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Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

Neil Frye was just 20 years old when he was killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

A Young Sailor’s Remains Return Home 84 Years After He Was Killed at Pearl Harbor

Neil Frye was 20 when Japan launched its surprise attack on December 7, 1941. He has been laid to rest with full military honors in his home state of North Carolina

One of the wall paintings discovered at the Ashes, a Tudor-era guest house in northeastern England, depicts a dog's head.

Cool Finds

See the ‘Fantastical Beasts and Foliage’ Featured in These Rare, Newly Discovered Tudor Wall Paintings

Created in the Grotesque style, the 16th-century images—revealed by renovations at a lodge in England—mimic historic textile designs

The boxcar was part of the Merci Train, which France gave to the United States in 1949.

Cool Finds

Long-Lost ‘Merci Train’ Given to New Jersey After World War II Has Been Found

To thank America for its support during the war, France sent a boxcar stuffed with gifts to each state. But in the late 1950s, New Jersey’s disappeared without a trace

 An artist's rendering of the altar

New Research

Archaeologists Unearth Intricately Decorated Altar That May Have Been Used for Ancient Sacrifices in Guatemala

Discovered in the ruins of Tikal, the altar sheds light on strained relations between the Maya city and Teotihuacán—which was located more than 600 miles away

The bow of the Titanic

See the Titanic in Remarkable Detail With a 3D Scan That Reveals New Secrets of the Doomed Ship’s Final Moments

A documentary called “Titanic: The Digital Resurrection” will unveil the most detailed digital reconstruction of the shipwreck ever created. Experts are using the model to study the vessel’s demise

Researchers extracted ancient proteins from the bone and tooth enamel.

Mysterious Jawbone Found at an Antique Shop in Taiwan Belonged to a Male Denisovan, Scientists Say

The fossil, called Penghu 1, is one of the few known pieces of physical evidence from the Denisovans, extinct relatives of modern humans. It suggests the species lived in diverse environments

Archaeologists found 15 skeletons in a rock shelter in southwest Libya, including two naturally mummified women who died roughly 7,000 years ago.

7,000-Year-Old Skeletons From the ‘Green Sahara’ Reveal a Mysterious Human Lineage

Researchers recently sequenced the genomes of two naturally mummified women found in Libya

Digital artist Juanjo Ortega G. created an image of the woman's face based on a clay model created in the 1980s.

See the Face of a Royal Woman Who Lived in Greece 3,500 Years Ago

Created by digital artist Juanjo Ortega G., the digital reconstruction depicts a woman who died in her mid-30s during the late Bronze Age

Researchers investigated 12th- and 13th-century manuscripts from an abbey in France that were clad in furry outer covers.

Some ‘Hairy’ Medieval Books Were Covered in Sealskin, and Researchers Don’t Know Exactly Why

Historians were surprised when analyses revealed Catholic monks used pinniped hides for the protective outer layer on some manuscripts, rather than skins from the local boars and deer

View of the "Paris Noir" exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris

This Exhibition Spotlights the Black Artists Who Called France Home in the 20th Century

A blockbuster show at the Centre Pompidou in Paris spotlights 300-plus works by 150 artists of African heritage

Archaeologists recovered an assortment of artifacts from the San Esteban Rockshelter in western Texas, including dart tips, portions of a spear and an animal hide.

Archaeologists Uncover a ‘Monumental’ Hunting Kit in Texas That May Be the Oldest Found in North America Yet

The artifacts discovered in a cave—which include dart tips, a boomerang and a spear-throwing tool—were dated to as far back as 7,000 years ago

The National Public Housing Museum is located in the last remaining building of the Jane Addams Homes, Chicago's first public housing development.

New Museum Examines the History of American Public Housing—and the Stories of Its Residents

Located in a preserved 1930s development in Chicago’s West Side, the museum includes three recreated apartments representing families of different decades and demographics

Tutankhamun's burial mask is made of gold and precious stones.

New Research

Clay Artifacts Found in King Tut’s Tomb May Have Been Part of a Ritual Honoring the Egyptian God Osiris

The four clay troughs were initially thought to have served as stands for gold-plated staffs. Now, a researcher has presented a new theory about their purpose

Archaeologists suspect that as many as 150 individuals may be buried at the site.

Mass Grave From Roman-Era Battle Discovered Beneath a Soccer Field in Vienna

Archaeologists think that as many as 150 individuals may have been hastily buried at the site, likely after a “catastrophic” military event

Tarot deck designed by Austin Osman Spare in 1906

Discover the Renaissance Origins and Mystical Evolution of Tarot Cards

An exhibition at London’s Warburg Institute traces tarot decks’ evolution from the 1450s through the present

Jacek Ukowski and Katarzyna Herdzik, the metal detectorists who discovered the dagger

Cool Finds

Metal Detectorists Unearth Ancient Dagger Decorated With Tiny Stars, Crescent Moons and Geometric Patterns

Found at a beach in northern Poland, the nearly ten-inch-long artifact could be up to 2,500 years old. It had been lodged inside a lump of clay

The Quina technology discovered in East Asia was a set of stone tools for making other tools. Prehistoric sites in Europe that host similar tools are associated with Neanderthals.

Cool Finds

Stone Tools Discovered in China Resemble Neanderthal Technology Used in Europe, Creating a Middle Stone Age Mystery

Archaeologists previously assumed that East Asia did not see considerable tool development during the Middle Paleolithic, but new findings might change that widely held idea

Thousands of years ago, people had been buried both inside and outside of this cist tomb.

New Research

Why Were These Teenagers Chosen as Human Sacrifices at an Ancient Mesopotamian Cemetery?

Researchers previously assumed that some of the graves at the site were royal burials. A new study presents a different theory, which challenges existing ideas about early class structures

The family handed the scarab over to the Israel Antiquities Authority, which plans to display it in an upcoming exhibition.

Cool Finds

Toddler Discovers 3,800-Year-Old Egyptian Amulet While Hiking With Her Family in Israel

The 3-year-old picked up an ancient Canaanite scarab that dates back to the Middle Bronze Age

The figures adorn the wall of a tomb found in a necropolis near one of Pompeii’s city gates.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Uncover Two Nearly Life-Size Statues Carved Into the Wall of a Tomb in Ancient Pompeii

The figures appear to represent a married couple. Experts think the woman, who is holding laurel leaves, may have been a priestess

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