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At the Smithsonian / From the Collections

In 1897, British troops looted thousands of pieces of culturally significant art, which came to reside in private and public collections, including this cooper plaque (detail) now held at the Smithsonian Institution.

As African Art Thrives, Museums Grapple With Legacy of Colonialism

Museum leaders met in Washington D.C. to talk about what’s next for the continent’s cultural sector

The new book, subtitled Remarkable Objects and Stories of Strength, Ingenuity, and Vision from the National Collection includes clockwise from top left: crocheted pussyhat; Sfag-Na-Kins sanitary napkins, Black Lives Matter T-shirt; a clay pot by Hopi-Tewa potter Nampeyo and her daughter Fannie; Alice Paul's ERA charm bracelet; and a cup and saucer by designer Belle Kogan.

Women Who Shaped History

Smithsonian Elevates the Frequently Ignored Histories of Women

For many, the personal—tea cups, dresses, needlework and charm bracelets—really was political. A new book tells why

At the National Museum of American HIstory's demonstration kitchen, chefs like Chef Lynne Just of Sur La Table (above) prepare dishes, while food historian Ashley Rose Young engages them in conversations about the history and significance of the food and its traditions.

Food, Glorious Food

Celebrating Master Chefs and Revolutionary Culinary Moments

Smithsonian’s Food History Weekend pays homage to José Andrés and other celebrity chefs; and places new artifacts on view

To walk within Alicja Kwade's enigmatic installation, WeltenLinie, where large metal rods frame double-sided mirrors, is like passing into some strange new dimension.

Alicja Kwade’s Installation at the Hirshhorn Invites Viewers to Question the World as We Know It

The visually immersive artwork is a recent acquisition now on view in a new exhibition

Though she looms large in the public imagination, Harriet Tubman has rarely received the attention afforded to similarly iconic Americans. A new biopic starring Cynthia Erivo focuses on the decade between Tubman's escape and the end of her Underground Railroad days.

Based on a True Story

The True Story Behind the Harriet Tubman Movie

“Harriet,” a new film starring Cynthia Erivo, is the first feature film dedicated solely to the American icon

Collections at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History are filled with all sorts of eerie specimens.

Smithsonian Voices

Six Bewitching Smithsonian Specimens to Get You Ready for Halloween

Check out some of the spookiest (read: coolest) items in the National Museum of Natural History’s collections.

Maria Oakey Dewing, "Garden in May," 1895,

Smithsonian Voices

Why the Rare Works of Maria Oakey Dewing Are Worthy of a Reconsideration

Smithsonian Provost John Davis takes a closer look at the painter, who described herself as a “garden-thirsty soul.”

The excavation of the whale specimen from the “slime pit” in Florida.

Smithsonian Voices

Saving This Rare Whale Skeleton Was a Dirty Job

The Smithsonian welcomes a rare whale skeleton that was found dead on an island in the Florida Everglades

American jazz musicians Charlie Parker, on alto sax, and Thelonious Monk, on piano, perform at the Open Door Cafe, in New York City on September 14, 1953.

The Long Journey of Charlie Parker’s Saxophone

The newly acquired instrument, played by the father of bebop, is on view at the National Museum of African American History and Culture

TV's "Julia" premiered on September 17, 1968 and the show was an instant hit, winning actress Diahann Carroll (above with Marc Copage as Corey Baker) the Golden Globe Award for best actress in a comedy in its first season.

Was the 1968 TV Show ‘Julia’ a Milestone or a Millstone for Diversity?

Diahann Carroll’s award-winning series was a hit, but it delivered a sanitized view of African-American life

How Zookeepers Built Karl, the Abyssinian Ground Hornbill, a New 3-D Beak

For this species, a beak is everything and Karl has had his old one re-tooled for hunting and communication

“All evidence suggests that this was the first cloud guitar ever built for Prince,” says John Troutman, curator of American music at the National Museum of American History.

Hitting the High Notes: A Smithsonian Year of Music

Here’s the Guitar That Prince Revolutionized Music With in ‘Purple Rain’

The artist gave the “cloud” guitar to the Smithsonian in 1993, but only now do we know it’s the same instrument used in the iconic movie

The Smithsonian has launched the first national-scale, scholarly research and collecting project to gather and preserve the artifacts, documents and voices associated with the beer industry’s craft revolution (above: label, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company).

Food, Glorious Food

Here’s What’s Brewing in the New Smithsonian Beer Collections

After two years of documenting the nation’s craft brewing industry, curator Theresa McCulla makes ready for a public debut

The National Zoo's female panda Mei Xiang (above in 2019) is exhibiting signs of a possible pregnancy. These same behaviors could also mean she is experiencing a pseudopregnancy.

Pandamonium

14 Fun Facts About Giant Pandas

Mother Mei Xiang’s annual ambiguous maternal behaviors always deliver heightened anticipation at the National Zoo

By day the members of the Megatherium Club, united by youth, ambition, intelligence and a deep and abiding love of the natural world, hunched over jars of marine worms in alcohol or endless trays of fossils…At night they were ready to cut loose.

The Hard-Drinking Early Smithsonian Naturalists of the Megatherium Club

William Stimpson created a fraternity of young scientists and named it for an extinct North American sloth

A vintage illustration of a wide-eyed housewife with a waffle in a waffle iron, 1946.

A Brief History of the Waffle Iron

Cornelius Swartwout’s invention, patented more than 150 years ago, helped feed America’s passion for waffles

The sculptor Edmonia Lewis (above: by Henry Rocher, c. 1870), “really broke through every obstacle," says the Smithsonian's Karen Lemmey.

Women Who Shaped History

Sculptor Edmonia Lewis Shattered Gender and Race Expectations in 19th-Century America

As the orphaned child of a black father and a Native-American mother, Lewis rewrote the 19th-century definition of sculptor

Julia Child and her husband Paul Child at their home in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Food, Glorious Food

Remembering Julia Child

Smithsonian curator Paula Johnson addresses many of the questions visitors ask about America’s beloved cooking teacher and her kitchen

Style, identity and agency are fundamental themes in the work of Mickalene Thomas (above: Portrait of Mnonja).

Re:Frame

The Fierce Pride and Passion of Rhinestone Fashion

In this episode of ‘Re:Frame,’ Smithsonian curators investigate the intentionality and agency behind the clothing we wear

One witness to an 1859 Northern Lights display was the artist Frederic Edwin Church, who later painted Aurora Borealis (above, detail).

Re:Frame

The Crazy Superstitions and Real-Life Science of the Northern Lights

In the latest episode of ‘Re:Frame,’ Smithsonian curators take a deep dive into the dramatic painting ‘Aurora Borealis’ by Frederic Church

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