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Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

Charles Dickens, seen at his desk in 1858

Charles Dickens Museum Acquires Trove of Author’s Unpublished Letters

The London museum recently purchased more than 300 literary artifacts assembled by a private collector in the U.S.

The moai at Easter island, built by the Rapa Nui people

New Research Rewrites the Demise of Easter Island

Yet another spate of evidence suggests the Rapa Nui people were going strong long after Europeans first arrived in 1722

The blue-throated barbet, illustrated here in 1871, is native to southern Asia.

Education During Coronavirus

You Can Now Download 150,000 Free Illustrations of the Natural World

The artworks, collected by the open-access Biodiversity Heritage Library, range from animal sketches to historical diagrams and botanical studies

A piece of worked glass unearthed from the English island of Lindisfarne that researchers suspect may have once been a Viking game piece

Cool Finds

This Glass Gaming Piece May Hail From First Viking Raids in England

Discovered on the island of Lindisfarne, the artifact was likely once part of a Hnefatafl board game set

Bees from the nest structures: A) Head, side, top and bottom views of bees found inside the cells, B) drawing of Eufriesea surinamensis and photograph of the head of a modern bee taken by David Roubik

Panama

150-Year-Old Mummified Bee Nests Found in Panama City Cathedral

The nests, covered in gold leaf and paint, act as a time capsule for the surrounding environment circa 1870

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

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