Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Gnome Island

Discover Gnome Island in Manchester, England: Since 2017, the remains of Stretford's industrial past have been occupied by a collection of gnomes.

Hancock Ghost Town

Discover Hancock Ghost Town in Nathrop, Colorado: All that remains of this once-booming mining town are the ruins of a saloon.

House of Romeo

Discover House of Romeo in Verona, Italy: Not far from the more famous House of Juliet, visitors will find the supposed residence of her lover.

Miramont Castle Museum

Discover Miramont Castle Museum in Manitou Springs, Colorado: A beautiful and unusual building that features numerous architectural styles.

Genius River Bridge

Discover Genius River Bridge in Costa Rica: One Costa Rican island is so beset by illegal shark poachers that the local rangers have built an entire bridge with their confiscated gear .

El Avion Restaurant and Bar

Discover El Avion Restaurant and Bar in Quepos, Costa Rica: The sister plane of the C-123 shot down during the Iran-Contra Affair has found a new purpose in retirement.

727 Fuselage Home

Discover 727 Fuselage Home in Quepos, Costa Rica: Costa Rican accommodation resembles a crash site, but with a nice balcony.

San Lucas Island Prison Graffiti

Discover San Lucas Island Prison Graffiti in Costa Rica: Disused penal colony features prisoner artwork, some sketched in human blood.

Land of the Strays

Discover Territorio de Zaguates (Land of Strays) in Alajuela, Costa Rica: Where dogs like the rare "Fire-Tailed Border Cocker" run free on the mountainside.

Parque Francisco Alvarado

Discover Parque Francisco Alvarado in Zarcero, Costa Rica: This Costa Rican topiary park is a surreal garden of unearthly delights.

Río Celeste

Discover Río Celeste in Costa Rica: This neon blue river gets its color from a unique mix of bacteria and volcano minerals.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Discover Black Canyon of the Gunnison in Montrose, Colorado: A dangerous narrow-gauge railroad once traced a route through this striking canyon.

Wheatland Ferry

Discover Wheatland Ferry in Salem, Oregon: This incongruous small ferry across the Willamette River north of Salem, Oregon has been operating continuously since the 1850s.

Onhoüa Chetek8e

Discover Onhoüa Chetek8e in Québec City, Québec: A reconstituted ancestral village of the Huron-Wendat Nation.

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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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