Smart News History & Archaeology

A new analysis of 12,000- to 16,000-year-old pottery fragments suggests ancient Siberians navigated the harsh ice age climate with the help of "hot pots."

Siberian Hunters Cooked in 'Hot Pots' at the End of the Last Ice Age

Chemical analysis of the cookware reveals the diets of two ancient Siberian cultures

So-called Gwion figures feature prominently in some Aboriginal artworks. New research shows some of these paintings may have been completed as recently as 12,000 years ago.

Bookended by Wasp Nests, These Aboriginal Artworks May Finally Have Definitive Dates

New estimates place paintings in Australia's Kimberley rock shelters at about 12,000 years old

Actor Kirk Douglas, seen here around 1950, died Wednesday, February 5, at the age of 103.

Kirk Douglas, Towering Icon of Hollywood's Golden Age, Dies at 103

A mainstay of 1950s and '60s cinema, Douglas was one of Classic Hollywood's last surviving stars

By the time of his arrest in 1953, Rustin was profoundly committed to non-violent resistance.

Gay Civil Rights Leader Bayard Rustin Posthumously Pardoned in California

The openly gay Rustin was convicted during the 1950s under laws targeting LGBTQ individuals

This 7,200-year-old well may have once helped early farmers get the most out of their land.

Cool Finds

This Czech Well May Be the World's Oldest Wooden Structure

Researchers suspect the 7,200-year-old well stayed intact because it spent several centuries underwater

Researcher Peter Robinson led the team that developed the first app version of Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.

Education During Coronavirus

A New App Guides Readers Through Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales'

The tool includes a 45-minute audio performance of the work's General Prologue in Middle English

View of the bow of the R.M.S. Titanic, as photographed by an ROV in June 2004

Court Case Alleges Submarine Collision With Wreck of the Titanic Went Unreported

During a 2019 dive, a white fiberglass vehicle sent to explore the site of the wreck resurfaced with a red stain on its side

A satellite view of a region of Buckingham, England where 42 skeletons were recently unearthed on a former farm situated near a cemetery (center)

Cool Finds

U.K. Developers Unearth 42 Bizarrely Buried Skeletons

The individuals, buried with their hands tied behind their backs, may be executed Anglo-Saxon prisoners or casualties of the English Civil War

The genetic legacies of modern humans and Neanderthals are more intertwined than once thought.

Modern Humans May Have More Neanderthal DNA Than Previously Thought

A new study is the first to identify a significant amount of Neanderthal DNA in African populations

Wave action in December collapsed part of the Olympic Discovery Trail in Port Angeles, Washington. Passersby began to notice ancient human remains a few weeks later.

Father and Four-Year-Old Son Find Ancient Human Remains While Biking in Washington State

Erosion along the Olympic Discovery Trail has exposed ancient bones on three separate occasions in January

The Bender family abandoned the scene of their crimes, and their ultimate fate remains unclear.

The Kansas Homestead Where America's First Serial Killer Family Committed Its Crimes Is Up for Sale

Authorities recovered the bodies of up to 11 people from the Old West tract of land owned by the notorious "Bloody Benders"

The Moai sculptures on Rapa Nui are at risk of collapsing into the ocean as coastal erosion continues.

New Tool Tracks Climate Change's Impact on World Heritage Sites

The online portal showcases the craggy cliffs surrounding Edinburgh Castle, Easter Island's famed sculptures and other cultural heritage hotspots

Hartmann Schedel, The Nuremberg Chronicle (Anton Koberger, for Sebald Schreyer and Sebastian Kamermaister), 1493

Education During Coronavirus

One Hundred Museums Transformed Their Collections Into Free Coloring Pages

This year's #ColorOurCollections campaign features everything from medical drawings to zany 1920s advertisements for butter

Churchill painted Lake Scene at Norfolk with bright colors inspired by Impressionists like Monet sometime in the 1930s.

See Winston Churchill's Little-Known Art

Best known for serving as Britain's prime minister during World War II, Churchill was also an amateur painter and avid writer

Researchers diving amongst the wreckage of the S.S. Cotopaxi, which disappeared almost 95 years ago.

Cool Finds

Lost Ship Rediscovered After Disappearing Near Bermuda Triangle 95 Years Ago

Far from falling prey to a paranormal occurrence, the S.S. "Cotopaxi" actually sank during an unfortunate storm

The vest said to have been worn by Charles I at his execution on January 30, 1649

See Charles I's Stained Execution Shirt

The vest will feature in an upcoming exhibition on London's long and gruesome history of public killings

Researchers conducting excavations near Bath Abbey have uncovered the remains of an apse dated to between the late eighth and late tenth centuries.

Cool Finds

Newly Unearthed Anglo-Saxon Monastery May Have Hosted England's First Coronation

In the millennia since Edgar the Peaceful's 973 coronation, the content of the royal ceremony has remained largely the same

Susan B. Anthony's childhood home in Battenville, New York, as seen in 2018

Susan B. Anthony's Childhood Home Is Getting Renovated

The women's suffrage activist lived in the house from 1833 to 1839

Among the artifacts believed to be lost are letters written by Chinese immigrants, photographs of Chinatown and an 1883 document on the Chinese Exclusion Act.

Fire at Museum of Chinese in America Caused Less Damage Than Initially Feared

Around 200 boxes recovered from the building have been deemed "very much salvageable," but they represent only a "fraction" of the museum's collection

Historic records and biometric analysis suggest the man seen front row center in this 1943 image of Sobibor camp guards is John Demjanjuk.

Newly Released Photos May Place the 'Devil Next Door' at Sobibor Death Camp

This is the latest chapter in the long, complex saga of John Demjanjuk, who was accused of participating in Nazi war crimes

Page 110 of 276