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Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

Most of the people buried at the site were woman and children.

Mass Grave of Women, Children Found in Pre-Hispanic City in Peru

Buried in the Chimú Empire capital of Chan Chan, some of the deceased were interred with needles and sewing tools

Birds with teeth, little men in triangular hats and other fanciful figures appear in the Tudor wall paintings.

Cool Finds

Well-Preserved Tudor Wall Paintings Discovered Beneath Plaster at Medieval Manor

Carbon dating of the artworks’ timber frame suggests they date to between the 1540s and 1580s

The museum acquired the collection in recognition of its historical significance—and to keep the objects from circulating elsewhere.

German Museum Acquires 15,000 Artifacts Documenting the History of Anti-Semitism

Holocaust survivor Wolfgang Haney collected the items over three decades

Attributed to Mary Way or Elizabeth Way Champlain, A Lady Holding a Bouquet, circa 1790–1800

Women Who Shaped History

These Sisters’ Innovative Portrait Miniatures Immortalized 19th-Century Connecticut’s Elite

An exhibition at the Lyman Allyn Art Museum is the first to showcase Mary and Elizabeth Way’s unique creations, which went unrecognized for decades

An overhead view of the armor-clad effigy on the Black Prince's tomb at Canterbury Cathedral in England.

New Research

Thanks to Medical Technology, the Black Prince’s Tomb Reveals Its Secrets

Researchers used advanced technology to discover how the effigy of Edward of Woodstock was crafted more than 600 years ago

This 16th- or 17th-century copper alloy plaque—one of the ten Benin Bronzes removed from view—depicts a high-ranking warrior flanked by musicians and a page holding a ceremonial sword.

History of Now

Why the Smithsonian’s Museum of African Art Removed Its Benin Bronzes From View

Displaying the looted artworks does “a huge amount of harm,” says director Ngaire Blankenberg, who has affirmed her commitment to repatriating the objects

Freddy Goodall started looking for the passageway after noticing a doorway—now hidden by a bookshelf—in an 1870 photograph.

Cool Finds

Property Developer Discovers Secret Passageway Behind Bookshelf in 500-Year-Old House

Freddy Goodall of Brighton, England, detailed his finds in a series of social media videos

A supporter of the doomed Tudor queen may have hidden the falcon following Anne's downfall.

Cool Finds

Wooden Falcon Sold for $101 Originally Belonged to Anne Boleyn

The discovery is striking because Henry VIII removed almost all traces of his second queen following her execution in 1536

The room's sparse furnishings led archaeologists to suspect it served as housing for enslaved people.

Quarters for Enslaved People Discovered at Pompeiian Villa

The plainly furnished room contained three wooden beds, a chamber pot and a chest

New research suggests this portrait of an old man was painted by Rembrandt himself.

A Painting Stolen in East Germany’s Biggest Art Heist May Be a Rembrandt

An exhibition at Schloss Friedenstein addresses two art history mysteries: one about the 16th-century Dutch portrait and another about the 1979 theft

A procession overseen by the last Tudor monarch, Elizabeth I

What Did Tudor England Look, Smell and Sound Like?

A new book by scholar Amy Licence vividly transports readers back to the 16th century

The boat most likely survived intact because it was constantly wet and shielded from sunlight at a depth of about 27 feet.

Cool Finds

Intact, 1,200-Year-Old Canoe Recovered From Wisconsin Lake

The remarkably well-preserved wooden vessel was probably made by the Effigy Moundbuilders, ancestors of the modern Ho-Chunk Nation

An unnamed treasure hunter discovered the majority of the coins and gold objects between 2014 and 2020.

Cool Finds

See the Largest Trove of Early Medieval Gold Coins Ever Found in England

Discovered in a West Norfolk field, the cache of 131 coins and 4 gold objects dates to around 600 C.E.

The latrine was about 16 inches high, with a smaller 3- to 4-inch-deep trough for clean water located nearby.

Cool Finds

Latrine Used by Ancient Actors Discovered Among Ruins of Theater in Turkey

Dated to the second century C.E., the communal “artist toilet” could accommodate about a dozen people at a time

Karakorum served as the capital of the Mongol Empire during the 13th century. In the 16th century, the Buddhist Erdene Zuu monastery (pictured) was erected on the ruins of the city.

New Research

Archaeologists Map Ruins of Karakorum, Capital of the Mongol Empire, for the First Time

Genghis Khan founded the city, located in what is now central Mongolia, around 1220 C.E.

The ring could date back to as early as the third century C.E.

Cool Finds

Ancient Amethyst Ring Found in Israel May Have Been Worn to Ward Off Hangovers

Found near a Byzantine-era winery, the jewelry likely belonged to a wealthy, high-status individual

Archaeologists excavated the foundations of a carcer, or holding cell, where gladiators, doomed prisoners and wild animals waited before being brought into the Richborough Roman amphitheater in Kent.

Cool Finds

Holding Cell for Gladiators, Doomed Prisoners Found at Roman Amphitheater in England

Researchers initially thought the structure was a passageway to the ancient arena

A view of the Anahuacalli Museum's main "temple" structure, which was inspired by Aztec architecture and completed in 1964

Diego Rivera’s Utopian ‘City of the Arts’ Debuts 64 Years After the Artist’s Death

The Anahuacalli Museum has expanded its campus to create a community art center first envisioned by the Mexican muralist in 1941

The Srivijaya Empire was known for its wealth and dominance of maritime trade routes.

Cool Finds

Indonesian Divers Discover Treasures From Enigmatic ‘Island of Gold’

Archaeological evidence of the Srivijaya Empire is limited, but recent finds made along the Musi River may shed light on the mysterious civilization

Archaeologist Rachel Wood holds a Roman bust found at the site of a Norman church.

Cool Finds

Trio of ‘Astounding’ Roman Statues Found Beneath Medieval Church in England

The well-preserved sculptures—believed to have stood in an ancient mausoleum—depict a woman, man and child

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