Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Smart News / Smart News History & Archaeology

The rare George Washington portrait could sell for as much as $2.5 million in January.

The Met Is Selling This Rare Portrait of George Washington

Artist Gilbert Stuart painted the work after the president sat for him in late 1795

Researchers say the mural, uncovered near the Colosseum, is one of a kind.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Uncover ‘Exceptional’ Ancient Mural Near Colosseum

The artwork—made from shells, tiles and other materials—demonstrated the wealth and power of its owner

The sun rises over the Gunung Padang in Java, Indonesia.

Archaeologists Criticize Alleged Discovery of the ‘Oldest Pyramid in the World’

A controversial study arguing an Indonesian structure is 25,000 years old is under investigation by the journal that published it

Aerial view of construction work on the Maya Train on August 31, 2023

First Section of Mexico’s Controversial Maya Train Opens

The rail system, built to connect tourist destinations, has been criticized for endangering archaeological and environmental sites

Safety fencing at Arlington National Cemetery rings the Confederate memorial.

Federal Judge Allows Removal of Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery

The Defense Department had mandated that the monument be dismantled by January 1, 2024

This seventh-century Buddha sculpture was among the artifacts.

The Met Will Repatriate 16 Artifacts to Cambodia and Thailand

The looted objects are tied to the notorious art dealer Douglas Latchford

The 31-inch-tall tree is billed as the "humblest Christmas tree in the world."

103-Year-Old Artificial Christmas Tree Sells for Over $4,000

The tree was originally purchased for 8-year-old Dorothy Grant in 1920

Maritime archaeologists suspect the wreck is the George L. Newman.

Cool Finds

Father and Daughter Discover 152-Year-Old Shipwreck While Fishing in Green Bay

Tim and Henley Wollak found what is likely the wreck of the “George L. Newman,” which sank during the Great Peshtigo Fire of 1871

A crane lifts the new golden rooster to the top of Notre-Dame Cathedral's spire on December 16, 2023.

Notre-Dame Gets New Spire and Golden Rooster

The return of these two distinctive features marks a poignant milestone in the cathedral’s reconstruction

Italian opera singing is now among the hundreds of cultural practices officially recognized by UNESCO.

Italian Opera Singing Is Now Protected by the U.N.

UNESCO announced 55 new additions to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage

One side of the device was used to tell the date of Easter Sunday.

This Device Might Be England’s Oldest Dated Scientific Instrument

The 712-year-old artifact is a horary quadrant, a medieval tool used to tell time based on the position of the sun

At this ancient bakery, enslaved individuals and donkeys worked under bleak conditions to grind grain.

Archaeologists Discover Brutal ‘Bakery-Prison’ at Pompeii

Enslaved workers toiled for hours in a dark, cramped space to grind grain for bread

David Attenborough stands next to the recently discovered pliosaur fossil at the Etches Collection Museum of Jurassic Marine Life in Kimmeridge, England.

Fossil Hunters Uncover Prehistoric ‘Sea Monster’ Skull at a U.K. Beach

The six-and-a-half-foot-long pliosaur skull was excavated from a rock cliff in England and may belong to a new species, scientists say

The biocrust is made up of lichen, mosses and cyanobacteria.

New Research

Parts of China’s Great Wall Are Protected by a ‘Living Cover’ of Biocrusts

The layer of lichen, moss and cyanobacteria helps shield the historic structure from erosion, a new study finds

Photographs and other items connected to Florence Nightingale

These May Be the Last Photos Ever Taken of Florence Nightingale

The rare images are among a collection of artifacts connected to the “Lady with the Lamp” that recently sold at auction

Ancient baboon skulls from the site of Gabbanat el-Qurud, known as the Valley of the Monkeys

New Research

Ancient Egyptians Kept Baboons in Captivity and Mummified Their Remains

A new analysis of the animals’ skeletal remains reveals a lack of sunlight and an inadequate diet

Because St. Lucie's hull was raised and repaired, the anchor is all the remains from the 1906 wreck.

Anchor From 1906 Shipwreck Found in Florida

The steamship “St. Lucie” went down in a hurricane, killing 26 passengers on board

The iconic publicity photo was taken by an unknown photographer in 1932.

You Can Recreate the Iconic 1932 ‘Lunch Atop a Skyscraper’ Photo

Visitors will be safely strapped in as they sit atop a beam hundreds of feet above New York City

An illustration of life in medieval Cambridge

New Research

‘Bone Biographies’ Reconstruct Lives of Medieval Cambridge Commoners

Researchers have used skeletal remains to compile information about the lives of ordinary residents of the city

Alice Tate-Harte, a conservator at English Heritage, works on a 17th-century portrait of Diana Cecil.

See a 17th-Century Portrait Restored to Its Original Appearance, Minus Lip Fillers and Other Touch-Ups

Conservators removed cosmetic changes made to a painting of English aristocrat Diana Cecil, likely to match 19th-century beauty standards

Page 85 of 349