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Discoveries

The Hill of Montmartre with Stone Quarry (1886)

Newly Identified Vincent van Gogh Drawings Go on Display

The two works were drawn during the artist’s formative years in Paris

Excerpt from Folio 5 recto from the Book of Deer.

Possible Remains of ‘Lost’ Monastery Discovered in Scotland

The elusive monastery is associated with the Book of Deer, which contains the oldest-surviving examples of Scottish Gaelic writing

A cross-section of underground ice is exposed at the steep slope that appears bright blue in this enhanced-color view from the HiRISE camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Huge Deposits of Ice Found Just Beneath Mars’ Surface

Erosion has exposed eight sites of enormous quantities of water ice

New Research

This Is the Largest Known Prime Number Yet

The newly discovered prime is 23 million digits long

Qin Shihuang, the first emperor of China, may not have discovered an elixir to life but he did achieve his own form of immortality through his teracotta army

2,000-Year-Old Texts Reveal the First Emperor of China’s Quest for Eternal Life

Qin Shihuang issued an executive order demanding that his subjects search for an immortality elixir

The finds from Clapham’s Coffee House, some of which are pictured here, included teapots, wine glasses, and clay pipes.

Archaeologists Discover 500 Artifacts from 18th-Century British Coffeehouse

Among the finds were cups, saucers, sugar bowls, coffee tins and an impressive collection of teapots

Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer stands with the taxidermied remains of her groundbreaking discovery.

In the 1930s, This Natural History Curator Discovered a Living Fossil–Well, Sort of

Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer was convinced she’d found something special in a pile of fish, but it took some time for her discovery to be recognized

Winding Ice Age Cave Discovered Beneath Montreal

The cave stretches for more than 600 feet and splinters off into a number of different passageways

Hundreds of pterosaur eggs were found, 16 of which contained partial embryonic remains.

Cache of 120-Million-Year-Old Fossilized Pterosaur Eggs Found in China

Some of the eggs contained embryonic remains, offering unprecedented insight into the pterosaur’s early life phases

Archaeologists in California Unearth a Large Sphinx—From the Set of ‘The Ten Commandments’

Director Cecil B. DeMille gave the order for the entire set be buried beneath the sand after shooting on the blockbuster concluded

11 Cauldrons Found at Iron Age Settlement in England

The cauldrons, most of which were buried in a circle, appear to have been used in ceremonial feasts

Close-up of tent detail in Verplancks Point watercolor

Newly Discovered 235-Year-Old Watercolor Shows Off General Washington’s Wartime Tent

The painting offers a unique glimpse into the Revolutionary War

Found: A Rare White Crocodile in Australia

Its name is Pearl

New Research

Blue Whales Have a Secret Feeding Weapon: Ambidextrousness

Though they tend to favor their right side, blue whales can switch to ‘left-handedness’ while hunting

New Research

This Rock Art May Be the Earliest Depiction of Dogs

The carvings are between 8,000 and 9,000 years old and hint that the creatures may already be heading toward domestication

The image depicts the outlaw Billy the Kid, posing alongside the sheriff who later killed him.

Cool Finds

Rare Photograph of Billy the Kid Found at a Flea Market

The tintype image was purchased for $10 but might be worth millions

General view of incised pillar stone

Pictish Carving of Large-Nosed Warrior Found in Scotland

The carving may have marked the property of a high-ranking individual

Elmar Juchem, Managing Editor of the Kurt Weill Edition, was able to identify Kurt Weill's manuscript while doing archival work in Berlin.

Composer Kurt Weill’s Long-Forgotten “Song of the White Cheese” Discovered in Berlin Archive

Listen to the 1931 ditty, which had gone unnoticed in the collection of a little-known actress

Marie and Pierre Curie in the laboratory.

Three Quirky Facts About Marie Curie

In honor of her 150th birthday, let’s review a few lesser-known pieces of her personal history

Storm Ophelia Unearthed an Ancient Skeleton in Ireland

Some of the skeleton’s skin was still preserved

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