Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Sod House Museum

Discover Sod House Museum in Aline, Oklahoma: The only remaining sod house Oklahoma built by a homesteader in 1894.

Carlow Military Museum

Discover Carlow Military Museum in Carlow, Ireland: Curated by a small staff of veterans, the Carlow Military Museum valiantly provides a personal perspective on over 800 years of Irish history.

Arches of the San Gil Barracks

Discover Arches of the San Gil Barracks in Madrid, Spain: The remains of a convent turned military barrack in the heart of Madrid.

Mark Twain Spring Park

Discover Mark Twain Spring Park in Jamestown, Tennessee: It's believed the famed author's parents once used this spring to gather water.

Asticou Azalea Garden

Discover Asticou Azalea Garden in Northeast Harbor, Maine: East meets West in this Japanese-style garden featuring plants native to Maine’s Mount Desert Island.

Ancient Cottonwood Trail

Discover Ancient Cottonwood Trail in Morrissey, British Columbia: In British Columbia, a unique microclimate has allowed these trees to live much longer than they usually would.

‘The Wave’

Discover 'The Wave' in Newport, Rhode Island: An ode to Japanese artist Hokusai, with a bit of a comical twist.

Hochstrahlbrunnen

Discover Hochstrahlbrunnen in Vienna, Austria: Along the edge of this fountain are 365 smaller fountains that represent the days of the year.

Russell Head

Discover Russell Head in Aberdeen, Scotland: This effigy was crafted to annoy a neighbor after a civil dispute over a foul smell.

Snickersville Academy

Discover Snickersville Academy in Bluemont, Virginia: A glimpse into early 19th-century education.

Canyon Ferry Lake’s Cemetery Island

Discover Canyon Ferry Lake's Cemetery Island in Helena, Montana: This cemetery is one of the last remaining traces of a drowned old Western town.

Suzzallo Library Reading Room

Discover Suzzallo Library Reading Room in Seattle, Washington: With its vaulted ceiling and gilded details, this University of Washington library would feel right at home inside an old palace.

Unhyeongung

Discover Unhyeongung in Seoul, South Korea: The site of the last royal wedding in Korea.

Buckley’s Cave

Discover Buckley's Cave in Point Lonsdale, Australia: William Buckley escaped from prison and is said to have spent years hiding in this seaside cave.

La Dame de Trévières

Discover La Dame de Trévières in Trévières, France: Inaugurated in 1921, this is one of many statues in France dedicated to the people who died during World War I for their country.

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i
To represent a masterpiece of human creative genius. 261 ii
To exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design. 480 iii
To bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared. 514 iv
To be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history. 642 ix
To be outstanding examples representing significant on-going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals. 137 v
To be an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change. 172 vi
To be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance. (The Committee considers that this criterion should preferably be used in conjunction with other criteria). 256 vii
To contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance. 151 viii
To be outstanding examples representing major stages of earth's history, including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features. 98 x
To contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation. 168

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