Renaissance | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/renaissance/RSS feed for RenaissanceenThu, 09 Jul 2026 16:17:58 +0000Scientists Just Learned That This Bat Eats Birds Midflight. A Renaissance Painter May Have Known About It Hundreds of Years Agohttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-just-learned-that-this-bat-eats-birds-midflight-a-renaissance-painter-may-have-known-about-it-hundreds-of-years-ago-180989096/Last fall, scientists reported the first known recordings of greater noctule bats hunting and feasting on songbirds during night flights. But a 17th-century artwork by Jan Brueghel the Elder seems to depict the species flying with feathered prey in its mouthThu, 09 Jul 2026 16:17:58 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-just-learned-that-this-bat-eats-birds-midflight-a-renaissance-painter-may-have-known-about-it-hundreds-of-years-ago-180989096/Did This Duke Poison His Brother? A New DNA Analysis May Solve the Centuries-Old Medici Mysteryhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/did-this-duke-poison-his-brother-a-new-dna-analysis-may-solve-the-centuries-old-medici-mystery-180989086/Researchers found evidence of malaria in Francesco I de' Medici's bones, leading them to argue "with scientific certainty" that it was disease, not arsenic, that led to his death in 1587Wed, 08 Jul 2026 17:05:02 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/did-this-duke-poison-his-brother-a-new-dna-analysis-may-solve-the-centuries-old-medici-mystery-180989086/Puzzled by Mark Rothko's Captivating Color Field Paintings? Look to the Renaissance Masters Who Inspired Himhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/puzzled-by-mark-rothkos-captivating-color-field-paintings-look-to-the-renaissance-masters-who-inspired-him-180989068/During trips to Europe, the American painter developed a fascination with how 15th- and 16th-century artists and architects had designed their work to evoke specific feelingsThu, 02 Jul 2026 19:01:07 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/puzzled-by-mark-rothkos-captivating-color-field-paintings-look-to-the-renaissance-masters-who-inspired-him-180989068/The Hall of Raphael Frescoes in the Pope’s Residence at the Vatican Is Getting a Much-Needed Restoration With the Help of Lasershttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-vaticans-hall-of-raphael-frescoes-in-the-popes-residence-is-getting-a-much-needed-restoration-with-the-help-of-lasers-180989041/Conservators will spend the next five years cleaning and retouching the Renaissance frescoes, which date back to the early 16th centuryTue, 30 Jun 2026 13:31:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-vaticans-hall-of-raphael-frescoes-in-the-popes-residence-is-getting-a-much-needed-restoration-with-the-help-of-lasers-180989041/See Visions of the Past and Future in This New York City Exhibition on the Renaissance Roots of Tarot Cardshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-visions-of-the-past-and-future-in-this-new-york-city-exhibition-on-the-renaissance-roots-of-tarot-cards-180988940/The Morgan Library & Museum traces the history of beautifully illustrated tarot cards from their origins as a card game to modern occult fascinationThu, 11 Jun 2026 18:52:58 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-visions-of-the-past-and-future-in-this-new-york-city-exhibition-on-the-renaissance-roots-of-tarot-cards-180988940/