Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

History

Critics say the sphinxes' relocation will make them vulnerable to environmental damage.

Egypt Defies Archaeologists’ Protests by Relocating Four Ancient Sphinxes

Now awaiting unveiling in Tahrir Square, the ram-headed sculptures join a pink granite obelisk dating to the reign of Ramses II

The Tenement Museum depicts the life of early immigrants in tenement housing at the turn of century in New York City.

Education During Coronavirus

Nine Educational Livestreams Coming From Historical Sites in the United States

Learn about life in the days when diphtheria and smallpox, not COVID-19, were the diseases to fear, and more

Evidence suggests “[t]he piles outside the walls weren’t material that’s been dumped to get rid of it,” says archaeologist Allison Emmerson. “They’re outside the walls being collected and sorted to be resold inside the walls.”

Analysis of Pompeii’s Garbage Suggests the Ancient Romans Recycled, Too

The city’s residents sorted waste materials for reuse in future projects, according to new research

New research claims to have found the earliest evidence of a person being killed by meteorite. This photo depicts a meteorite entering Earth's atmosphere during the Leonid meteor shower in November 2002.

Cool Finds

Archivists Find the Oldest Record of Human Death by Meteorite

The 1888 historical account is likely the first ever confirmed case of a human being struck dead by an interstellar interloper

"[W]e again have the collective opportunity to reduce usage of scarce items—both for the community at large and particularly for those on the frontline of this crisis," says curator Lora Vogt.

Covid-19

Cook These Quarantine-Friendly World War I Recipes

An online exhibition from the National WWI Museum and Memorial features recipes detailed in 1918 cookbook

None

Education During Coronavirus

Education During the Coronavirus Crisis

With school closures underway, teachers, students and parents around the globe venture into remote learning. Here are some resources to help.

The wooden sarcophagi boast colorful, well-preserved paintings and inscriptions

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover 20 Sealed Ancient Egyptian Coffins

The sarcophagi—decorated in shades of red, green, white and black—were found stacked in two layers in a giant tomb

The surf break at Waikiki Beach, where the modern form of the sport began.

Learn to Surf on the Break Where It All Began

Waikiki Beach on O’ahu is the home of surfing—and you can take lessons there too

Cool Finds

Drought Reveals Ancient Palace in Iraqi Reservoir

A team of Iraqi and German archaeologists excavated the rare Mittani structure before it was swallowed by water once more

The Cooper beech tree during its removal at Sagamore Hill.

A Copper Beech Tree Planted by Theodore Roosevelt Is Being Cut Down

But it will not disappear from Sagamore Hill, the president’s beloved family estate

Canadian Memorial at Vimy, France

Explore These World War I Trenches and Tunnels in France and Belgium

These four sites give visitors a glimpse into the trench warfare tactics soldiers experienced during the Great War

Women compare A.J. Freiman shoes.

‘Vis-O-Matic’ Was the 1950s Version of Online Shopping

A Canadian department store tried to revolutionize buying when it opened a shop with booths and screens for ordering merchandise

Participants likely used wooden bowls known as braziers to burn cannabis and release its mind-altering vapors

Cool Finds

The First Evidence of Smoking Pot Was Found in a 2,500-Year-Old Pot

A new study suggests ancient humans used cannabis to commune with nature, spirits or even the dead

A new study looks at the role “pro-social” religions play in fostering large-scale societies

New Research

Which Came First, Vengeful Gods or Complex Civilizations?

A new study pushes back against the hypothesis that moralizing gods were necessary to keep large societies civil

A portrait (detail, above) of Mary Church Terrell, a prominent D.C. activist and suffragist. The image is just one of dozens of turn-of-the-century photographs featured in "Pictures with Purpose"

For Turn-of-the-Century African-Americans, the Camera Was a Tool for Empowerment

A new installment in the Smithsonian’s “Double Exposure” photo book series depicts black Americans championing their lives through photography

Onlookers watch as police remove the bodies of the victims of an execution-style murder from the scene at 2122 North Clark Street in Chicago.

Six of the Most Famous Mob Murders of All Time

The death of Gambino crime family head Frank Cali brings to mind these mafia killings from years past

Paella, a national favorite in Spain, is a hearty dish prominently featuring two of Linford's Seven Wonders—rice and tomato. It may be seasoned with salt and chili flakes as well.

The Mouthwatering History of Seven Fundamental Foodstuffs

A new Smithsonian book whisks readers on a culinary odyssey, tracing the history of salt, pork, honey, chili, tomato, rice and chocolate

The view in Matera, Italy.

Get to Know 2019’s ‘European Capitals of Culture’

Plovdiv, Bulgaria, and Matera, Italy, have histories that stretch back thousands of years

A map of the moon with labeled features, from Selenographia by Johannes Hevelius.

The 17th-Century Astronomer Who Made the First Atlas of the Moon

Johannes Hevelius drew some of the first maps of the moon, praised for their detail, from his homemade rooftop observatory in the Kingdom of Poland

What is happening to the history major?

Trending Today

Why Are Fewer People Majoring in History?

Since the Great Recession, the number of history majors at colleges and universities has dropped by more than 30 percent

Page 70 of 127