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History

Cool Finds

Historian Identifies Subject of Van Gogh’s “Gardener”

The portrait is likely of a day laborer that worked on the grounds of the asylum where the troubled artist stayed near the end of his life

This critter soaks in the heat of a 112 degrees Fahrenheit day in Death Valley.

Death Valley Scorches Its Own Record for the Hottest Month in History

Temperatures averaged a blistering 108.1 degrees Fahrenheit for the month of July

An example of a moai wearing a red scoria pukao.

New Research

The Clever Way the Easter Island Statues Got Hats

A new analysis of the 13-ton red stone pukao show the carvings were likely rolled up ramps to the leaning statues

A denarius of Commodus

New Research

Greenland’s Ice Provides a Year-By-Year Account of the Roman Empire’s Economy

A new study finds that lead levels from Roman silver production rise and fall in relation to the Empire’s political and economic changes

Panga ya Saidi

New Research

People Lived in This Cave for 78,000 Years

Excavations in Panga ya Saidi suggest technological and cultural change came slowly over time and show early humans weren’t reliant on coastal resources

Dorothy Parker and Alan Campbell

Dorothy Parker’s FBI File Is Available to Public for First Time in a Decade

Parker was blacklisted by Hollywood just as she was reaching her peak as a screenwriter

The South Georgia pipit has been one of the hardest-hit species by the island's rodent population. The government announced Monday that the island is now rodent free.

South Georgia Island Is Officially Free of Its Bird-Killing Rodents

After 250 years plagued with rats and mice, the island’s birds will hopefully now have the chance to bounce back

Mid 15th-century diners sit down to an elaborate meal in this illustration from an anonymous artist.

New Research

DNA From Ancient Latrines Reveal What People Ate Centuries Ago

By digging in ancient toilets, researchers uncovered genetic material that tells of past diets and diseases

Hiroshima the day after the nuclear bomb was dropped.

Researchers Identify How Much Radiation Hiroshima Victims Were Exposed to

The scientists say their research is the first to use a human bone to precisely measure the radiation absorbed by an atomic bombing victim

Open Heritage shows Bagan, an ancient city in Myanmar, before and after the 2016 earthquake.

Check Out the World’s Largest Archive Digitally Preserving At-Risk Heritage Sites

Open Heritage features 27 sites in 18 countries with more locations to be added in the future

Anti-cholera inoculation in Calcutta in 1894.

Science Still Bears the Fingerprints of Colonialism

Western science long relied on the knowledge and exploitation of colonized peoples. In many ways, it still does

Winnie Mandela is cheered by supporters after appearing in the Krugersdorp Magistrate's court in connection with her arrest for flouting a banning order which prevents her from living in her Soweto home West of Johannesburg on Jan. 22, 1986.

Trending Today

Anti-Apartheid Crusader Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Dies at 81

The activist who died Monday in Johannesburg after a prolonged illness left behind a polarizing legacy in South Africa

The body-shaped sarcophagi of Karajía contained the remains of high-ranking Chachapoya ancestors.

New Research

When Genetics and Linguistics Challenge the Winners’ Version of History

New research shows that indigenous Peruvians were more resilient than the conquering Inca gave them credit for

Eisenhower National Historic Site

Take a Look Inside These Six Presidential Homes

The White House isn’t the only address worth visiting this Presidents’ Day

Members of the U. S. figure skating team pose before boarding a Belgian Sabena airline plane at New York's Idlewild Airport on February 14, 1961. The plane crashed on February 15 near Brussels Airport, killing all on board.

The Beijing Winter Olympics

The Devastating Impact of the 1961 Plane Crash That Wiped Out the Entire U.S. Figure Skating Team

On this day in 1961, the U.S. figure skating team was headed to the World Championships in Prague. They never made it

Cover art for sheet music from the original Tabasco opera, 1894.

Long-Forgotten Opera About Tabasco Sauce Heats Up Stage Again After Almost 125 Years

Thanks to some musical sleuthing, George W. Chadwick’s ode to the now ubiquitous hot sauce brand has been revitalized by the New Orleans Opera

Trending Today

Massive Data Project Will Help People Identify Enslaved Ancestors

Michigan State’s ‘Enslaved: The People of the Historic Slave Trade’ will combine available historical data on slavery into one searchable hub

Artist’s representation of “neglected story on Smithsonian.com.”

The Ten Stories You Didn’t Read in 2017 But Should Have

From music behind prison bars to a San Francisco building with a dark past, here are the top 10 pieces we published last year that deserve another look

For the first time, scientists have created near-perfect cubic zirconia replicas of the diamond in its previous forms. From left to right: the original brought from India, King Louis XIV’s “French Blue” and the Hope Diamond.

Now There Are Near-Perfect Copies of the Hope Diamond

Scientists created cubic zirconia replicas of the historic gem’s previous forms—the original brought from India and the famous “French Blue”

More than 50 percent of Sweden is covered in forest, making bunkers easy to disguise in plain sight.

New Video Highlights Hidden Cold War Bunker in Sweden

Viral footage shows off the site that appears to have been inhabited by Swedish intelligence workers

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