Ritual

Snapshot

$Chinese oracle bones - These “oracle bone” fragments, some of which show an ancient Chinese script, are housed at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. The pieces here are just a tiny fraction of the many thousands discovered thus far at a single site in China.$
The Chinese History That Is Written in Bone

The bones of 3,000-year-old sacrificial victims in China are revealing unexpected new twists.
Stranger Lands

Why Do We Wrap Presents?

Wrapping paper is a striptease that hides and reveals, transforming otherwise ordinary objects into gifts.
Viewpoint

Death and Dying 101

A study of cross-cultural attitudes toward mortality can help young people accept death as a part of life.
Dwelling

The Struggle to Protect a Tree at the Heart of Hopi Culture

In the American Southwest, the loss of juniper trees at the hands of mining and development could cost the Hopi a crucial part of their heritage.
Culture Lab

The Church of the Solar Eclipse

Eclipse hunters aren’t merely astronomy geeks—they are seekers of awe and wonder.
Culture Lab

The Perils and Privileges of an Amazonian Hallucinogen

Tourism based on consumption of the plant brew known as ayahuasca is booming, for better and for worse.

The Chinese History That Is Written in Bone