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History

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Unearthing Egypt’s Greatest Temple

Discovering the grandeur of the monument built 3,400 years ago

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The Big Picture

Political historian Jeremi Suri has come up with a new way of looking at the links between the low and the mighty

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Letters

Readers respond to the September issue

After three months of battling the U.S. 7th cavalry—which is charged with moving his people to a distant reservation or killing them—and a 1,700-mile trek toward Canada, Nez Perce chief Joseph surrenders, October 5, 1877.

October Anniversaries

Momentous or merely memorable

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A Brief History of Scotland Yard

Investigating London’s famous police force and some of its most infamous cases

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From the Castle

Object Lessons

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Outlaw Hunters

The Pinkerton Detective Agency chased down some of America’s most notorious criminals

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War Correspondence

Letters between George Washington and Marquis de Lafayette

Against the British, both Washington and Lafayette (left and right, at Valley Forge in the winter of 1777-78) had to learn how to lead citizen-soldiers rather than mercenaries, motivating their men through affection and idealism rather than through fear.

Washington & Lafayette

Almost inseparable in wartime, the two generals split over a vital question: Should revolutionary ideals be imposed on others?

Because of Portugal's explorations, Europeans were also made aware of exotic animals ("The Rhinoceros," by Albrecht Dürer, 1515).

When Portugal Ruled the Seas

The country’s global adventurism in the 16th century linked continents and cultures as never before, as a new exhibition makes clear

Amber Room

A Brief History of the Amber Room

Dubbed the “Eighth Wonder of the World,” the room that once symbolized peace was stolen by Nazis then disappeared for good

A field crew in Kenya excavates a Homo erectus skull.

Head Case

Two fossils found in Kenya raise evolutionary questions

Researchers collect core samples in 2001. During drilling operations, several anchors placed by divers secured the boat to the sea floor.

Underwater World

New evidence reveals a city beneath ancient Alexandria

Cubans had fought vehemently for independence from Spain from the 1860s to the 1890s, but by the 20th century, the country had become beholden economically to the United States (a Cuban street, with a classic American car, today).

Before the Revolution

Socialites and celebrities flocked to Cuba in the 1950s

With his stylish clothes and powdered wig, Stede Bonnet (in a c. 1725 woodcut) stood out among the bearded, unkempt, ill-mannered pirates with whom he sailed.

The Gentleman Pirate

How Stede Bonnet went from wealthy landowner to villain on the sea

"I think the most surprising thing was how Hemingway is still so alive [in Cuba]," says Valerie Hemingway.

Barefoot Hemingway

Valerie Hemingway, author of “Hemingway’s Cuba, Cuba’s Hemingway,” talks about pirated novels and Papa’s living legend

Thurgood Marshall

August Anniversaries

Momentous or Merely Memorable

In the United States, cats are the most popular house pet, with about 90 million domesticated cats slinking around 34 percent of U.S. homes.

A Brief History of House Cats

It may be that “nobody owns a cat,” but scientists now say the popular pet has lived with people for 12,000 years

Archaeologists have modeled Rome in three dimensions, and users can "fly" through the ancient city's winding streets, broad plazas, forums—even the Coliseum.

Rome Reborn

Archaeologists unveil a 3-D model of the great city circa A.D. 400

Julius Caesar, the emperors Augustus and Tiberius and the statesman-philosopher Cicero all had homes in Stabiae.

Ancient Rome’s Forgotten Paradise

Stabiae’s seaside villas will soon be resurrected in one of the largest archaeological projects in Europe since World War II

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