https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/history/RSS feed for HistoryenFri, 17 Jul 2026 18:40:24 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/was-there-ever-an-original-version-of-the-odyssey-and-do-we-need-to-worry-about-what-homer-would-think-180989143/The earliest surviving fragments of the epic poem—the subject of Christopher Nolan's latest Hollywood blockbuster—date back more than 2,000 years. But oral storytelling about a hero named Odysseus is much olderFri, 17 Jul 2026 18:40:24 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/was-there-ever-an-original-version-of-the-odyssey-and-do-we-need-to-worry-about-what-homer-would-think-180989143/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/man-sentenced-for-stealing-rare-and-unique-chinese-texts-valued-at-more-than-200000-by-using-aliases-fake-ids-and-dummy-manuscripts-180989134/The works were stolen from the University of California, Los Angeles, over the course of several yearsThu, 16 Jul 2026 15:18:28 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/man-sentenced-for-stealing-rare-and-unique-chinese-texts-valued-at-more-than-200000-by-using-aliases-fake-ids-and-dummy-manuscripts-180989134/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-sak-tahn-waax-a-maya-math-whiz-who-lived-more-than-1000-years-ago-and-left-behind-a-really-elegant-complex-formula-180989125/For the first time, archaeologists identified one of the culture’s famed Classic era mathematicians and astronomersWed, 15 Jul 2026 13:03:15 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-sak-tahn-waax-a-maya-math-whiz-who-lived-more-than-1000-years-ago-and-left-behind-a-really-elegant-complex-formula-180989125/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/romans-put-their-faith-in-guardian-spirits-archaeologists-just-found-a-rare-1600-year-old-carving-of-one-in-northern-england-180989118/Known as a “genius,” the protective spirit or deity was believed to bring good fortune and prosperity to a particular person, household or place. Archaeologists haven't found many depictions of them across Roman BritainTue, 14 Jul 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/romans-put-their-faith-in-guardian-spirits-archaeologists-just-found-a-rare-1600-year-old-carving-of-one-in-northern-england-180989118/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-largest-operating-steam-locomotive-in-the-world-weighs-1-2-million-pounds-now-the-historic-train-may-be-coming-to-your-town-180989112/Built in the 1940s, Big Boy No. 4014 retired in 1961 after traveling for more than one million miles. It's now making its way across the country in honor of America's 250th birthdayMon, 13 Jul 2026 17:26:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-largest-operating-steam-locomotive-in-the-world-weighs-1-2-million-pounds-now-the-historic-train-may-be-coming-to-your-town-180989112/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/dna-reveals-the-identity-of-a-teenager-who-died-in-the-revolutionary-war-cracking-a-nearly-250-year-old-cold-case-180989095/John Pumphrey was still a boy when he enlisted in the Continental Army in 1777. After archaeologists discovered his remains, a genetic genealogy analysis identified 20,000 DNA matches for living relativesFri, 10 Jul 2026 16:07:49 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/dna-reveals-the-identity-of-a-teenager-who-died-in-the-revolutionary-war-cracking-a-nearly-250-year-old-cold-case-180989095/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/are-moose-colorado-natives-or-introduced-outsiders-new-research-suggests-that-the-animals-have-lived-in-the-state-for-centuries-180989091/Officials say moose weren't established in the state until they were brought there in the late 1970s. But historical documentation and archaeological evidence indicate that they resided there long before thatThu, 09 Jul 2026 20:15:43 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/are-moose-colorado-natives-or-introduced-outsiders-new-research-suggests-that-the-animals-have-lived-in-the-state-for-centuries-180989091/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-have-deciphered-the-surviving-fragments-of-a-2000-year-old-philosophical-treatise-frozen-in-time-by-mount-vesuvius-eruption-180989036/The papyrus manuscript was part of a vast library preserved by volcanic ash. Now, the remaining passages—which examine ethics, knowledge and human nature—are accessible for the first time since 79 C.E.Fri, 26 Jun 2026 19:51:06 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-have-deciphered-the-surviving-fragments-of-a-2000-year-old-philosophical-treatise-frozen-in-time-by-mount-vesuvius-eruption-180989036/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/norman-rockwell-captured-the-hustle-of-the-west-wing-in-colorful-drawings-displayed-for-decades-in-the-white-house-theyre-now-on-public-view-for-the-first-time-180989025/The works were commissioned to humanize President Franklin D. Roosevelt at the height of World War IIFri, 26 Jun 2026 18:40:32 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/norman-rockwell-captured-the-hustle-of-the-west-wing-in-colorful-drawings-displayed-for-decades-in-the-white-house-theyre-now-on-public-view-for-the-first-time-180989025/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-one-german-button-maker-searched-the-rivers-of-the-american-midwest-for-the-shells-that-could-make-him-a-fortune-180989012/John Boepple settled in Muscatine, Iowa, where he produced pearl buttons made from