Smithsonian Open Access

The best choice when you need to reuse what you find. Smithsonian Open Access launched in 2020 with 2.8 million images and records released under CC0, meaning no permission or credit is required, and the Smithsonian adds to it as new material is cleared. It spans the Smithsonian's museums and archives, so the same search covers aircraft, insects, portraits and political ephemera. The 3D models are the hidden treasure for teachers: scanned objects you can turn in the browser or download, which changes a slide-show lesson into something students can examine from every side. Records vary from rich to a bare line of data, so check the object page before planning a lesson around it.