Christmas

The Santa Claus and Rudolph puppets are expected to sell for between $150,000 and $250,000.

Iconic 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' Puppets Are Up for Auction

You could own the Santa and Rudolph figurines featured in the classic 1964 holiday special

Notre Dame Cathedral is seen during restoration work more than eight months after the fire that ravaged the emblematic monument on December 18, 2019 in Paris, France.

For the First Time in 200 Years, Christmas Services Will Not Be Held at Notre-Dame

The building remains fragile after suffering a devastating fire in April

The petite creation measures 10 micrometers long, or roughly a tenth of the diameter of the average human hair.

This Microscopic 'Gingerbread' House Is Smaller Than a Human Hair

Although it doesn't taste great, the silicon house highlights the capabilities of electron microscopy

Farley Granger and Jeanne Crain star in 'The Gift of the Magi', one of five stories by O Henry grouped together under the title of 'O Henry's Full House.'

The History of O. Henry's 'The Gift of the Magi'

The beloved Christmas short story may have been dashed off on deadline but its core message has endured

When the special finally aired in 1964, it became such a hit that it has been rebroadcast every year since, making it the longest-running Christmas special in history.

The Magical Animation of 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'

The Christmas television special—the longest running in history—was groundbreaking in its use of stop-motion animation with puppets

From Christmas to Chinese New Year to San Sebastián Street Festival, here are the beverages that people around the world will be sipping on this holiday season.

Nine Delicious Holiday Drinks From Around the World

Bored of eggnog? Sick of cider? Here are nine scrumptious end-of-year beverages to sip on from across the globe

Flying Santa plane flies past Boston Light in 1947.

After 90 Years, the 'Flying Santa' Is Still Dropping Gifts From a Plane

In New England, a long-standing tradition continues with pilots delivering gifts to lighthouses and lifesaving stations

This Electric Eel Is Shocking Around the Christmas Tree

The Tennessee Aquarium's internet-famous eel, Miguel Wattson, is powering Christmas lights in the exhibit

The 1979 "Christmas Rappin'" was "so witty" says rapper Kurtis Blow (above in 2016 at the Art of Rap festival in Los Angeles). "I welcomed the opportunity to do it.”

Every Year Just 'Bout This Time, Kurtis Blow Celebrates With a Rhyme

In a salute to "Christmas Rappin,'" hip-hop chronicler Bill Adler tells the tale of how the famous rap recording came to life

Food, Glorious Food

Smithsonian magazine's coverage of food, drink and their role in our culture

Your Christmas Tree May Be Turned Into Mouthwash One Day

A new sustainable chemical process can turn pine needles into a chemical feedstock for paint, food sweeteners, mouthwash and other products

These new songs will not be performed by a children's Christmas choir.

The Titles of These AI-Generated Christmas Carols Are Pure Cinnamon Hollybells

🎶 We wish you a Merry Jinglelog 🎶

The Smithsonian's 19 museums and the National Zoo close for Christmas but will remain open with regular hours through January 1 in the event of a government shut down.

Smithsonian Museums Will Remain Open in the Event of Government Shutdown

While the museums and the National Zoo will close on Christmas Day, they will operate as usual through January 1

Saint Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, is shown throwing three balls of gold through a window, providing the dowry of three poverty-stricken maidens in an altarpiece painted between 1433 and 1435 for a monastery in Florence. The design was based on an altarpiece by Gentile da Fabriano of 1425.

Why We Should Bring Back the Tradition of the Christmas Orange

The appeal of a last-minute stocking stuffer

Erfurt's Christmas Market

Could Erfurt Be Germany's Most Magical Christmas Town?

A Christmas pyramid, a 65-foot tree, a 14th-century bridge and a market serving mulled wine and drinking chocolates are among Erfurt's festive offerings

The Patents Behind Christmas Lights

This Christmas, take a moment to appreciate the many innovations that make holiday light displays and the strand of bulbs on your tree possible

By regrowing trees from stumps, farms can produce sustainable, pesticide-free pine trees.

Stump-Grown Christmas Trees Are the Gift That Keeps on Giving

Using the sustainable and ancient method of coppicing, evergreen Christmas trees can be regrown indefinitely

The 1938 Christmas greeting would've only held significance for those "in the know"

Christmas Card Addressed to Bletchley Codebreakers Discovered

The lost holiday message features the only known photograph of operatives’ September 1938 meeting, the enigmatic “Captain Ridley’s shooting party”

Cartoonist Thomas Nast first drew Santa Claus in January 1863, for Harper's Weekly.

A Civil War Cartoonist Created the Modern Image of Santa Claus as Union Propaganda

Thomas Nast is legendary for his political cartoons, but he’s also responsible for the jolly St. Nick we know today

A mini-loaf of homemade panettone

A Culinary History of Panettone, the Italian and South American Christmas Treat

The holiday pastry has been a multicultural phenomenon since the very beginning

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