Historical Documents | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/historical-documents/RSS feed for Historical DocumentsenWed, 23 Sep 2026 18:39:01 +0000Researchers in Turkey Have Unearthed an Ancient Fragment Inscribed With the World’s Oldest Peace Treatyhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-in-turkey-have-unearthed-an-ancient-fragment-inscribed-with-the-worlds-oldest-peace-treaty-180989554/The piece of a clay tablet is marked with Akkadian cuneiform, and its text belongs to the Kadesh Peace Treaty, created by ancient Egyptians and Hittites in the 13th century B.C.E.Wed, 23 Sep 2026 18:39:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/researchers-in-turkey-have-unearthed-an-ancient-fragment-inscribed-with-the-worlds-oldest-peace-treaty-180989554/The Ancient DNA of a Deadly Animal Virus Has Been Lurking in Medieval Manuscripts for Centuries, Researchers Findhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-manuscripts-preserved-traces-of-a-deadly-virus-for-centuries-180989522/A new analysis of teeth and parchment suggests that the devastating sheep pox virus has been infecting livestock for 3,700 yearsFri, 18 Sep 2026 15:10:43 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/medieval-manuscripts-preserved-traces-of-a-deadly-virus-for-centuries-180989522/These Medieval Manuscript Fragments Were Reused as Parchment, Inadvertently Preserving Them for Centurieshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-medieval-manuscript-fragments-were-reused-as-parchment-inadvertently-preserving-them-for-centuries-180989398/Recently discovered on Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands, the pages include Bible passages, poems, plays and other texts. They were repurposed as book bindings during the 16th and 17th centuriesWed, 26 Aug 2026 18:20:50 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-medieval-manuscript-fragments-were-reused-as-parchment-inadvertently-preserving-them-for-centuries-180989398/This Box of 300 Love Letters Showed Up Out of the Blue. Who Was the Whimsical World War II Soldier Who Wrote Them?https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-box-of-300-love-letters-showed-up-out-of-the-blue-who-was-the-whimsical-world-war-ii-soldier-who-wrote-them-180989300/Nobody knows who dropped Speedy Weber's correspondence at a USO office in 2022. Researchers have finally tracked down two living relatives who remember himMon, 10 Aug 2026 15:02:12 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this-box-of-300-love-letters-showed-up-out-of-the-blue-who-was-the-whimsical-world-war-ii-soldier-who-wrote-them-180989300/