freshwater mussel shells. His innovations brought economic prosperity to the town—and disaster to the local mussel populationsThu, 25 Jun 2026 13:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-one-german-button-maker-searched-the-rivers-of-the-american-midwest-for-the-shells-that-could-make-him-a-fortune-180989012/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/large-textile-production-site-discovered-in-denmark-challenges-the-stereotype-of-vikings-as-uncivilized-barbarians-180989014/The massive settlement, which spans more than a million square feet, likely dates to the late Iron Age or early Viking Age between 600 and 950 C.E.Wed, 24 Jun 2026 21:31:17 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/large-textile-production-site-discovered-in-denmark-challenges-the-stereotype-of-vikings-as-uncivilized-barbarians-180989014/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/revealing-its-original-shape-not-seen-in-centuries-greece-restored-part-of-the-parthenons-western-facade-180988996/The project in Athens started in 2017 and involved quarrying, transporting, hand-carving and placing new marble blocks in one of the landmark’s triangular pedimentsWed, 24 Jun 2026 13:12:11 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/revealing-its-original-shape-not-seen-in-centuries-greece-restored-part-of-the-parthenons-western-facade-180988996/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-letter-signed-by-george-washington-that-helped-pave-the-way-for-american-independence-is-going-on-display-in-london-180989004/Washington dictated and signed the letter in October 1781 to formally accept the British surrender at Yorktown, writing of his “ardent desire to spare the further effusion of blood”Tue, 23 Jun 2026 21:27:05 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-letter-signed-by-george-washington-that-helped-pave-the-way-for-american-independence-is-going-on-display-in-london-180989004/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-evidence-a-wooden-prototype-for-stonehenge-may-have-aligned-with-the-solstice-500-years-before-the-stone-circle-180988988/The remains of a wooden monument in southern England, three miles away from Stonehenge, may demonstrate Neolithic people's interest in the heavensFri, 19 Jun 2026 16:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-discover-evidence-a-wooden-prototype-for-stonehenge-may-have-aligned-with-the-solstice-500-years-before-the-stone-circle-180988988/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/major-oak-the-1200-year-old-tree-with-ties-to-the-robin-hood-legend-is-presumed-dead-after-failing-to-produce-leaves-180988986/The legendary bandit who stole from the rich and gave to the poor is said to have used the massive tree as a hideout while running from the sheriff of NottinghamThu, 18 Jun 2026 20:43:43 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/major-oak-the-1200-year-old-tree-with-ties-to-the-robin-hood-legend-is-presumed-dead-after-failing-to-produce-leaves-180988986/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-june-1775-the-american-patriots-faced-off-with-the-british-at-the-battle-of-bunker-hill-archaeologists-are-uncovering-evidence-of-the-fighting-251-years-later-180988979/Researchers discovered gun parts, musket balls and other artifacts in Boston's Charlestown neighborhoodThu, 18 Jun 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-june-1775-the-american-patriots-faced-off-with-the-british-at-the-battle-of-bunker-hill-archaeologists-are-uncovering-evidence-of-the-fighting-251-years-later-180988979/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-unearth-hundreds-of-artifacts-at-fort-ticonderoga-the-site-of-americas-first-offensive-victory-of-the-revolutionary-war-180988971/The objects were discovered on Liberty Hill, the place where many Continental Army soldiers heard the text of the Declaration of Independence for the first timeWed, 17 Jun 2026 18:54:33 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-unearth-hundreds-of-artifacts-at-fort-ticonderoga-the-site-of-americas-first-offensive-victory-of-the-revolutionary-war-180988971/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/you-can-now-see-betsy-ross-sewing-table-in-philadelphia-thanks-to-a-flag-day-donation-from-her-great-great-great-great-grandson-180988963/The origins of the Stars and Stripes are murky, but generations of Americans have admired stories about Ross creating the first American flagTue, 16 Jun 2026 10:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/you-can-now-see-betsy-ross-sewing-table-in-philadelphia-thanks-to-a-flag-day-donation-from-her-great-great-great-great-grandson-180988963/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/four-reasons-why-you-should-know-gordon-s-wood-esteemed-scholar-of-the-american-revolution-who-died-this-week-at-age-92-180988937/The Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, who wrote of the "radicalism" of the country’s founding, was killed in a car collision in a parking lotThu, 11 Jun 2026 17:24:20 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/four-reasons-why-you-should-know-gordon-s-wood-esteemed-scholar-of-the-american-revolution-who-died-this-week-at-age-92-180988937/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-womans-brains-were-scooped-out-and-her-bones-were-broken-and-whittled-in-scotland-2000-years-ago-180988935/Researchers say the modifications may represent a previously unknown funerary ritual in Iron Age BritainWed, 10 Jun 2026 21:23:55 