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Ancient Civilizations

Detail of a 19th-century mural in the Library of Congress that depicts America as a successor to ancient Egypt

How White Southerners Distorted the History of Ancient Egypt to Justify Slavery in the U.S.

American writers misleadingly interpreted Egypt’s past to argue that slavery was a divinely sanctioned institution

A vision of ancient Carthage, attributed to the painter William Linton, c. 1830. 

The Story of Carthage Isn’t Necessarily What the Romans Committed to History

A new book by historian and archaeologist Eve MacDonald paints a more complete portrait of the once-great African society destroyed by Rome

Fascinating finds unveiled in 2025 ranged from an Auguste Rodin sculpture to a ring bearing the likeness of the goddess Venus Victrix.

Cool Finds

Seventy-Two Fascinating Finds Revealed in 2025, From a Luxury Spa in Pompeii to a Pair of World War I Messages in a Bottle

The year’s most exciting discoveries included the site where a young George Washington stopped a friendly fire incident, the missing torso of a Buddha statue and a hidden Picasso painting

Our most-read stories of the year spotlighted a Eugène Delacroix painting, horseshoe crabs, the Dionne quintuplets and more.

Ten Top Smithsonian Stories of 2025, From Eerie Clay Puppets With Detachable Heads to a New Look at the American Revolution

The magazine’s most-read articles of the year included a deep dive on the Scopes “monkey trial,” an interview with award-winning documentarians and a profile of quintuplets who found fame during the Great Depression

Both statues are more than 40 feet tall.

Two Towering Statues of an Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Have Been Restored at the Entrance of His Temple After 3,000 Years

Known as the Colossi of Memnon, the statues of Amenhotep III both stand at more than 40 feet tall. Experts have been working for two decades to reassemble them

An ogham stone in Cornwall, England

These Linguists Are Creating a New Dictionary of Ancient Celtic Languages—With Help From ‘Curse Tablets’ and Roman Records

The project aims to produce a record of the Celtic languages spoken in Britain and Ireland, though the majority of these words have already been lost to history

Ancient ruins displayed at Colosseo-Fori Imperiali, a new subway station near the Colosseum in Rome

You Can Now See 2,000-Year-Old Thermal Baths and Military Barracks Without Ever Leaving Rome’s New Subway Stations

Two recently opened stops by the Colosseum double as museums, showcasing the ancient artifacts and ruins unearthed during their construction

Graffiti scribbled on a wall in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii

Pompeii’s Graffiti Captures Every Joke, Boast and Argument of an Ancient Roman City Frozen in Time

The roughly 11,000 inscriptions preserved by Mount Vesuvius’ eruption in 79 C.E. offer a glimpse into everyday life in the Roman Empire

The researchers based their conclusions on an intact ancient construction site found at Pompeii.

New Research

This Ancient Construction Site in the Ruins of Pompeii Is Revealing New Secrets About the 2,000-Year-Old Recipe for Roman Concrete

New research suggests the Romans used a method known as “hot mixing” to produce self-healing concrete, which allowed them to build structures that endured for centuries

Harappa was one of the large cities created by the Indus Valley civilization.

Why Did This Advanced Ancient Civilization Collapse? New Research Suggests Climate Change Played a Role

The Indus Valley civilization, located in present-day Pakistan and India, went through four periods of intense drought, which may have led to the society’s demise

Researcher Carolyn Boyd examines a Pecos River style pictograph in Seminole Canyon State Park and Historic Site.  

New Research

Researchers Discover the Shocking Age of the Mysterious Pecos River Rock Art

The murals were painted on limestone canyon walls, in the same style, over the span of four millennia

Evidence of prehistoric flint tool-making dating to approximately 4300 B.C.E.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Digging Beneath Britain’s Houses of Parliament Discover 6,000-Year-Old Flint Artifacts and a 2,000-Year-Old Roman Altar Fragment

During restorations at the Palace of Westminster in London, excavations have revealed a trove of historic objects, the oldest of which date to around 4300 B.C.E.

Smithsonian magazine's picks for the best history books of 2025 include We the People, The Stolen Crown and Medicine River.

The Best Books of 2025

The Ten Best History Books of 2025

Our favorite titles of the year resurrect overlooked histories and examine how the United States ended up where it is today

The "digital twin" of the House of Thiasus, with a reconstructed wooden ceiling

New Research

Ancient Pompeii’s Elite May Have Built Lavish Towers on Top of Their Villas. Here’s What They May Have Looked Like

Digital reconstructions are bringing structures to life that may have collapsed during Mount Vesuvius’ eruption in 79 C.E. Researchers think these towers symbolized their owners’ wealth and influence

The Tugunbulak settlement was inhabited between the 6th and 11th centuries. 

Archaeologists May Have Found the Lost Iron City of the Silk Road in the Remote Highlands of Uzbekistan

Researchers are uncovering what they think is the metropolis of Marsmanda, an iron-making city that could rewrite the history of the famed trade route

Syria's National Museum reopening to visitors in Damascus on January 8

Six Ancient Roman Statues Have Been Stolen From Syria’s National Museum

The theft is a serious loss for the country’s cultural heritage, which had already sustained extensive damage during a long civil war

Experts think the cross-shaped pit reflects the Maya view of the universe.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Say They’ve Found a 3,000-Year-Old Map of the Cosmos at an Ancient Maya Site in Mexico

New research sheds light on a cross-shaped pit found at Aguada Fénix, a monumental complex discovered several years ago

Archaeologists discovered an engraved intaglio that a Roman man stationed at Bremenium in northern England likely used to stamp his correspondence.

Archaeologists Excavating a Roman Fort in Britain Discovered a Rare Red Gemstone Engraved With a Surprising Design

The intaglio was likely set in a signet ring and used to stamp correspondence at Bremenium, a military outpost located roughly 25 miles north of Hadrian’s Wall

The wine press is composed of a three-holed treading surface (right) and a collection vat (left).

Cool Finds

A 5,000-Year-Old Canaanite Wine Press Has Been Discovered in Israel

Researchers discovered the press, along with a ritualistic, animal-shaped “tea set,” outside the ancient site of Tel Megiddo

Dutch officials will return the 7.5-inch-tall stone bust to Egypt by the end of the year.

The Netherlands Will Return a Looted 3,500-Year-Old Stone Bust to Egypt

The repatriation coincided with the lavish opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, which is finally welcoming visitors after years of delays

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