The Nineteenth-Century Science of Fashion
Victorian-era color theory moved from labs and studios into women’s magazines—and into everyday decisions about dress.
When Mao’s Mango Mania Took Over China
A fleeting cult built around a mango exposes the logic, and illogic, of Mao’s personality cult.
Celebrating Black History Month
JSTOR Daily editors pick their favorite stories for Black History Month.
The Congo Crisis and the Rise of a Pan-African Musical Politics
How Patrice Lumumba’s assassination reshaped Black internationalism—and pushed musicians toward a new kind of activism.
The Racial Myth of the Basque Sheepherder
How ideas of ancient tradition shaped labor and immigration in the American West.
The Explorer Who Faked His Way Through the Hajj
Englishman Richard Burton wore several disguises, ranging from merchant to doctor to pilgrim in the holy city of Mecca.
The Space Race’s Forgotten Theme Park
Preserved documents and photographs trace the rise and fall of an ambitious space-themed park born of 1960s Space Race optimism.
Laura Secord’s Walk
In 1813, Laura Secord walked 20 miles through enemy territory to warn British troops of an American attack, changing the course of the War of 1812.
Tarring and Feathering, American Style
What began as a European folk practice became a distinctly American ritual of public punishment.
Memory’s Role in Chile’s Democratic Rebirth
In post-Pinochet Chile, public memory became a pathway to accountability.