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-womans-brains-were-scooped-out-and-her-bones-were-broken-and-whittled-in-scotland-2000-years-ago-180988935/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/workers-dredging-the-savannah-river-stumbled-upon-19-cannons-that-had-been-underwater-since-the-revolutionary-war-180988928/The centuries-old artifacts emerged from the riverbed between 2021 and 2022. Experts spent several years carefully restoring 17 of them, which will make their public debut in a new exhibitionWed, 10 Jun 2026 18:13:58 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/workers-dredging-the-savannah-river-stumbled-upon-19-cannons-that-had-been-underwater-since-the-revolutionary-war-180988928/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/theodore-roosevelt-survived-an-assassination-attempt-because-a-speech-tucked-inside-his-pocket-slowed-the-bullet-he-insisted-on-delivering-his-remarks-anyway-180988911/"I am very much uninterested in whether I am shot or not," he told an audience in Milwaukee. Newly discovered documents shed light on how the 26th president wanted the incident to shape his legacyTue, 09 Jun 2026 11:45:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/theodore-roosevelt-survived-an-assassination-attempt-because-a-speech-tucked-inside-his-pocket-slowed-the-bullet-he-insisted-on-delivering-his-remarks-anyway-180988911/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-shipwreck-almost-beyond-belief-stunned-archaeologists-in-norway-with-its-cargo-of-intact-porcelain-dishes-and-luxury-goods-180988910/So far, archaeologists have recovered 40 artifacts from the discovery, an 18th-century shipwreck that likely will yield thousands more treasuresFri, 05 Jun 2026 22:07:44 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-shipwreck-almost-beyond-belief-stunned-archaeologists-in-norway-with-its-cargo-of-intact-porcelain-dishes-and-luxury-goods-180988910/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/shipwrecks-discovered-near-the-bahamas-tantalize-researchers-with-possible-ties-to-the-real-pirates-of-the-caribbean-180988901/A team of archaeologists and filmmakers got permission to dive in the closed zone of the Nassau harbor and discovered six wrecks, including three with suspected ties to the era of piracyFri, 05 Jun 2026 13:43:20 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/shipwrecks-discovered-near-the-bahamas-tantalize-researchers-with-possible-ties-to-the-real-pirates-of-the-caribbean-180988901/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mathematicians-puzzled-over-a-famous-problem-for-80-years-now-theyve-used-ai-to-identify-a-clever-solution-180988889/In 1946, the mathematician Paul Erdős posed the unit distance problem—and suggested a winning strategy. An A.I. model has now landed on a better one. Why didn't humans get there first?Wed, 03 Jun 2026 16:14:17 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mathematicians-puzzled-over-a-famous-problem-for-80-years-now-theyve-used-ai-to-identify-a-clever-solution-180988889/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-hilma-af-klint-the-occultist-who-believed-otherworldly-spirits-told-her-what-to-paint-now-shes-considered-one-of-historys-first-abstract-artists-180988859/The Swedish painter created bold, vibrant works as early as 1906—several years before contemporaries like Wassily Kandinsky. A new exhibition in France celebrates her sweeping "Paintings for the Temple" seriesFri, 29 May 2026 16:08:30 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-hilma-af-klint-the-occultist-who-believed-otherworldly-spirits-told-her-what-to-paint-now-shes-considered-one-of-historys-first-abstract-artists-180988859/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-1776-angry-new-yorkers-tore-down-a-statue-of-george-iii-with-a-revolutionary-fervor-a-new-exhibition-lets-you-do-it-too-180988830/New York City played a pivotal role in the American Revolution. This museum brings the city's 18th-century history to life through artifacts, immersive environments and interactive experiencesWed, 27 May 2026 19:00:45 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-1776-angry-new-yorkers-tore-down-a-statue-of-george-iii-with-a-revolutionary-fervor-a-new-exhibition-lets-you-do-it-too-180988830/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/whalers-didnt-just-sing-sea-shanties-and-seek-adventure-proof-of-laborers-grueling-work-is-in-their-skeletons-buried-in-the-arctic-180988787/Remains buried on Svalbard show the brutal toll whaling took on men in the 17th and 18th centuries. Climate change threatens these kinds of archaeological sites across the ArcticThu, 21 May 2026 21:36:45 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/whalers-didnt-just-sing-sea-shanties-and-seek-adventure-proof-of-laborers-grueling-work-is-in-their-skeletons-buried-in-the-arctic-180988787/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/who-are-the-owners-of-these-nazi-looted-masterpiecesand-could-displaying-them-at-one-of-frances-most-popular-museums-help-track-them-down-180988779/A new permanent display at the Musée d’Orsay showcases artworks that may have been stolen or sold under suspicious circumstances during World War II. Officials are still hoping to find the families of their rightful ownersThu, 21 May 2026 15:02:39 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/who-are-the-owners-of-these-nazi-looted-masterpiecesand-could-displaying-them-at-one-of-frances-most-popular-museums-help-track-them-down-180988779/