Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Cool Finds

Trending Today

Restored Roman Catacombs Reveal Stunning Frescoes

Centuries of grime have been removed from two chambers of the Domitilia catacombs, exposing images of fourth-century Rome

Thoreau kept—and illustrated—journals throughout his lifetime.

Cool Finds

Snoop Inside Thoreau’s Journals at This New Exhibition

It’s your chance to get up-close and personal with the philosopher-poet’s possessions

Roman roof tile with its cat print

Cool Finds

Cat Left a Pawprint in a 2,000-Year-Old Roman Roof Tile

While excavating a highway in Lincolnshire UK, archaeologists found thousands of artifacts, including tiles with dog, cat and deer prints

Head of Acheolus on the cauldron

New Research

Researchers Analyze Burial of Ancient Celtic Prince

French researchers are looking at the construction, composition and origin of artifacts found with the 2,500-year-old skeleton

Qinghai Hoh Xil

Cool Finds

Three Incredible Natural Areas Nominated for the World Heritage List

Areas in Tibet, Argentina and West Africa are likely to receive international protection for their rare plants, animals and natural beauty

Typhlonus nasus, the Faceless Cusk

Cool Finds

“Faceless” Fish Found off the Coast of Australia

The rare creature was dredged up from some 13,000 feet below the surface

Hyalinobatrachium yaku

New Research

This Glass Frog’s Heart Is Visible Through Its Skin

The new species of frog has a transparent underside, offering a glimpse of its beating heart inside

Cool Finds

See the Gulf of Mexico’s Seafloor Like Never Before With This 1.4-Billion-Pixel Map

Made from data collected from 200 proprietary maps from oil and gas companies, the new image has a resolution 16 times greater than the next best map

Edith Wharton circa 1900. Her play "The Shadow of a Doubt" didn't make it to the stage in 1901—but has finally been rediscovered by scholars.

Cool Finds

Scholars Rediscover Forgotten Edith Wharton Play

“The Shadow of a Doubt” had been overshadowed by over 100 years of history

Surprise!

Cool Finds

Watch a Partial Solar Eclipse From Space

It’s a preview of even more spectacular things to come

Each pole is 20 feet high and weighs over 2,000 pounds.

Cool Finds

The Powerful Story Behind Glacier Bay National Park’s New Totem Poles

They’re 20-foot-tall symbols of a slowly healing rift

Donna Mahan's "Safeguarding" was made with a castoff window from the residence.

Cool Finds

This Art Was Made from JFK’s Cape Cod Home

The Hyannis Port house was the stuff of family legend. Now it’s the source of new art

You'll have a tail to tell after visiting this North Carolina museum.

American South

North Carolina Has a House Cat Museum

You’ll want to paws for this roadside attraction

Cool Finds

Indonesian Village Turns Into a Rainbow to Attract Tourists

Every house and business in Kampung Pelangi is painted in bright rainbow colors

For Minneapolis art lovers, this huge painting needs no introduction—or title.

Cool Finds

Enormous Chicken Painting Comes Home to Roost

After years overseas, Doug Argue’s iconic portrait is back

Image on the original Pioneer 10 and 11 plaques

Cool Finds

Now You Too Can Own a Piece of Space History

The engraver who inscribed Carl Sagan’s and Frank Drake’s 1973 message to extraterrestrials is now taking orders

Ona Louise has a tale to tell.

Cool Finds

Drag Queens Are Public Libraries’ Newest Storytellers

Early reading just got a lot more glamorous

This smart tag contains synthetic DNA and other security measures to help authenticate and track the provenance of canvas.

Cool Finds

Can Giving Paintings Their Own DNA Stop Art Forgery?

Science is leading the charge against copycats

The taggers of the future aren't carrying cans of spray paint.

Cool Finds

Street Art Will Soon Take to the Skies with Graffiti-Painting Drone Swarms

Paint-loaded quadcopters can turn any vertical space into a canvas

Fanny Cornforth posted for "Lady Lilith" and other influential Pre-Raphaelite paintings.

Cool Finds

Newly Digitized Archives Reveal the Inner Lives of Artists

The Delaware Art Museum just put 500 rare documents online

Page 98 of 281