George Orwell Gets His Own £2 Coin Featuring an All-Seeing Eye
Inscribed with quotes from “Nineteen Eighty-Four,” the Royal Mint’s latest release honors the author on the 75th anniversary of his death
Someone Sent a Fuzzy Photo of a Painting to Christie’s. It Turned Out to Be a Rare Watercolor by J.M.W. Turner
After its owner submitted the piece to an online appraisal service, auction house specialists realized it had been misattributed to another artist for decades
Scientists Are Using Lasers to Reveal Intricate Tattoos on Peruvian Mummies
A new study sheds light on tattoo designs found on more than 100 mummies from Chancay culture, a group that lived on the Peruvian coast between roughly 900 and 1500 C.E.
How Archaeologists Discovered Europe’s Oldest-Known Book, Revealing Never-Before-Seen Insights Into Ancient Religion and Philosophy
Charred by the flames of a funeral pyre, the Derveni Papyrus has proved to be a fascinating—and confounding—artifact
Music History and Contemporary Art Destroyed in the Deadly Los Angeles Wildfires
An archive of scores by composer Arnold Schoenberg and the collections of countless contemporary artists have been lost in the blaze
These Fascinating Objects Show How the Palace of Versailles Drove Surprising Scientific Advances in the 17th and 18th Centuries
Titled “Versailles: Science and Splendor,” a new exhibition illustrates how the royal court encouraged innovation during the reigns of Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI
See Charles Dickens’ Rare Manuscripts, Teenage Love Letters and a Copy of ‘David Copperfield’ That Traveled to Antarctica
To celebrate its 100th anniversary, the Charles Dickens Museum in London is staging an exhibition of historic objects that shed light on the writer’s life and legacy
These Massive Inflatable Pink Men Are Waving From Rooftops and Peering Into Windows in Boston
Created by French artist Phillippe Katerine, the figures are part of an artistic movement known as Mignonisme, which promotes the aesthetics of cuteness
This Author, Famous for His Rags-to-Riches Stories, Forever Shaped How We Talk About the American Dream
Horatio Alger’s repetitive stories reached their true popularity and became synonymous with social mobility largely thanks to retellings after the writer’s death
Motown Records, Founded on This Day in 1959, Broke Racial Barriers in Pop Music With Its Beloved Hits
Berry Gordy’s record label used the ‘sound of young America’ to bring people together
Medieval Crowns and Scepters Discovered Hidden Inside the Walls of a Crypt Beneath a Lithuanian Cathedral
The royal treasures were stashed away at the beginning of World War II. Experts knew the trove existed, but previous attempts to find it had failed
Thousands of Book Lovers Gather for a 25-Hour-Long ‘Moby Dick’ Reading Marathon
The annual event takes place in the Massachusetts town of New Bedford, which is where Herman Melville’s celebrated 1851 novel opens
See 25 Incredible Images From the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Contest
Cast your vote for your favorite of the photographs, which are all contenders for the People’s Choice award, through January 29
Massive Bluefin Tuna the Size of a Motorcycle Sells for $1.3 Million at a Japanese Fish Market
The fish weighed 608 pounds, which is also about the same size as an adult male grizzly bear. It garnered the second highest bid at the Toyosu Market since records began in 1999
Energetic and Loyal: Meet the Danish-Swedish Farmdog, the Newest Breed Recognized by the American Kennel Club
These small but mighty pups have roots on family farms in Denmark and Sweden, where they helped catch rodents, herd livestock, hunt and watch over the property
The Way We Listen to Music Changed Forever When Apple Launched iTunes in 2001
The digital jukebox enjoyed a two-decade reign as the dominant program for storing audio files
The Fool Has Appeared in Art for Centuries. What Do These Portrayals of the Complex Character Say About Us?
A new exhibition at the Louvre takes visitors on a visual journey, exploring how the figure of the fool evolved between the Middle Ages and the 19th century
See the Sprawling Secret Passageway Built for Florence’s Elite 450 Years Ago
The 2,500-foot-long Vasari Corridor impressed guests of the Medicis and other leaders that followed (including Benito Mussolini). Now, it’s reopening to the public
See How Basquiat’s Travels to the Swiss Alps Influenced His Artistic Development
A new exhibition in Switzerland examines the New York City artist’s lesser-known fascination with pine trees and snowy mountain peaks
Immerse Yourself in the Polka-Dotted World of Yayoi Kusama at a Massive New Retrospective
An exhibition in Melbourne features around 200 of the 95-year-old Japanese artist’s works, as well as artifacts that help tell the story of her life
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