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The remains of an individual buried at the Augustinian friary, pictured during excavations in 2016

New Research

Medieval Britons’ Remains Record the ‘Skeletal Trauma’ Inflicted by Inequality

New study reveals the horrific injuries sustained by lower-class members of English society

Common murres live on rocky cliffs like those at Stora Karlsö, an island in the Baltic Sea.

New Research

Pandemic Reveals Ecological Benefits of Tourists in One Seaside Town

When people stayed home, white-tailed eagles converged on the island of Stora Karlsö in Sweden

Trove of amulets unearthed in Pompeii

Pompeii’s Museum Reopens With Dazzling Display of Archaeological Treasures

Artifacts on view at the Antiquarium include ancient frescoes, protective amulets and casts of Mount Vesuvius victims’ bodies

The worms that burrowed in these tunnels may have been the ancestors of modern Bobbit worms, Eunice aphtoditois, and is the earliest known fossil of an ambush predator

Enormous Prehistoric Marine Worms’ Lair Discovered Along Sea Floor

Trace fossils suggest that sand strikers drilled these underground tunnels

A screenshot of the new V&A; digital tool, which allows viewers to explore high-resolution scans of Raphael's cartoons for his Sistine Chapel tapestry sequence. Here, Jesus speaks to Simon in The Miraculous Draught of Fishes (Luke 5: 1-11).

New Online Tool Reveals Raphael’s Sistine Chapel Cartoons in Stunning Detail

High-resolution scans from the V&A offer an unprecedented view of the Renaissance drawings, down to every last line and wrinkle

Artist's rendering of blue jet lightning blasting from a storm cloud towards space. The International Space Station solar panels can be seen in the foreground.

New Research

Mysterious Blue Jet Lightning Seen From Space

Researchers captured an instance of this poorly understood type of lightning using instruments aboard the International Space Station

Archaeologists discovered ancient amphorae from Spain and what is now Tunisia.

Cool Finds

Trove of ‘Ancient Treasures’ Found in Shipwreck Off the Coast of Greece

Researchers surveying the seabed surrounding the island of Kasos discovered pottery that holds clues to trade in the Mediterranean

The online portal features virtual exhibitions, tours, videos and images of more than 200 artifacts.

Education During Coronavirus

You Can Now Explore 200 Years of Chinese American History Online

The Museum of Chinese in America launched the digital platform one year after a fire devastated its archives

Catnip and a plant called silver vine, Actinidia polygama, are not closely related, but both make cats go wild.

Felines May Use Catnip for More Than Just Euphoria

The plant may keep pesky mosquitos away

Female springbok mantises will fight against males who want to mate

Male Mantises Wrestle to Escape Cannibalistic Females

Mating is not so romantic for these insects

Hank Aaron (center) poses with his teammates in this 1956 photograph by Osvaldo Salas.

Smithsonian Scholars Reflect on Baseball Legend Hank Aaron’s Legacy

The former home run king died in his sleep on Friday at age 86

In full, the Greek text reads, “Christ born of Mary. This work of the most God-fearing and pious bishop [Theodo]sius and the miserable Th[omas] was built from the foundation.”

Cool Finds

Inscription Offers Earliest Evidence of Christianity in Israel’s Jezreel Valley

The fifth-century engraving, found repurposed in a Byzantine building’s wall, references “Christ born of Mary”

A paleontologist excavating a 98 million-year-old fossil which may belong to the largest land animal ever. Researchers first started unearthing the creatures remains in 2012 at the Candeleros Formation in the Neuquen River Valley, Argentina.

New Research

Dinosaur Unearthed in Argentina Could Be Largest Land Animal Ever

The skeleton is still far from complete but paleontologists say what they’ve found suggests the dinosaur may be more than 120 feet long

To counter a lack of biodiversity in corpse flowers, horticulturalists took inspiration from “studbooks,” a method used by breeders and zoos to prevent inbreeding

To Save the Corpse Flower, Horticulturalists Are Playing the Role of Matchmakers

Genetic diversity is needed to produce viable plants. Scientists are using animal breeding methods to conserve the titan arum

Vampire finches will resort to drinking blood for survival when they can't find other food sources like seeds and insects.

Why Some of Darwin’s Finches Evolved to Drink Blood

Scientists suggest the vampire finch evolved to drink blood to survive the volcanic archipelago’s harsh environment and scarce resources

Gordon Parks, Boy With June Bug, Fort Scott, Kansas, 1963

Gordon Parks’ Photos of 20th-Century Black Americans Are More Relevant Than Ever

An exhibition at NYC’s Jack Shainman Gallery underscores the contemporary resonance of the photographer’s work

Authorities recovered a copy (right) of Salvator Mundi from a Naples man's apartment. Attributed to the school of Leonardo, the work dates to around 1508–1513.

Stolen Copy of ‘Salvator Mundi’ Found Stashed in Naples Cupboard

The museum that owns the 16th-century painting hadn’t even realized the work—attributed to the school of Leonardo—was missing

Silver-washed fritillary butterfly

New Research

Study Reveals the Secrets of Butterfly Flight

The fluttering insects create tiny jets of air by clapping their flexible wings together, which may help them evade predators

Robert S. Duncanson's Landscape With Rainbow (1859) “carries with it an unmistakable ray of hope,” per the Los Angeles Times. “Rainbows typically appear after a storm has passed, not before.”

Inauguration History

Smithsonian Curator Reflects on Joe Biden’s ‘Poignant’ Inaugural Painting

Eleanor Harvey posits that the 1859 landscape’s message of hope resonated with First Lady Jill Biden, who helped select the artwork

In another executive order, President Biden canceled permits for construction on the Keystone XL pipeline. Alberta construction of the pipeline is pictured here, taken in October 2020.

The United States Will Rejoin Paris Climate Accord

The move is one of several climate-related actions taken by President Joe Biden on his first day in office

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