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Smart News / Smart News Travel

Nancy Baker Cahill's Liberty Bell, as seen over the National Mall

This AR Artwork Reimagines Historical Spaces Across the U.S.

Nancy Baker Cahill’s red, white and blue “Liberty Bell” rings over sites in six major cities

A black musician seen in Piero di Cosimo's Perseus Frees Andromeda, 1510-1515

How the Uffizi Gallery Is Highlighting Black Figures in Renaissance Art

Each Saturday, the Florentine museum will release a new educational video on TikTok and Facebook

A virtual version of Mount Vesuvius looms over the exhibition.

Paris Exhibition Recreates Pompeii’s Final Hours

Those unable to visit the show in person can access a trove of online resources related to the immersive experience

Following the Monday performance, the Barcelona opera house donated its 2,292 houseplants to local health care workers.

Covid-19

Audience of Plants Roots for Barcelona Opera House on Opening Night

The leafy crowd enjoyed a string quartet’s performance of Puccini’s “Crisantemi”

The Alaska Army National Guard used a CH-47 Chinook helicopter to remove the bus featured in the book and film "Into the Wild." The bus was removed due to public safety concerns. Hundreds of fans of the book and film had undertaken the dangerous pilgrimage to reach the bus's remote location, resulting in the deaths of two women.

‘Into the Wild’ Bus Airlifted Out of the Wilderness

Dangerous and even deadly pilgrimages to the bus prompted officials to remove the bus due to public safety concerns

A 15-foot-tall sculpture of a laughing kookaburra in Brisbane, Australia

A Sculptor Made This 15-Foot-Tall Laughing Kookaburra in Lockdown

Farvardin Daliri in Brisbane, Australia crafted the giant sculpture, which opens its beak and cackles with laughter

The four sides of a dice, as well as the front and back sides of several other game pieces found in western Norway

Cool Finds

Ancient Roman Board Game Found in Norwegian Burial Mound

Researchers unearthed a four-sided dice and 18 circular tokens

A view of the modified seating arrangement at the Berliner Ensemble

Covid-19

How a Berlin Theater Will Enforce Social Distancing

The venue removed more than half of its seats to keep audience members safely separated

Works by German artist Paul Klee are projected on June 3, 2020, at the Bassins de Lumières digital art center in Bordeaux.

Former Nazi Submarine Base Transformed Into Digital Art Gallery

The concrete bunker once housed Axis U-boats. Now, it features floor-to-ceiling projections of works by Gustav Klimt, Paul Klee

Photinus carolinus, or Synchronous Fireflies, are the only species in the U.S. that flash in coordinated bursts with one another.

Virtual Travel

Watch Fireflies Flicker From the Comfort of Home

Most firefly watching events are canceled this summer, but you can learn about and watch the flashy insects in this online event

A storm on the Great Salt Lake in Utah exposed the wreckage of what may be a 100-year-old boat.

Cool Finds

Storm Unearths Wreck of Century-Old Boat in Utah’s Great Salt Lake

The vessel may belong to a fleet used to construct and maintain a railroad causeway that crosses the briny body of water

Archaeologists found the well-preserved tiles while conducting excavations at a commune near Verona, Italy.

Cool Finds

Ancient Roman Mosaic Floor Unearthed Beneath Italian Vineyard

The intricate, multi-colored tiles likely date to the third century A.D.

In early March, a blockbuster exhibition marking 500 years since Raphael's death shuttered just three days after opening. In June, visitors returned—with restrictions.

Covid-19

Italy’s Museums Reopen With Vibrating Social-Distancing Necklaces, Limited Admission

A guard will “chaperone” groups of six through the Scuderie del Quirinale’s blockbuster Raphael exhibition

Shakespeare's Globe is a meticulous replica of the Elizabethan theater where the Bard's plays were once performed.

Covid-19

COVID-19 Shutdown Threatens the Future of Shakespeare’s Globe

The London theater—a replica of the original 16th-century venue—relies on proceeds from live events now on hold due to the pandemic

Installation view of the British Museum's "Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum" exhibition

Trending Today

Take a Free Video Tour of Blockbuster Pompeii and Herculaneum Exhibition

Available to stream on YouTube and Facebook, the 82-minute film revisits the British Museum’s popular 2013 show

Concept art for the drive-in Vincent van Gogh exhibition in Toronto

Covid-19

In Toronto, a Drive-In Exhibition Immerses Visitors in Vincent van Gogh’s Art

The 35-minute sound-and-light installation will take place in a 4,000-square-foot warehouse

Olafur Eliasson's Wunderkammer collection brings the Northern Lights, a rain cloud, the sun, flowers and other AR objects into your home.

Virtual Travel

This AR App Brings the Northern Lights and Other Natural Phenomena Into Your Living Room

Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson has released nine virtual experiences for audiences to explore during quarantine

Rubble from the Museo de la Masacre de Ponce fell from the top of the building and caused the collapse of its second-floor balcony.

5.4-Magnitude Earthquake Damages Puerto Rican Museums

The Museo de la Massacre de Ponce and Casa Paoli were among the buildings affected by Saturday’s tremors

Enroll in Hogwarts classes, find out which house you belong in, and listen to the audiobook version of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

Education During Coronavirus

Hear Daniel Radcliffe Read the First Chapter of ‘Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’

The actor is one of 17 celebrities slated to participate in newly announced read-alongs of the series’ first book

Two skeletons unearthed in Lechlade, England, date back to around 2200 B.C.

Cool Finds

Bronze Age Chieftain’s Remains Found Beneath U.K. Skate Park

The Beaker man was buried alongside four cowhide “rugs,” an eight-inch copper dagger and a wrist guard made of rare green stone

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