Anthropology

Activists picketing at a demonstration for housing equality while uniformed American Nazi Party members counterprotest in the background with signs displaying anti-integration slogans and racist epithets.

This Photo Book Is a Reminder That the Civil Rights Movement Extended Far Beyond the Deep South

Public historian Mark Speltz's new book is full of images that aren't typically part of the 1960s narrative

The first episode, “Tech Yourself,” explores how the ascent of the railroad industry pushed America into creating time zones.

There’s a “Sidedoor” Entrance to the Smithsonian and It’s Through a New Podcast

Sidedoor will air eight episodes in its first season; new episodes will debut every two weeks

Why Was King Tut's Tomb Prepared in Such a Rush?

When archeologists discovered mold formations in King Tut's tomb, they worried the sweat and breath of tourists were the cause

Anthropologists have long debated the origins of human violence.

Can Resource Scarcity Really Explain a History of Human Violence?

Data from thousands of California burial sites suggests that a lack of resources causes violence. But that conclusion may be too simplistic

A Hadza elder wears a roughly tanned wild-animal skin over a T-shirt. The skin strips on his bow reinforce his weapon while the furs attest to his recent kills. His headband is not traditionally Hadza; members of the tribe have begun to adopt styles from neighboring groups.

Get Face to Face With the Tribes of Tanzania

As safari parks encroach on their ancestral lands, indigenous groups struggle to maintain their ways of life

The HMS Terror was missing for nearly 170 years after it got trapped in ice and sunk in frigid Arctic waters.

Second Ship From Sir John Franklin's 19th-Century Expedition Found

Two years and a day after its sister ship was discovered, Canadian researchers find the H.M.S. <i>Terror</i>

Dr. Anwen Caffell lays out the remains of a Scottish soldier found in a mass grave in Durham, England.

The Remains of 400-Year-Old Scottish Soldiers Will Be Reburied in England

The soldiers were captured by Oliver Cromwell's forces following the Battle of Dunbar

Reconstruction of Lucy’s vertical deceleration event, by the authors of the new study.

Did Anthropologists Just Solve the 3-Million-Year-Old Mystery of Lucy’s Death?

Researchers think they've reconstructed the fatal plunge and last terrifying seconds of the hominin's life

Josh Chase, an archeologist for the Bureau of Land Management and a former wildland firefighter, found that controlled burns can be a way to expose long-hidden Native American artifacts.

Why Archaeologists Are Intentionally Setting Early American Sites on Fire

Archaeologists, who typically consider fire to be a destructive force, are now finding that it can be useful as tool of discovery

Archaeologists look for pieces of metal in their search for the remains of a massacre of Native Americans in 1863 in Idaho.

The Search Is On for the Site of the Worst Indian Massacre in U.S. History

At least 250 Shoshone were killed by the Army in the 1863 incident, but their remains have yet to be found

Chester Medicine Crow (Apsáalooke, Crow) and his grandfather Joe Medicine Crow (Apsáalooke, Crow)

Remembering Dr. Joe Medicine Crow

He showed us we are capable of great things when we look within ourselves, says scholar Nina Sanders

The brown bear patella researchers dated to 12,500 years ago

Bear Bone Adds 2,500 Years to History of Humans in Ireland

Carbon dating of a bear bone covered in cut marks pushes human habitation of Ireland back into the Paleolithic Era

In this image, a chimp throws a rock at another chimp. But in West Africa, scientists think the animals may also ritualistically throw stones at hollow trees.

Chimps May Be Performing Rituals at “Shrine Trees”

Scientists think that chimps throwing and stacking stones at hollow trees may be evidence of early rituals

Were these small prints left by Stone Age babies...or lizards?

“Baby Hands” on Rock Paintings Were Probably Lizard Prints

The prints could have held symbolic meaning for Stone Age humans

Artist Gary Staab and his team spent roughly 2,000 hours over five months to create the first of three models.

An Artist Creates a Detailed Replica of Ötzi, the 5,300-Year-Old "Iceman"

Museum artist Gary Staab discusses the art and science of constructing exhibition pieces

Scientists Discover 9,000-Year-Old Case of Decapitation in the Americas

Off with their head and hands

Meet Homo naledi, the newest member of the human family tree.

What Makes a Fossil a Member of the Human Family Tree?

The surprising new species Homo naledi raises more questions than answers—for now

Scientists Just Identified a Pinkie That’s Almost 2 Million Years Old

And it could be a major evolutionary breakthrough

Brazil's Surui people, like the man pictured above, share ancestry with indigenous Australians, new evidence suggests.

A DNA Search for the First Americans Links Amazon Groups to Indigenous Australians

The new genetic analysis takes aim at the theory that just one founding group settled the Americas

In Some Ways, Human Hands Are More Primitive Than Chimp Hands

Study suggests our common ancestor had humanlike hands

Page 8 of 14