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History

Late 18th century English cartoon on Catherine the Great's territorial ambitions in Turkey.

When Catherine the Great Invaded the Crimea and Put the Rest of the World on Edge

The Russian czarina attempted to show the West she was an Enlightened despot, her policies said otherwise

Solomon Northup, portrayed by Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years A Slave.

Vintage Headlines

The New York Times’ 1853 Coverage of Solomon Northup, the Hero of “12 Years A Slave”

Northup’s story garnered heavy press coverage and spread widely in the weeks and months after he was rescued

George Washington standing at Mount Vernon and an angel with the American flag. Addressed to Mr. S.H. Haggy, Etna, Licking Co., Ohio.

Civil War Envelopes Featuring the Star-Spangled Banner

Supporters of the Union and the Confederacy alike used envelopes like these to advance political and social issues

On Oct. 30, 1964, a policeman dusts for fingerprints on case broken into by a cat burglar who made off with some $200,000 in jewels from the Museum of Natural History.

How Three Amateur Jewel Thieves Made Off With New York’s Most Precious Gems

The fascinating story of the hunt for Murf the Surf, a criminal who wasn’t quite the mastermind he made himself out to be

Restaurateur Johnny Kan in the center, 1965

The Lazy Susan, the Classic Centerpiece of Chinese Restaurants, Is Neither Classic nor Chinese

How the rotating tool became the circular table that circled the globe

This double-edged iron sword was found in Denmark’s Tisso Lake.

The Vikings’ Bad Boy Reputation Is Back With a Vengeance

A major new exhibition is reviving the Norse seafarers’ iconic image as rampagers and pillagers

The Baliem Valley was a “magnificent vastness” in Rockefeller’s eyes, and its people were “emotionallly expressive.” But Asmat proved to be “more remote country than what I have ever seen.”

What Really Happened to Michael Rockefeller

A journey to the heart of New Guinea’s Asmat tribal homeland sheds new light on the mystery of the heir’s disappearance there in 1961

1124 MLK Jr. Blvd., L.A. By EVOL. 2010.

The Many Faces of President Obama, As Seen in America’s Murals

From liquor stores to churches, Camilo Vergara has photographed murals of President Obama in some of the country’s poorest communities

What is Garry Kasparov’s Next Move?

The great chess champion brings his knowledge to the games of Sochi, global politics and computer intelligence

A damaged Olympic Symbol from the 1984 Winter Olympics.

Winter Olympics

Sarajevo’s Abandoned Olympic Sites

Haunting images of a war-torn Winter Olympic venue

Lieutenant Daniel J. Kern and Karl Sieber examining a panel of the Ghent Altarpiece, 1945.

The Path of the Monuments Men Through Europe

Chart the course the Monuments Men took to safeguard Europe’s treasures during World War II

Walker Hancock, Lamont Moore, George Stout and two unidentified soldiers in Marburg, Germany, June 1945.

Austria

The True Story of the Monuments Men

Without the work of these curators and professors, tens of thousands of priceless works of art would have been lost to the world forever

The mountaineers leave the aul.

Winter Olympics

150 Years Ago, Sochi Was the Site of a Horrific Ethnic Cleansing

Czar Alexander II may have freed the serfs, but his war against the stateless people of the Caucasus cannot be ignored

The Beatles step onto the tarmac at JFK Airport on February 7, 1964, arriving for their first performance in the U.S.

Vintage Headlines

When the Beatles Arrived in America, Reporters Ignored the Music and Obsessed Over Hair

They’d go on to change American music forever, but the press focused on the moptops

It’s Not the Moon, It’s Nevada

Explore the history of Nevada’s Nuclear Test Site, and see how a half-century of tests transformed the desert into a cratered moonscape

A scientist examines a 1500-year-old tooth from a Justinian plague victim in the lab.

Bubonic Plague Family Tree Sheds Light on the Risk of New Outbreaks

The Black Death and the Justinian Plague arose separately from the same pathogen. Could a new strain emerge in the future?

A computer simulation of how the Hope Diamond likely appeared when it was owned by King Louis XIV of France. The sunburst inside the stone results from specially-cut facets on its back, which produce a translucent area that conveys the color of the diamond's gold mounting.

New Research

The Hope Diamond Was Once a Symbol for Louis XIV, the Sun King

New research indicates that the stone was once specially cut to produce an image of a sun when mounted on a gold background

Vintage Headlines

What Reviewers Said About the First Mac When It Debuted

They nitpicked the hardware, but reviewers appreciated the groundbreaking features that would redefine the personal computer

The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

The History of How We Came to Revere Abraham Lincoln

The slain president’s two personal secretaries battled mudslingers for a quarter-century to shape his image

When Cassius Clay Signed His Gloves With a Prediction of His Future Greatness

In 1964, a 22-year-old Cassius Clay was largely untested as a pro. Then he stepped into the ring

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