Cool Finds

Painted in the 1640s or 1650s by Flemish artist Erasmus Quellinus II, the portrait first arrived at Chatsworth House in 1838.

Missing for Four Decades, This Unusual Double Portrait of Rubens and van Dyck Has Finally Resurfaced

The 17th-century painting, stolen in a 1979 heist, turned up at an auction in France in 2020. It recently returned home to Chatsworth House in England

A recent expedition to the Titanic's wreckage found that part of the ship's iconic bow railing has collapsed.

New Photographs Reveal Decay of the Titanic and Collapse of Its Iconic Railing

An expedition this summer documented signs of deterioration on the wreck, but it also rediscovered the Diana of Versailles statue, the centerpiece of the ship’s first-class lounge

The woolly rhino horn discovered by miners.

Miners Unearth a Mummified Woolly Rhino in Siberia, With an Intact Horn and Soft Tissue

The rare discovery will help scientists find out more about the prehistoric animal’s development, diet and living conditions

Reserachers believe Viking children once played with this animal figurine.

Archaeologists in Iceland Can't Agree Which Animal This Mysterious Viking-Era Toy Depicts

The tenth-century stone figurine, alternatively identified as a pig, a bear or a dog, sheds light on the lives of long-ago Norse children

The exterior of the Sainsbury Wing at the National Gallery in London. The controversial columns stood inside the ground-floor foyer.

Workers Find Mysterious Letter Hidden Inside a Concrete Column at London's National Gallery

John Sainsbury hoped the note would be found when the "unnecessary columns" were finally demolished

An artist's rendition of the prehistoric sea cow's death.

Fossils Capturing a Sea Cow's Violent End Shed Light on Prehistoric Food Chains

New research suggests the dugong-like sea creature was attacked by a crocodile, then its remains were scavenged by a tiger shark—a rare series of events to be immortalized in the fossil record

The newly discovered lithographs had been hiding in plain sight at a home in London's Berkeley Square.

These Signed Salvador Dalí Prints Were Forgotten in a Garage for Half a Century

The ten lithographs by Dalí, along with another five by Théo Tobiasse, will go to auction next month

The battering ram was once attached to the bow of an ancient warship.

Archaeologists Uncover Ancient Warship's Bronze Battering Ram, Sunk During an Epic Battle Between Rome and Carthage

Found near the Aegadian Islands, just west of Sicily, the bronze rostrum played a role in the last battle of the First Punic War, which ended in 241 B.C.E.

The front of the postcard features a print of The Challenge (1844) by English artist Edwin Henry Landseer.

See a Mysterious Postcard That Was Delivered 121 Years Late

The handwritten note, which bears a 1903 postmark, recently arrived at a building society in Wales

Human flesh might resemble this nice beef fillet.

What Does Human Flesh Taste Like? The Answer Depends on Who You Ask

Cannibals have weighed in with different opinions. Some say it tastes like pork, while others say like veal—and still others say like nothing else

The bangles were found in a field where archaeologists have made other Viking-era finds.

Archaeology Student Discovers Trove of Silver Viking Age Armbands in Denmark

The bangles, which date to around 800 C.E., are now on display at the Moesgaard Museum

Along with stretches of cobblestone path, researchers found pottery and Roman coins.

A Roman Road Was Hiding Beneath a Primary School Playing Field in England

The 2,000-year-old cobbled pathway was likely built after the Romans invaded Britain in the first century C.E.

The medieval archway was buried beneath layers of plaster and brick.

Historic Theater Discovers 15th-Century Doorway That May Have Led to a Dressing Room

Some experts speculate that Shakespeare could have used the room to change costume during performances in the late 16th century

Carpentry waste inside one of the Roman-era wells discovered in England.

Two Ancient Wells Discovered in England Suggest Even the Romans Used Trial and Error

After the first well collapsed, the local builders incorporated wooden planks to hold up the walls of the second

The colorful mosaic depicts brightly colored dolphins and fish.

Archaeologists Stumble Upon a 2,000-Year-Old Dolphin Mosaic in England

The Roman-era artwork was likely preserved thanks to a remodeling project in the third or fourth century C.E.

Andreane Rellou is an actor and filmmaker who saw the photos at the museum and took it upon herself to identify the two women.

Amateur Sleuth Identifies the Mystery Women in a Museum's Fabergé Frames

The portraits were on display at a museum in England, where staffers had been wondering about the two subjects for years

An ocelot rests on a rock in the Sonoran Desert, Arizona, in 2007. Only seven ocelots, including the one just spotted, have been seen in the state in the last two decades.

Rare Ocelot Caught on Camera in Arizona, the First Sighting in Its Area for 50 Years

Ocelots were federally listed as endangered in 1972, and their current U.S. population is thought to be fewer than 100 individuals

This specimen is the first complete tusk of its kind found in Mississippi.

Rare Seven-Foot Mammoth Tusk Unearthed in Mississippi Creek

The enormous fossil belonged to a Columbian mammoth, a larger relative of the woolly mammoth

The mosaic was discovered during the construction of a water pipeline.

Workers Stumble Upon Ancient Greek Mosaic of Dancing Satyrs

Found on the Greek island of Euboea, the pebbled design is part of a 2,400-year-old floor

The Mount Everest Base Camp, at 17,598 feet high, hosts climbers acclimating to the elevation before they make their ascent.

More Than 200 Dead Bodies Have Been Left Behind on Mount Everest, and Many Mark the Path to the Summit

Mountaineers who perished on the world's highest peak have become landmarks for the living, though recovery crews have made risky expeditions to remove some of the corpses

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