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No news today.
radio

The Day Without News

On April 18, 1930, the BBC made a surprising announcement.
Cara Giaimo April 18, 2018
Permanently Closed
Ticket to USSR.
Moscow, Russia

Ticket to the USSR

This small museum is basically a time capsule of daily life in the Soviet Union.
Five Hormel Girls on an Austin, Minnesota factory tour.
food

The Rise and Fall of the Hormel Girls, Who Sold America on SPAM

The Spamettes sang and danced and glamorized canned meat.
Anne Ewbank April 17, 2018
A scorpion demon, embroidered by Eleanor B. Roosevelt in 1940.
objects of intrigue

How Better to Protest Federal Policy Than With an Embroidered Scorpion Demon?

Eleanor B. Roosevelt—no, not THAT Eleanor Roosevelt—thought the New Deal was monstrous.
Cara Giaimo April 16, 2018
The Maiden.
Edinburgh, Scotland

The Edinburgh Maiden

This early version of the guillotine was used to execute the man responsible for its construction.
Chicago, Illinois

Zion Evangelical Lutheran 'Ghost Church'

One-of-a-kind preserved ruins of an abandoned 1880s church in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood.
The mummified monkey in question.
mummies

Found: A Mummified Monkey in the Ceiling of a Department Store

Thanks to the sleuths in a Facebook group, we may even know how it got there.
Cara Giaimo April 13, 2018
Leawood Pumphouse
Whatstandwell, England

Leawood Pump House

Its impressive still-working beam engine is a thing of beauty for engineering history fans.
A propaganda image from 1933 claimed to show Hitler enjoying an Eintopf meal—though in real life he seldom ate meat.
nazis

The Forgotten Nazi History of ‘One-Pot Meals’

Officials believed the stews and soups had the power to unite Germany.
Natasha Frost April 12, 2018
Edward Mooney House.
New York, New York

Edward Mooney House

Built just after the American Revolution, the oldest row house in New York City still stands in Chinatown.
Ruteng, Indonesia

Spider Web Rice Fields

The unique design was created by the traditional way communal rice paddies were divided among the indigenous people.
Bin Jelmood House.
Doha, Qatar

Bin Jelmood House

This unique museum doesn't shy away from highlighting Qatar's role in the history of slavery.
Members of the General Federation of Women's Clubs in the 1920s.
restaurants

The Feminist Lunch That Broke Boundaries 150 Years Ago

For women, dining in public without men was revolutionary.
Anne Ewbank April 9, 2018
Istanbul, Turkey

Ottoman Bird Palaces

The ornate miniature mansions were built for Istanbul's feathered residents.
The plaque at West 74th Street and Central Park West.
New York, New York

Henry Bliss Plaque

A memorial to the first person killed by a motor vehicle in the Western Hemisphere.
Mandu, India

Ujala Baoli

This magical and eccentric stepwell is a hidden treasure within the ancient fort city of Mandu.
The old City Hall station has narrow, curving tracks.
art

The Man Sketching the Surprising Details of Every New York City Subway Station

He has spent 40 years chronicling overlooked mosaics, plaques, and other decorations. Only 362 stations to go.
Jessica Leigh Hester April 6, 2018
An experiment conducted with a unicorn horn.
poison

The Strange History of Royals Testing Food for Poison With Unicorn Horn

It was actually narwhal tusk.
Anne Ewbank April 5, 2018