January/February 2016
Smithsonian magazine delivers trusted and incisive reporting on history, science, nature, culture and travel.
Features
Unearthing the World of Jesus
In and around Galilee, surprising archaeological finds are breaking new ground in our understanding of Jesus’s time—and the revolution he launched 2,000 years ago
Bombs Away
Seventy years after World War II, German experts are racing time to defuse tons of U.S. ordnance that hasn't exploded—yet
Waste Land
With their habitats disappearing, thousands of white storks are nesting at landfills in Europe. Now the birds face a new threat—junk food is disrupting their ancient life cycle
The Awakening
The discovery of the world’s oldest representational paintings in remote caves in Indonesia has scholars rethinking the origins of art—and of humanity
Lone Star
In Texas, an unheralded World War II soldier and prisoner of war struggles to recall the past, a solitary member of an American generation that is quietly fading away
Love, Frida
Musician and author Patti Smith reads a love letter from Frida Kahlo
Autism in Early America
It's considered a 20th-century phenomenon—but a surprising new historical analysis suggests that a pioneering doctor was examining people with autism before the Civil War
Departments
Discussion
Reader responses to our December issue
Letter from a New York Jail
The earliest memoir by a black inmate will be published this month, 150 years after his release
The Dreyfuss Affairs
The versatile actor opens up about his close encounters with Bernie Madoff, sharks and space aliens
Rocking the House
Long before Spotify and iTunes, the phonograph revolutionized the way we experience music
Ask Smithsonian
Your questions answered by our experts