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Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

U.S. Surgeon General Luther Terry shocked Americans by announcing that cigarette smoking is a major cause of lung cancer, throat cancer and chronic bronchitis.

On This Day in History

When the U.S. Surgeon General Shocked Americans by Announcing That Smoking Kills

The 1964 disclosure marked the first time many smokers had heard about the health dangers of tobacco

Researchers found the pieces covered in newspaper and tucked beneath a staircase in the crypt.

Cool Finds

Medieval Crowns and Scepters Discovered Hidden Inside the Walls of a Crypt Beneath a Lithuanian Cathedral

The royal treasures were stashed away at the beginning of World War II. Experts knew the trove existed, but previous attempts to find it had failed

The tomb's walls are painted and carved with images of objects the doctor might have used.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Intricately Decorated Tomb Belonging to a Doctor Who Treated Egyptian Pharaohs 4,100 Years Ago

The chamber holds a stone coffin engraved with the physician’s name and titles, which include “director of medicinal plants” and “chief dentist”

Portrait of Thomas Paine by Laurent Dabos

America's 250th Anniversary

America’s First ‘Viral’ Post Was Published on This Day in 1776, When Thomas Paine’s ‘Common Sense’ Sparked a Revolution

The Englishman’s pamphlet helped spur the 13 colonies to declare independence from Britain

People suspected of collaborating with the Nazis were rounded up after American troops liberated the Dutch town of Nijmegen at the end of World War II.

The Netherlands Has Published a List of 425,000 Suspected Nazi Collaborators

In the past, the names could only be viewed in person. But due to expiring access restrictions, they’re now available to anyone with an internet connection

The coffin was found in a small Roman cemetery.

Cool Finds

Construction Workers Discover Ancient Stone Coffin Filled With Plaster While Expanding Highway in England

The intricately crafted coffin dates back more than 1,500 years. Researchers say it weighs around 1,650 pounds, “comparable to an adult male polar bear”

Will Rogers' Western Ranch House was on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Historic Landmarks Razed By Los Angeles’ Deadly Fires

Among the destroyed structures are the ranch established by comedian Will Rogers and a motel owned by notorious publisher William Randolph Hearst

Experts debate whether this bust depicts Cleopatra. 

Does This Peculiar Statue Found at an Ancient Egyptian Temple Really Depict Cleopatra?

Experts on the hunt for the queen’s tomb believe that they’ve found a small bust of her—but not everyone agrees

Portrait of a Jester looking through his fingers, circa 1548

The Fool Has Appeared in Art for Centuries. What Do These Portrayals of the Complex Character Say About Us?

A new exhibition at the Louvre takes visitors on a visual journey, exploring how the figure of the fool evolved between the Middle Ages and the 19th century

For several months, archaeologists carried fragments of the shipwreck to the surface.

Divers Recover Ancient Shipwreck That Sank 2,600 Years Ago Off the Coast of Spain

Piece by piece, experts carefully transported the Phoenician vessel to dry land, where it will be studied and preserved

The eruption at Zavaritskii volcano created a nearly two-mile-wide caldera with layers of red, black and white from previous eruptive deposits.

Scientists Find the Mysterious Source of the Massive 1831 Volcanic Eruption That Cooled Earth and Made the Sun Appear Blue

The climate-altering eruption came from the Zavaritskii volcano on an uninhabited island in the Pacific that once hosted a Soviet submarine base, according to a new study

The Battle of New Orleans, as painted by E. Percy Moran, showing Andrew Jackson emerge victorious over the British

On This Day in History

An Unlikely Army of Militia and Pirates Shocked the World by Defeating the British Army at the Battle of New Orleans

Forces commanded by Andrew Jackson fought the British in the Louisiana port city in the last standoff of the War of 1812

The new Chuckwalla National Monument protects more than 624,000 acres in southern California.

Biden Establishes Two New National Monuments in California

The Chuckwalla National Monument and the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument will protect more than 848,000 acres of public lands

At the same time as the Romans were building the Colosseum, they were also breathing in high amounts of toxic lead from silver mining and smelting operations.

Ancient Romans Breathed in Enough Lead to Lower Their IQs, Study Finds. Did That Toxin Contribute to the Empire’s Fall?

Using Arctic ice core samples, researchers estimate silver mining and smelting released enough lead during the Pax Romana to cause a 2.5- to 3-point drop in IQ

The passage connects the Uffizi Galleries to the Boboli Gardens.

See the Sprawling Secret Passageway Built for Florence’s Elite 450 Years Ago

The 2,500-foot-long Vasari Corridor impressed guests of the Medicis and other leaders that followed (including Benito Mussolini). Now, it’s reopening to the public

Jean-Pierre Blanchard ascends in his gas balloon on July 12, 1785, six months after he and John Jeffries crossed the English Channel in a similar flying machine

On This Day in History

On This Day in 1785, Two Men Braved Death When They Flew Across the English Channel in a Balloon

Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries’ harrowing journey was the first aerial crossing between France and Britain

A Goodyear Blimp hovering above the Rose Bowl game in Pasadena, California, in 1978, when the Washington Huskies faced off against the Michigan Wolverines

A Brief History of the Goodyear Blimp, Which Celebrates Its 100th Anniversary This Year

The tire company’s iconic “lighter-than-air” craft debuted in 1925 and began providing aerial coverage of events across the country in 1955

Experts are currently examining the sword in a lab.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Unearth Early Medieval Sword Engraved With Mysterious Runes in a Cemetery in England

Dating to the fifth and sixth centuries C.E., the burials held a trove of grave goods—but the team was particularly impressed by the sword, which was covered in intricate decorations

A 1913 photograph of Maria Montessori

On This Day in History

How Trailblazing Teacher Maria Montessori Transformed the Realm of Children’s Education

The Italian physician and educator opened her first school in Rome on this day in 1907

The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge was an immense project with an immense cost.

On This Day in History

The Golden Gate Bridge Was a Dream That Turned Into a Depression-Era Nightmare for the 11 Men Who Died During Its Construction

The building of the iconic “industry orange” landmark began on this day in 1933

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