https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/france-1/RSS feed for FranceenTue, 19 May 2026 20:09:27 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-bayeux-tapestry-takes-a-journey-for-a-fresh-perspective-as-the-british-museum-prepares-to-lay-the-masterpiece-out-flat-180988764/After spending centuries in France, the 1,000-year-old tapestry depicting the Norman Conquest of England is traveling to its home countryTue, 19 May 2026 20:09:27 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-bayeux-tapestry-takes-a-journey-for-a-fresh-perspective-as-the-british-museum-prepares-to-lay-the-masterpiece-out-flat-180988764/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mona-lisa-is-moving-to-a-new-home-the-louvre-just-announced-the-architects-who-will-design-her-private-suite-180988763/Visitors will be able to view Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece without touring the rest of the Louvre, and visitor traffic at the museum will be able to grow by three million people annuallyTue, 19 May 2026 18:27:11 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mona-lisa-is-moving-to-a-new-home-the-louvre-just-announced-the-architects-who-will-design-her-private-suite-180988763/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stunning-frescoes-in-this-madrid-church-received-a-facelift-but-goya-the-spanish-artist-buried-beneath-them-is-still-missing-his-head-180988756/Goya's frescoes are given new life in a church in Spain that also serves as the final resting place for most of the artist's body. The mystery of his missing skull has inspired poems and artworksMon, 18 May 2026 20:10:47 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stunning-frescoes-in-this-madrid-church-received-a-facelift-but-goya-the-spanish-artist-buried-beneath-them-is-still-missing-his-head-180988756/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/benjamin-franklin-styled-lady-libertys-look-in-this-medal-he-commissioned-to-honor-american-and-french-allies-in-the-revolutionary-war-180988723/Franklin combined art with diplomacy to create the Libertas Americana. For the United States’ 250th anniversary, the Paris Mint is giving the design a refreshTue, 12 May 2026 16:03:53 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/benjamin-franklin-styled-lady-libertys-look-in-this-medal-he-commissioned-to-honor-american-and-french-allies-in-the-revolutionary-war-180988723/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/history-remembers-mary-boleyn-as-the-scandalous-other-boleyn-girl-new-research-debunks-the-myths-surrounding-the-tudor-mistress-180988703/Sylvia Barbara Soberton's latest book challenges the perception of Anne Boleyn's sister as "promiscuous, intellectually incurious and unambitious"Mon, 11 May 2026 15:17:59 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/history-remembers-mary-boleyn-as-the-scandalous-other-boleyn-girl-new-research-debunks-the-myths-surrounding-the-tudor-mistress-180988703/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/heres-what-underwater-robots-are-finding-at-frances-deepest-shipwreck-a-16th-century-merchant-vessel-resting-at-the-bottom-of-the-mediterranean-180988685/Known as the "Camarat 4," the ship was loaded with cannons, cauldrons and hundreds of ceramics—which are still visible on the seafloor. Researchers are surveying the site and carefully recovering a small selection of artifactsThu, 07 May 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/heres-what-underwater-robots-are-finding-at-frances-deepest-shipwreck-a-16th-century-merchant-vessel-resting-at-the-bottom-of-the-mediterranean-180988685/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/known-for-her-amusing-surreal-sculptures-this-french-artists-sinuous-set-of-mirrors-just-shattered-auction-records-180988632/Claude Lalanne created the reflective ensemble for designer Yves Saint Laurent. Experts say it's second in importance only to the famous mirrors at the Palace of VersaillesTue, 28 Apr 2026 21:16:47 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/known-for-her-amusing-surreal-sculptures-this-french-artists-sinuous-set-of-mirrors-just-shattered-auction-records-180988632/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/alexander-calder-thought-it-would-be-fun-to-set-abstract-art-in-motion-his-mesmerizing-mobiles-transformed-the-definition-of-sculpture-180988631/A new exhibition at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris spotlights 300 of the sculptor's groundbreaking kinetic artworks, large-scale public sculptures, paintings, drawings and wire portraitsTue, 28 Apr 2026 16:24:04 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/alexander-calder-thought-it-would-be-fun-to-set-abstract-art-in-motion-his-mesmerizing-mobiles-transformed-the-definition-of-sculpture-180988631/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-collection-of-maps-owned-by-englands-first-queen-spent-centuries-overlooked-in-a-family-library-now-the-rare-volume-is-on-sale-for-16-million-180988604/Created