Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Articles

The steel frame of the Francis Scott Key Bridge rests atop of a container ship following the bridge's collapse on March 26, 2024.

History of Now

Seven of the Worst Bridge Disasters in World History

The collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge is shocking—but not unprecedented

Why aren't there freshwater seals or dolphins in the Great Lakes?

Why Aren’t Dolphins in the Great Lakes? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

2,500 years after it was built, the Parthenon is still among the first places tourists go when they arrive in Athens.

Coastal Cities of Europe

The Thrills of Rediscovering Ancient Greece While Touring Modern Athens

The Mediterranean capital city savors its connections to antiquity—while reappraising its past

Clark Gable and Joan Crawford by George Hurrell, 1936, Gelatin silver print

How ‘The Magic Man of Hollywood’ Captured the Golden Age’s Biggest Stars

George Hurrell’s photographs of actors from the 1930s and 1940s dazzle in a new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery

The Aria Resort & Casino, a striking pair of curved buildings on the Las Vegas Strip, bills itself as eco-friendly and water-efficient.

Las Vegas Is Going All In on Its Water Conservation Plan

As the Southwest dries, can a city notorious for excess find a way to survive with less?

The flowers of the toromiro

How Rapa Nui Lost a Tree, Only to Have It Sprout Up Elsewhere

Before the toromiro disappeared from the island, at least two men grabbed seeds from the last remaining plant and brought them home

In the weave room, a worker uses a classic Crompton & Knowles loom to make suitable fabric for some 18th-century furniture.

When Hollywood Needs a Historically Accurate Outfit That Looks Just Right, It Turns to Rabbit Goody

How do filmmakers get period clothing to look the part? Inside the textile workshop where the past comes to life

Heterodoxy's illustrious members included (clockwise from top right) Marie Jenney Howe, Susan Glaspell, Crystal Eastman, Rose Pastor Stokes, Doris Stevens, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Rheta Childe Dorr.

Women Who Shaped History

The All-Woman Secret Society That Paved the Way for Modern Feminism

Based in Greenwich Village, Heterodoxy had just one requirement for membership: An applicant must “not be orthodox in her opinion”

A reveler enjoys a playful and colorful water war in the streets of Jodhpur during the Holi festival.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Celebrate Holi With These 15 Vibrant Photos

Observed around the world, the Hindu Festival of Colors welcomes spring

Regina King as Shirley Chisholm in Shirley, a new film written and directed by John Ridley

Women Who Shaped History

The True History Behind Netflix’s ‘Shirley’ Movie

A new film dramatizes Shirley Chisholm’s history-making bid to become the first Black woman president in 1972

About halfway between the Greek cities of Corinth and Lechaio, the area around Corinth’s ancient port is tectonically active. That makes the area even more scientifically precious. While many archaeological sites from millennia ago have sunk beneath rising seas, centuries of tectonic uplift have preserved this spot. Parts of the ancient port now sit above sea level, including the inner harbor, where boats likely once berthed in a protected channel.

Ancient Greece’s Biggest Port Is Older Than We Thought

Archaeological discoveries add 500 years to the history of Corinth’s main harbor

Mabel Boll, nicknamed the "Queen of Diamonds" (left), failed to cross the Atlantic before Amelia Earhart (right).

Women Who Shaped History

When Amelia Earhart and the ‘Queen of Diamonds’ Raced to Become the First Woman to Fly Across the Atlantic

Mabel Boll, a wealthy New York socialite, dreamed of making aviation history. But Earhart beat her to the finish line, completing the trans-Atlantic journey as a passenger in June 1928

Lili Taylor as Mary Lincoln and Hamish Linklater as Abraham Lincoln in the AppleTV+ miniseries "Manhunt"

There's More to That

The Man Behind ‘Manhunt,’ the New Apple TV+ Show About the Lincoln Assassination

Meet James Swanson, the lifelong Abraham Lincoln obsessive who wrote the nonfiction thriller that inspired the acclaimed miniseries

An illustration of Molly Maguires on their way to the gallows in Pottsville, Pennsylvania

Untold Stories of American History

Eight Secret Societies You Probably Haven’t Heard Of

Many of these selective clubs peaked in popularity in the 18th and 19th centuries

An elephant seal pup on South Georgia Island

Why Did Seals and Sea Lions Never Commit to a Life Fully at Sea?

While whales moved from living on land to an existence immersed in water, pinnipeds embraced an amphibious lifestyle

Leaves and roots analyzed by botanist Mason Heberling

These Researchers Are Digging Into the Understudied Science of Roots

After centuries of neglect, botanists are using new techniques to understand roots

An illuminated manuscript illustration of Marie de France, a 12th-century poet

How Medieval Women Expressed Their ‘Forbidden’ Emotions

Upper-class women used letters and embroidery to reflect on their inner lives

A forest in Minnesota

In Minnesota, Researchers Are Moving Trees Farther North to Save Forests

As the world warms, trees in such forests will no longer be adapted to their local climates. That’s where assisted migration comes in

Greens, yellows, blues, browns and more warm hues merge to paint a colorful landscape of pastures in Ireland.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day With a Photographic, Virtual Tour of Ireland

Here’s your lucky chance to see 15 images of the Emerald Isle from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

Religious lore suggests that God showed Patrick the entrance to purgatory, where the Irish could witness the consequences of not embracing Christianity with their own eyes.

St. Patrick Opened a Portal to Purgatory on This Little-Known Irish Island

Medieval pilgrims flocked to the site for spiritual purification

Page 78 of 1286