National Museum of Natural History: The Origin of the Genus Homo

Find the human ancestor you are interested in and click on it either in the timeline or the list below for more details. Each fossil or reconstruction pictured includes links to more details about it.

This is the online version of the Smithsonian Institute's exhibit devoted to the people of the Siberian and North American Arctic. The mannequins around the walls represent the peoples of the Crossroads region, dressed in traditional...

Journey to Brazil and visit the Canela Indians. Learn all about their culture and view artifacts and video footage.

Explore walking upright, tools and food, bodies, brains, social life, language and how humans ultimately changed the world. Excellent charts, pictures and videos accompany easy-to-understand text on the earliest humans.

View comprehensive sets of artifacts that tell the story of America's wartime past and present. Artifacts from every major American military conflict, beginning with the American Revolution, can be closely examined. Full curatorial notes...

How can modern science help unravel the history of mummies? Compare human-made mummies with naturally made mummies. [29:16]

Exhibition highlights New York's harbor, with stories of the city as a hub of immigration, manufacturing, and culture.

This section of the America on the Move exhibition explores the substance behind the myth of Route 66, telling the stories of real people who made their living on or beside the road and who traveled on the fabled highway.

Scientists from the University of Arizona are conducting Y chromosome research on native Siberians to try to determine whether there is a genetic affinity to North American native people. The rationale and direction of this research are...

The Saami people of Sweden are the focus of study for this Smithsonian research team. There are photos of Saami archaeological sites and descriptions of their cultural practices. Links for further research are provided.