Smithsonian Magazine

Smithsonian Magazine takes you on a journey through history, science, world culture and technology with breathtaking images from around the world.

Smithsonian Magazine

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discussion • “I hope we save the Amazon forest and protect the pygmy marmosets.”

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A Hollywood Ending • A titanic achievement in film—and how it was almost forgotten

Macbeth Goes to Haiti • WELLES’ BOLD STAGING OF SHAKESPEARE’S CLASSIC HELPED MAKE HARLEM A HOME FOR “SERIOUS” THEATER

DRESSING THE PART • An exhibition of exquisite samurai armor highlights the importance of aesthetics to Japan’s warrior class

Taking the Lead • How Alice Hamilton waged a one-woman campaign against a toxic and ubiquitous material

Element of Surprise • CULTURES THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE PUT LEAD TO USE IN WACKY—AND OFTEN DEEPLY POISONOUS—WAYS

Best-Case ScenarioI • The cutting-edge design that safeguarded treasures on their way back from the Moon

Dancer, Singer, Actress, Spy • A NEWLY AVAILABLE MEMOIR REVEALS A TENDER, PRIVATE SIDE OF JOSEPHINE BAKER

UR-TEXT • The genesis of an informal medium that took over our vernacular

CANYON OF THE ANCESTORS • In the Arizona desert, researchers are uncovering extraordinary details about the peoples who have inhabited this land since antiquity

MAJOR BARBARA’S WAR • PROHIBITED FROM SERVING WITH U.S. FORCES AS MEDICAL OFFICER DURING WORLDWAR II, SURGEON BARBARA STIMSON WAS COMMISSIONED BY THE BRITISH—AND HELPED OPEN THE AMERICAN MILITARY TO FEMALE DOCTORS

A Whale of a Find • In 2021, researchers identified a new whale species—but only 50 are left. Can we do enough to protect them before it’s too late?

THE YEARS OF ROBERT CARO • Spending time with the legendary historian at his newly opened research archives—but not too much time. At 89, he’s eager to get back to writing the final volume of his epic Lyndon Johnson biography

THE CUNEIFORMC HALLENGE • In the 1850s, the world’s oldest writing system was a series of baffling scratches on clay. Then four fiercely competitive scholars solved the mystery

Don’t Be Puzzled • YOU CAN FIND EIGHT ANSWERS IN THESE PAGES

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