Smart News: History & Archaeology | Smithsonian Magazine

Smart News History & Archaeology

Marc Händel, an archaeologist with the Austrian Academy of Sciences, excavates rib bones in the wine cellar.

Austrian Man Discovers Hundreds of Mammoth Bones While Renovating His Wine Cellar

Owner Andreas Pernerstorfer thought he'd found a piece of wood, but then he remembered something his grandfather had said about finding teeth in the cellar decades ago

While two of the tombs were robbed, one was left untouched, and it contained a box full of glazed pottery, among other goods.

Cool Finds

This Ancient Chinese Couple Was Buried in a Miniature Home

The tomb, composed of two chambers connected by a tiny door and windows, was found in a family gravesite on China's east coast containing four other burials

The soldiers fought in replicas of a suit of armor found near the ancient site of Mycenae in Greece.

Soldiers Put an Ancient Greek Suit of Armor to the Test, and It Passed

Researchers outfitted Greek marines in replicas of a Mycenaean suit and simulated combat to see if the armor was usable in its day

Historians were surprised to discover more than 50 carvings on the door, including initials, last names and depictions of hangings. 

See the Graffiti Bored British Soldiers Carved Into a Castle Door More Than 200 Years Ago

One of the carvings may even depict French emperor and military commander Napoleon Bonaparte being hanged

View of Jiigurru, where the pottery fragments were found

Cool Finds

Oldest Known Aboriginal Pottery Discovered in Australia

Found on the island of Jiigurru, the 82 shards predate the arrival of Europeans by centuries, dating to between 2,000 and 3,000 years ago

Hannah Uzor painted this portrait of Catherine, Princess of Wales, for Tatler's July 2024 cover.

Trending Today

Why a New Portrait of Catherine, Princess of Wales, Is So Controversial

For the second time this month, a painting of a British royal is garnering backlash

The Black Death killed tens of millions of people in the mid-1300s, but scientists and historians are still trying to figure out how it spread.

Did Body Lice Spread Bubonic Plague? Research Suggests the Parasites Are Better Vectors Than Thought

These blood-sucking insects are capable of transmitting the bacteria that caused the Black Death, according to a laboratory study

Color-enhanced transmission electron microscope images of adenovirus, which is a common cause of respiratory illnesses. Researchers identified adenovirus remnants, as well as herpesvirus and HPV, in Neanderthal remains in a new study.

50,000-Year-Old Neanderthal Bones Have Remains of Human Viruses, Scientists Find

The preliminary analysis is a first step in testing the theory that infectious diseases played a role in Neanderthals' extinction

This page from the Madrid Codex depicts the Maya honey harvest.

Cool Finds

Centuries-Old Maya Beekeeping Tools Unearthed in Mexico

Archaeologists in the Yucatán Peninsula found several stone lids used by the pre-Columbian civilization to collect honey from stingless bees

This gold earring found at an Iron Age archaeological site had been stashed inside a pottery jar, which sits behind it.

Did Hannibal's Army Burn Down This Ancient Mountain Settlement?

In a scorched village in Spain, archaeologists discovered a hidden gold earring that suggests residents foresaw a coming attack around the time of the Second Punic War

The popular chapel has been closed since February because of damage caused by land movement.

A Historical Glass-Enclosed Chapel Overlooking the Pacific Ocean Must Be Dismantled Before Nature Can Destroy It

The one-of-a-kind sculpture in California, designed by the son of famed American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, is at the mercy of shifting grounds

The bone measures roughly four inches long and has 17 markings.

Cool Finds

This 130,000-Year-Old Decorative Bear Bone May Be the Oldest Known Neanderthal Art

Researchers say the carved artifact was not a utilitarian item and instead served a symbolic purpose

Found at a property in London last year, this 1972 Q1 desktop microcomputer is now going up for auction.

Cool Finds

Cleaning Crew Discovers One of the World's Oldest Surviving Desktop Computers

The 1972 Q1 microcomputer could fetch $60,000 at auction

German cockroaches took advantage of human globalization to spread all over the world.

DNA Reveals How German Cockroaches Came to Dominate the World

A new paper looks at the genes of the most common cockroach species, tracing its historical journey alongside humans, from Asia to the Middle East, Europe and beyond

The ancient pool was lined with mosaics made with tesserae, or shaped tiles, of different materials.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover Ancient Roman Swimming Pool in Albania

Found in an upper-class villa, the indoor pool was accompanied by decorative mosaics and frescoes dating back nearly two millennia

Eman Ghoneim and her team studied the remains of an ancient branch of the Nile near the pyramids of Giza.

New Research

Did a Dried-Up Branch of the Nile Help the Egyptians Build the Pyramids?

Researchers say 31 of the monuments were constructed on the banks of the ancient waterway

Officials from Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation were sent to investigate the carving.

Cool Finds

Mushroom Hunters Stumble Upon Mysterious Stone Sculpture in Thai Forest

While the artwork's age is still unknown, some think it depicts the mother of the Buddha

These gendered designs have been the standard for hundreds of years.

Men's Shirts Button on the Right. Why Do Women's Button on the Left?

Nobody knows for sure, but plausible theories include swords, servants and saddles

A painted drum carved with phoenixes and tigers (circa 300 B.C.E.)

Why Is Chinese Art Full of Dragons, Phoenixes and Tigers?

A new exhibition showcases stunning mythical artworks of the Zhou Dynasty's "lost" kingdoms

The interactive map, called Segregation Explorer, tracks demographic trends across the country.

This Map Lets You See How School Segregation Has Changed in Your Hometown

The new interactive tool accompanies a study of school enrollment data, which shows that segregation has worsened in recent decades

Page 1 of 278