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The 17th-century fort at Portobelo, built by enslaved laborers, overlooks the bay area where some of the earliest maroons settled after gaining their freedom.

A New Discovery Puts Panama as the Site of the First Successful Slave Rebellion

Deep in the archives, a historian rescues the tale of brave maroons

A mosaic decorates a floor in the Baths of Diocletian.

Where to Find Ruins of the Roman Empire’s Last Years

A visit to Ravenna and Rome can take you back to the fifth century, when everything seemed to be in chaos

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The Misunderstood Roman Empress Who Willed Her Way to the Top

A fresh view of Galla Placidia, who married a barbarian and ruled when the world power fell into chaos

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How the Myth of the American Frontier Got Its Start

Frederick Jackson Turner’s thesis informed decades of scholarship and culture. Then he realized he was wrong

Copepods at various life stages teem inside a water droplet. The creatures go through six larval and six juvenile stages between egg and adulthood. They grow a new pair of legs at each stage.

These Gorgeous Photos Capture Life Inside a Drop of Seawater

A passion for the infinitesimal leads a photographer to discover the countless creatures that live unseen in the ocean

Steve Galchutt shows off the custom-made low-wattage transmitter he uses on his treks.

Looking to Ditch Twitter? Morse Code Is Back

Reviving a 200-year-old system, enthusiasts are putting the digit back in digital communication

The Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit relies on sagebrush for food and shelter, but the shrub has nearly disappeared. It's also slow to regrow: it takes about two decades, or ten pygmy rabbit lifetimes.

Planet Positive

Can Scientists Save the World’s Tiniest Rabbit?

In Washington State, the race is on to save a diminutive bunny as wildfires threaten its already shrinking habitat

Hikers set off on the annual Alpine Peace Crossing. The Austrian side of the trail is rocky and exposed; in 1947, Jewish refugees had to make the journey in the dark.

You Can Retrace the Footsteps Jewish Refugees Took on a Hike Through the Alps

After World War II, Holocaust survivors fled Europe’s lingering anti-Semitism on a series of clandestine missions

After the American Revolution, why did the colonies keep their British nobility namesakes?

Why Did the American Colonies Keep Their British Names After the Revolution?

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

Ethel Payne wore this plush, wide-brimmed hat in the early 1960s, during her pioneering civil rights journalism for the Chicago Defender.

Pioneering Journalist Ethel Payne Wasn’t Afraid to Stand Out

Her hats turned heads, but it was her work as a reporter that changed the nation

A copy of a Greek inscription, made by laying wet paper or plaster over carved stone to create a mirror-image impression.

How an Unorthodox Scholar Uses Technology to Expose Biblical Forgeries

Deciphering ancient texts with modern tools, Michael Langlois challenges what we know about the Dead Sea Scrolls

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Readers Respond to the October 2022 Issue

Your feedback on Glen Canyon, Samuel Adams and more

Scientists are testing this 15th-century letter for chemical traces of its author, Vlad Dracula, Transylvanian ruler and inspiration for the fictional count.

Document Detectives Use Smudges and Bloodstains to Investigate the Past

Proteins left behind on historic artifacts are revealing centuries-old secrets

Vittore Carpaccio's Flight Into Egypt, c. 1515, depicts a scene from the Gospel of Matthew, in which Mary and Joseph flee the wrath of King Herod.

Carpaccio Created the Graphic Novels of the Renaissance

A new exhibition at the National Gallery of Art puts the spotlight on the seldom seen contemporary of Michelangelo

One reader wonders: Have any Native American nations been governed by women? 

Have Women Ever Run a Native American Nation? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

In Barjac this past June, Kiefer stood before a 2001 artwork, Eridanus, named after a constellation that is itself named after a mythical river.

The Artwork That Took 30 Years and 200 Acres to Create

Renowned artist Anselm Kiefer goes big with his massive installation in southern France

On the Eastern Shore of Maryland, the bare, whitened trunks of a “ghost forest” are one of the effects of surging waters that turn woodland into marsh.

America's Waterways: The Past, Present and Future

Why Marshlands Are the Perfect Lab for Studying Climate Change

At the border between land and sea, an extraordinary set of experiments is helping us prepare for an uncertain future

Dried medjool dates at a market in Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates.

The Sweet and Sticky History of the Date

Throughout the Middle East, the versatile fruit has been revered since antiquity. How will it fare in a changing world?

Billie Jean King wore this dress when she beat Bobby Riggs, a former number-one male player, during the 1973 “Battle of the Sexes.”

The Stars Are Aligned at the National Museum of American History

What America’s Pop Culture Says About the Nation Itself

A new permanent exhibition offers proof that popular entertainment can be more than just a diversion

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The Biggest Fails in License Plate History

While vintage plates have grown popular, these older iterations show where officials got it wrong

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