Libraries | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/libraries/RSS feed for LibrariesenFri, 14 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0000This Library Book Was 150 Years Overdue. Fortunately for the Man Who Just Returned It, Librarians Won't Be Enforcing a $20,000 Late Feehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-library-book-was-150-years-overdue-fortunately-for-the-man-who-just-returned-it-librarians-wont-be-enforcing-a-20000-late-fee-180989339/"The Antiquities of Athens" had likely been missing from an Australian library since the 1870s. Staffers say its recovery is "an unlikely story of survival (of the book) and redemption (of the borrower)"Fri, 14 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-library-book-was-150-years-overdue-fortunately-for-the-man-who-just-returned-it-librarians-wont-be-enforcing-a-20000-late-fee-180989339/A Volunteer Stumbled Upon a Strange Document in the U.K. National Archives. It Turned Out to Be a Rare Copy of the Declaration of Independence Printed in July 1776https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-volunteer-stumbled-upon-a-strange-document-in-the-uk-national-archives-it-turned-out-to-be-a-rare-copy-of-the-declaration-of-independence-printed-in-july-1776-180989169/Michael Scurr, a retired insurance broker, found the text while cataloging boxes of 18th-century correspondence housed at the London archives. It's the only known copy of its kind outside the United StatesTue, 21 Jul 2026 19:23:31 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-volunteer-stumbled-upon-a-strange-document-in-the-uk-national-archives-it-turned-out-to-be-a-rare-copy-of-the-declaration-of-independence-printed-in-july-1776-180989169/Man Sentenced for Stealing 'Rare and Unique' Chinese Texts, Valued at More Than $200,000, by Using Aliases, Fake IDs and Dummy Manuscriptshttps://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/