Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Saint Andrew’s Hare

Discover Sant'Andrea's Hare in Mantua, Italy: A hidden bas-relief of a hare on a church main portal that brings good luck to the ones who find it.

Olderfleet Castle

Discover Olderfleet Castle in Larne, Northern Ireland: From Vikings to nationwide rebellions, this castle has seen its fair share of warfare.

Ballylagan Organic Farm

Discover Ballylagan Organic Farm in Straid, Northern Ireland: The first organic farm shop in Northern Ireland.

Villa Kérylos

Discover Villa Kérylos in Beaulieu-sur-Mer, France: A reconstruction of a classic mansion on the island of Delos was designed for a historian and archaeologist.

The East Coast Troll

Discover The East Coast Troll in Pompano Beach, Florida: A tiny twin to Seattle's Fremont troll hides from the Florida sun under the Atlantic Boulevard drawbridge.

Murray Bridge Bunyip

Discover Murray Bridge Bunyip in Murray Bridge, Australia: An animatronic tribute to a legendary half-man, half-fish creature.

Esse Purse Museum & Store

Discover Esse Purse Museum & Store in Little Rock, Arkansas: This museum is dedicated to the history and design of purses.

Sanctuary Woods

Discover Sanctuary Woods in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin: The preserved remains of the former Milwaukee County Hospital for the Insane are hidden in the wooded grounds of County Park.

Haliç Metro Bridge

Discover Haliç Metro Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey: Taking the subway here means doing so over a bridge located in the middle of an estuary.

The Red Door Country Store

Discover The Red Door Country Store in Silver Spring, Maryland: This general store has stood in the same spot for well over a century.

Rokugeishin

Discover Rokugeishin in Tokyo, Japan: A miniature shrine in the busy corner of Tokyo's historic Broadway, honoring a sextet of unusual entertainment gods.

Site of the Pine Tree Riot

Discover Site of the Pine Tree Riot in Weare, New Hampshire: One of the earliest—and most commonly forgotten—acts of rebellion against English rule.

Cameron Memorial Fountain

Discover Cameron Memorial Fountain in Glasgow, Scotland: Glasgow's own "tipsy" temperance monument.

Café Strauss

Discover Café Strauss in Berlin, Germany: Berliners take their coffee and cake in one of the city’s most restful spaces: a cemetery.

World’s Largest Cheese Slicer

Discover World's Largest Cheese Slicer in Robertsfors N, Sweden: The cheese slicer may be a Norwegian invention, but the biggest ones in the world are found in Sweden.

Les Arnaules Prehistoric Bridge

Discover Les Arnaules Prehistoric Bridge in Manresa, Spain: A long strip of fossil-filled limestone makes up this natural bridge above a rushing stream.

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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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