for Mary I, the first woman to rule England in her own right, the book is "perhaps the most significant artifact of Tudor intellectual history still in private hands," the seller saysMon, 27 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-collection-of-maps-owned-by-englands-first-queen-spent-centuries-overlooked-in-a-family-library-now-the-rare-volume-is-on-sale-for-16-million-180988604/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-1897-film-discovered-in-an-old-trunk-in-michigan-features-the-first-on-screen-appearance-of-robot-180988547/Filmmaker Georges Méliès employed some of his signature special effects techniques to create comedy in "Gugusse and the Automaton"Wed, 15 Apr 2026 13:16:42 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-1897-film-discovered-in-an-old-trunk-in-michigan-features-the-first-on-screen-appearance-of-robot-180988547/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-dizzying-spiral-staircase-with-a-single-guardrail-once-led-to-the-top-of-the-eiffel-tower-now-you-can-buy-14-of-the-original-steps-180988535/The 1,062 steps connecting the tower's second and third levels were installed in 1889. Fragments from the 137-year-old staircase can be found at several French museumsMon, 13 Apr 2026 18:08:16 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-dizzying-spiral-staircase-with-a-single-guardrail-once-led-to-the-top-of-the-eiffel-tower-now-you-can-buy-14-of-the-original-steps-180988535/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-surrealism-inspired-fashions-of-elsa-schiaparelli-take-the-spotlight-in-london-180988503/A new exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum lays out the history and legacy of the House of Schiaparelli, focusing on its founder’s unique creative processesFri, 10 Apr 2026 13:33:39 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-surrealism-inspired-fashions-of-elsa-schiaparelli-take-the-spotlight-in-london-180988503/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/spirited-revolutionary-led-fight-independence-corsica-inspired-america-colonial-rabblerouser-180988408/Pasquale Paoli was a “small fish fighting an entire empire.” Four thousand miles away, the founding fathers were watching and taking notesThu, 02 Apr 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/spirited-revolutionary-led-fight-independence-corsica-inspired-america-colonial-rabblerouser-180988408/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/is-this-1800-year-old-mosaic-the-first-known-image-of-a-woman-fighting-wild-beasts-in-an-ancient-roman-arena-180988456/The artwork was destroyed during World War I. But an archaeologist's sketch may reveal a female figure wielding a whip and facing off against a leopard, a new study suggestsWed, 01 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/is-this-1800-year-old-mosaic-the-first-known-image-of-a-woman-fighting-wild-beasts-in-an-ancient-roman-arena-180988456/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-skeleton-found-beneath-the-floor-of-a-dutch-church-may-belong-to-dartagnan-the-fourth-musketeer-180988448/Workers discovered the skeleton during recent repair work at the church in Maastricht. D'Artagnan died during the siege of the city in 1673Fri, 27 Mar 2026 21:36:20 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-skeleton-found-beneath-the-floor-of-a-dutch-church-may-belong-to-dartagnan-the-fourth-musketeer-180988448/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-say-this-600-year-old-grape-seed-is-genetically-identical-to-modern-varieties-used-to-make-pinot-noir-180988437/Researchers analyzed grape seeds dating to between 2300 B.C.E. and 1500 C.E., including one particularly intriguing sample found in the toilet of a medieval hospital in FranceThu, 26 Mar 2026 17:43:27 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-say-this-600-year-old-grape-seed-is-genetically-identical-to-modern-varieties-used-to-make-pinot-noir-180988437/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-are-mystified-by-these-2000-year-old-bodies-found-seated-upright-and-facing-west-in-france-180988425/Researchers previously discovered 13 sets of human remains buried in a similar manner at the same grave site in DijonWed, 25 Mar 2026 11:15:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-are-mystified-by-these-2000-year-old-bodies-found-seated-upright-and-facing-west-in-france-180988425/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-historic-snuffboxes-associated-with-18th-century-monarchs-were-stolen-in-a-shocking-heist-now-theyre-back-on-public-display-180988366/In 2024, thieves made away with the intricately decorated boxes, which had been on display in Paris. Two of the boxes, which were later recovered, are now on view at the Victoria & Albert Museum in LondonMon, 23 Mar 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-historic-snuffboxes-associated-with-18th-century-monarchs-were-stolen-in-a-shocking-heist-now-theyre-back-on-public-display-180988366/