Smithsonian Magazine takes you on a journey through history, science, world culture and technology with breathtaking images from around the world.
discussion
Our Shared Future • IN A DEEPLY DIVIDED MOMENT, A NEW INITIATIVE AIMS TO BRING AMERICANS TOGETHER BY RECKONING WITH OUR RACIAL PAST
Enter the un discovered FLORIDA ® Sweepstakes
King of the Road • At first, it was all about hauling things we needed. Then the pickup truck itself became the thing we wanted
Chrome Jewels • BOASTFUL OR BEAUTIFUL (OR BOTH), HOOD ORNAMENTS ADORNED EARLY PICKUPS—AND THEN WERE DROPPED AS UNSAFE
WHAT IF? • Imagining a different history for Africa and conjuring a world that might have been
Decoding Lady Wroth • On the trail of the first female English novelist, a Renaissance noblewoman with a secret she hinted at in a cipher
Hiding in Plain Sight • IN EARLY-MODERN EUROPE, CIPHERS EXPRESSED ROMANCE, FRIENDSHIP AND MORE. SOME REMAIN MYSTERIES TO THIS DAY
DATELINE: TAMPA • A 19th-century reporter’s invaluable guide to a disappearing Native American landscape
When Time Stopped • A watch belonging to an American crew member points to the final chaotic hours and minutes aboard the Titanic
Don’t Be Puzzled • YOU CAN FIND SEVEN ANSWERS IN THESE PAGES
after • It has been 20 years since four jetliners hijacked by terrorists crashed into the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania. The attacks killed nearly 3,000 people. To honor their memory, we worked with photographer Jackie Molloy to create portraits of several female first responders and others who were on the scene, as well as women, men and now-grown children who lost a loved one. We also asked a number of them what they remember about that September day, and we learned how it continues to shape their lives, in unique and profound ways, after two decades.
Who She Was
Connection
Forces Beyond
Hero
One of My Friends
The Last Place
Conversations
IN THE LAND OF THE ANCIENT ONES • Ann Axtell Morris gets her due in a movie created partly on remote tribal lands the pioneering archaeologist studied nearly a century ago
Blues in a Minor Key • Jimmy Holmes is the last in a line of music legends. At his Mississippi juke joint, he goes all out to keep a singular American art form alive
SEEDS OF CONFLICT • TURKISH AUTHORITIES AND BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGISTS ARE BATTLING OVER ANCIENT PLANTS THAT ARE ESSENTIAL TO SCIENCE—AND MIGHT HOLD CLUES TO NEW SUPERFOODS
ask smithsonian • YOU’VE GOT QUESTIONS. WE’VE GOT EXPERTS