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Smithsonian Snapshot

A peek into our collections, one object at a time

spider

Wolf Spider

This solitary hunter depends on its terrific eyesight to hunt its prey at night.

altar

Altar for the Dead

Commemorating ancestors for Día de los Muertos.

Celebrating Central American Ceramics

State of the Birds: ʻIʻiwi

Smithsonian Gets “Yarnbombed”

Smithsonian Gets “Yarnbombed”

Gnat

Gnats Always Keep an Eye Out for a Good Place to Eat

cone-headed green katydid

Cone-Headed Katydid

The Art of Tea

Chigusa and the Art of Tea

Martha the passenger pigeon

Marking the Centennial of Extinction

The passenger pigeon was once the most common bird in the United States

Deborah Harry, 1978

National Portrait Gallery

Deborah Harry, 1978

One way or another, she's gonna get you.

Batman stamp

Batman stamp, 2006

John Coltrane's Saxophone

John Coltrane's Saxophone

“Fireworks at Ike-no-Hata” by Kobayashi Kiyochika (Meiji era, 1881)

Kiyochika

Jimi Hendrix by Linda McCartney

American Cool: Jimi Hendrix, 1967

breakfast table

Our America: "Breakfast Tacos"

Inline skate, 1823

Inline Skate, 1823

“Los Reyes Magos,” attributed to Hipolito Marte Martinez

Smithsonian Snapshot

Happy Three Kings Day!

A festive tradition in Spain, Puerto Rico, and many Latin American countries, Three Kings Day commemorates the arrival of the three kings in Bethlehem.

Ladybugs on girl's hands

Beneficial Ladybugs

Ladybugs take a detour on their way to help Smithsonian gardens grow

Puli dog sculpture

Puli Dog Sculpture

Microwave Oven, 1976

Smithsonian Snapshot

Microwave Oven

Percy Spencer invented the microwave oven after discovering microwaves generate heat.

Coelacanth

Coelacanth

The first living coelacanth was discovered in 1938 off the coast of South Africa.

X-rayed Spacesuit

X-rayed Spacesuit

Skylab

Smithsonian Snapshot

Skylab

Odori Hitori Geiko (Dance Instruction Manual)

Odori Hitori Geiko (Dance Instruction Manual)

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