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Cultural Preservation

The Vale of York Hoard, a major trove of Viking artifacts discovered in 2007 in North Yorkshire. The hoard—likely buried around 920 A.D.—included 617 silver coins, a Frankish silver cup and Viking jewelry.

To Protect Its Rare Artifacts, the U.K. Proposes Revised Definition of ‘Treasure’

New standards will ensure significant archaeological finds remain publicly accessible for study and enjoyment, the government says

Local residents walk through the damaged Ghazanchetsots Cathedral, or Holy Savior Cathedral, in Shushi. Azerbaijani forces targeted the cathedra during a six-week offensive designed to regain control of the region.

Why Scholars, Cultural Institutions Are Calling to Protect Armenian Heritage

After six weeks of fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenia agreed to cede control of territories in the contested region to Azerbaijan

Waimea Bay takes its name from the Hawaiian word for "reddish-brown waters."

What the Survival of the Hawaiian Language Means to Those Who Speak It

A Smithsonian curator recalls his own experience learning the native tongue

To keep Neil Armstrong’s spacesuit from degrading, conservators designed a custom mannequin that allows air to circulate inside.

Secretary Lonnie Bunch on the Invisible Work of the Smithsonian’s Conservators

From deep cleaning to painstaking repairs, caring for Smithsonian’s 155 million objects requires serious TLC—and steady hands

Nāoli Weller, a nursery school teacher at Nāwahī, leads her class in traditional songs. In the room hang signs that help pupils master the Hawaiian language.

The Inspiring Quest to Revive the Hawaiian Language

A determined couple and their children are sparking the renewal of a long-suppressed part of their ancestors’ culture

A Lidl grocery store in Ireland is pictured here in 2019. The German grocery chain's new Dublin location features a surprising archaeological display.

Cool Finds

Shoppers at Dublin Grocery Store Glimpse Viking History Beneath Their Feet

A new Lidl boasts plexiglass windows that reveal archaeological wonders, including an 11th-century house and 18th-century staircase

The liberal arts college is home to the country’s longest continuously operating broomcraft workshop.

Artisan America

This Kentucky College Has Been Making Brooms for 100 Years

Berea College’s broomcraft program carries on an American craft tradition that’s rarely practiced today

Xanthia DeBerry, with her daughters Angelica and Aniaya, is part of the seed saving project.

New Project Aims to Revive Ozark Cuisine Through Seeds

St. Louis chef Rob Connoley looks to reconnect black farmers to heritage crops, using records from a 19th century seed store

A replica statue of Atlas at the Temple of Zeus in Agrigento, Sicily

A Colossal Statue of Atlas Will Rise Again

Sicily’s Temple of Zeus once featured 38 giant likenesses of the mythological Titan. Now, a reassembled version is set to go on view

The Sun-n-Sand Motor Hotel in Jackson, Mississippi, is included on the National Trust for Historic Preservation's new list of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.

Eleven Historic Places in America That Desperately Need Saving

The National Trust for Historic Preservation names these sites as the most endangered cultural treasures in our country

The mud-brick buildings of Djenné, Mali, are among six at-risk African heritage sites spotlighted by a new study.

Study Suggests At-Risk African Heritage Sites Are Often Overlooked

Researchers cite a “total lack of quantifiable data on the impacts of climate change on heritage in sub-Saharan Africa”

The vast trench dug by treasure hunters is visible at the center of this image.

Treasure Hunters Destroy 2,000-Year-Old Heritage Site in Sudan

Illegal gold diggers dug an enormous trench at Jabal Maragha in the eastern Sahara Desert

An 80-foot dinosaur at the entrance to the town of Wall, South Dakota, advertises for Wall Drug.

Covid-19

Will America’s Roadside Attractions Survive COVID-19?

With canceled bus tours and capacity limits, the country’s quirkiest stops are facing some serious challenges

A broadsheet campaigned to save the house once owned by John Hancock.

How Historic Preservation Shaped the Early United States

A new book details how the young nation regarded its recent and more ancient pasts

A section of the Berlin Wall in Pankow, the neighborhood where a nearly 200-foot stretch of the historic structure was razed to make way for luxury condos

196-Foot Section of the Berlin Wall Demolished to Make Way for Condos

Angry historians say the stretch of concrete was one of the largest remaining sections of the inner wall

The ever-growing list of 1,000 Places Where Women Made History currently includes everything from homes where pioneering women once lived, buildings where specific events that involved them occurred, and where women-led accomplishments happened.

Women Who Shaped History

Crowdsourcing Project Aims to Document the Many U.S. Places Where Women Have Made History

The National Trust for Historic Preservation is looking for 1,000 places tied to women’s history, and to share the stories of the figures behind them

Susan Pringle Frost founded the Charleston chapter of the Equal Suffrage League as well as the Preservation of Old Dwellings, now called the Preservation Society of Charleston.

Women Who Shaped History

The Suffragist With a Passion for Saving Charleston’s Historic Architecture

A century ago, Susan Pringle Frost tirelessly campaigned to save these South Carolina buildings from destruction

The exhibition presents the possibility that 3-D models (above: a digital rendering of Aleppo following the 2012 civil war in Syria), and the information extracted from them can be used for future restoration projects.

Take a Walk Through These War-Torn Ancient Cities

An immersive exhibition at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery uses technology to reconstruct historically significant sites in Mosul, Aleppo and Palmyra

The moai at Easter island, built by the Rapa Nui people

New Research Rewrites the Demise of Easter Island

Yet another spate of evidence suggests the Rapa Nui people were going strong long after Europeans first arrived in 1722

The Moai sculptures on Rapa Nui are at risk of collapsing into the ocean as coastal erosion continues.

New Tool Tracks Climate Change’s Impact on World Heritage Sites

The online portal showcases the craggy cliffs surrounding Edinburgh Castle, Easter Island’s famed sculptures and other cultural heritage hotspots

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