless Possibilities

The country’s “mother road” started out as a way to get from Point A to Point B but quickly became the host of a culture and a symbol of freedom

Spinosaurus was the largest and most aquatic of the spinosaurs, a group of dinosaurs with crocodilian snouts.

Was Spinosaurus Really a ‘Hell Heron’? Digging Into the Star of Netflix’s ‘The Dinosaurs’

With an incredible sail and heavy bones that might have acted as ballast, Spinosaurus seems primed for snatching fish. The creature has long captivated the public, from its early mysteries to the recent discovery of a new species

A child’s grin stretches from ear to ear in Bani.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

See 15 Images of Wondrous West Africa From the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

Journey to Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso and many more nations through this gallery of the people, culture and wildlife of the region

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