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Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

English writer Charles Dickens, circa 1860

Charles Dickens Was a Busy Man and a ‘Mild Diva’

Eleven never-before-seen letters go on display at the Charles Dickens Museum

Ignacio Mundo measures one of the ship’s ribs

Can Tree Rings Solve the Mystery of a 19th-Century American Shipwreck?

A wreck off the coast of Argentina is likely a Rhode Island whaling vessel from the 1850s

Many of the children who survived Hurricane Katrina are still healing from the trauma of their experiences.

The Black Children of Hurricane Katrina Finally Tell Their Stories

A new documentary, ‘Katrina Babies,’ spotlights the disaster’s youngest survivors

One of the man’s huts

The Last Member of an Uncontacted Tribe in Brazil Has Died

Known as “the Man of the Hole,” he lived in isolation for more than two decades

The 3,000-year-old Imsety sculpture is a lid to a canopic jar, which held organs during mummification.

Customs Officials Seize a 3,000-Year-Old Egyptian Artifact in Tennessee

The stone sculpture depicts the Egyptical funeral deity Imsety

Tourists visit the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul in 2020.

Archaeologists Call on Unesco to Protect the Hagia Sophia

The sixth-century site has suffered increased vandalism and damage in recent years

The Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

Museum of the Bible Returns Centuries-Old Gospel Manuscript to Greece

The artifact had been stolen from a monastery during World War I

A monument of civil rights pioneer Elizabeth Freeman in Sheffield, Massachusetts

Untold Stories of American History

How an Enslaved Woman Took Her Freedom to Court

A new statue honors Elizabeth Freeman, who argued against slavery in a Massachusetts legal case

The Roaring Lion, one of the most iconic photographs of Winston Churchill

Hotel Discovers Its Famous Churchill Portrait Was Swapped With a Fake

An original print of the ‘Roaring Lion’ was stolen from the Fairmont Château Laurier eight months ago

Pauline Menczer

The Untold Stories of Surfing’s Trailblazing Women

The documentary ‘Girls Can’t Surf’ examines the sexism women surfers faced in the 1980s and ‘90s

Australia is home to roughly 200 million rabbits, which are not native to the country and damage crops and ecosystems. 

How Two Dozen Rabbits Started an Ecological Invasion in Australia

The country’s “most serious pests” can be traced to one shipment from England in 1859, study shows

Designer Samantha Black created three special-edition outfits for Claudie.

New American Girl Doll Celebrates Black Joy During the Harlem Renaissance

Nine-year-old Claudie Wells’ story unfolds in 1920s New York

“Regeneration,” the groundbreaking new exhibition at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, showcases never-before-seen films.

Academy Museum Explores Black Cinema’s Early Years

A new exhibition spotlights how Black artists shaped American filmmaking from 1898 to 1971

The Dolmen of Guadalperal, nicknamed the “Spanish Stonehenge,” is now visible because of Europe’s ongoing drought.

Europe’s Drought Is Revealing Historic Artifacts

World War II-era warships, the ‘Spanish Stonehenge’ and other remnants of the past are emerging from the continent’s waterways

Some of the artifacts discovered in Israel

Cool Finds

Israeli Archaeologists Uncover Hundreds of Ancient Dice Used for Divination—and Gaming

Made from animal bones, the artifacts are more than 2,000 years old

The forged manuscript in the university’s collection

Historian Discovers a Prized Galileo Manuscript Was Forged

The fake document at the University of Michigan was likely created by a famous 20th-century forger

The mural in its new location inside the Ohavi Zedek Synagogue in Burlington, Vermont

Why Was a Synagogue Mural Hidden Behind a Wall in a Vermont Apartment?

The restoration of the stunning 112-year-old artwork is now complete

Archaeologists pose near the inscription found on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee

Cool Finds

Did Archaeologists Find Saint Peter’s Birthplace?

An inscription uncovered at the site of an ancient church offers new evidence

Shiva in Himalayan Abode with Ascetics, a 10th-century statue returned to Nepal

The Met Returns Two Stolen Artifacts to Nepal

The 10th-century stone statue and 13th-century wooden strut will go on display at the National Museum of Nepal

James Cook, who began his famous voyage on the Endeavor in 1768

Shipworms Are Eating a Wreck That Could Be Captain Cook’s ‘Endeavour’

Marine biologist Reuben Shipway is sounding the alarm about the so-called termites of the sea

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