Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Bean Puzzle Tombstone

Discover Bean Puzzle Tombstone in Wellesley, Ontario: It took over 100 years to decode this enigmatic epitaph for two buried brides.

Trou de la Fée – Protected Bat Cave

Discover Trou de la Fée – Protected Bat Cave in Saint-André-du-Lac-Saint-Jean, Québec: This three-chambered cave is the only protected natural bat hibernaculum in Quebec.

Carbide Willson Ruins

Discover Carbide Willson Ruins in Chelsea, Québec: The remains of a paranoid inventor's hidden workshop lie in beautiful ruins amidst a Canadian park.

The Yorkville Rock

Discover The Yorkville Rock in Toronto, Ontario: This massive, ancient stone was disassembled and then put back together again.

‘Maman’

Discover 'Maman' in Ottawa, Ontario: Louise Bourgeois' 30-foot-tall steel spider sculpture.

Camp 30 POW Camp

Discover Camp 30 POW Camp in Clarington, Ontario: A Canadian POW for German soldiers during WWII where prisoners hatched an elaborate escape plan.

Toronto PATH

Discover Toronto PATH in Toronto, Ontario: One of the largest underground systems runs under Canada's largest urban center.

Stanley Park

Discover Stanley Park in Vancouver, British Columbia: "Girl in a Wetsuit" is what happens when a sculptor has to find a way around a 100 year old copyright.

Insectarium of Montreal

Discover Insectarium of Montreal in Montreal, Québec: The biggest museum dedicated to insects in North America, one of the largest in the world.

Marché Bonsecours

Discover Marché Bonsecours in Montreal, Québec: A historic Montreal market that was the city's agricultural hub for over century.

Totems of Haida Gwaii

Discover Totems of Haida Gwaii in Tlell, British Columbia: Hauntingly beautiful totem poles left by the Haida.

The Hoodoos of Drumheller Valley

Discover The Hoodoos of Drumheller Valley in Drumheller, Alberta: Hoodoos, naturally eroded land formations, stand 20 feet tall in the Canadian badlands.

The Mushroom House

Discover The Mushroom House in Whistler, British Columbia: Home inspired by the crystal rock formation of the Emerald Estates.

The Vault

Discover The Vault in Kananaskis, Alberta: What was to be the world's most secure Cold War document vault ended up as just a few shallow caves.

Pesuta Shipwreck

Discover Pesuta Shipwreck in Tlell, British Columbia: The stunning remnants of this wreck emerge from an otherworldly backdrop of rainforests.

Clifton Hill

Discover Clifton Hill in Niagara Falls, Ontario: This Niagara Falls tourist trap is a world bright with neon and curiosities that will inspire love, hate, or a mixture of both.

Midlothian Castle

Discover Midlothian Castle in Burk's Falls, Ontario: A school teacher's massive and terrifying self-built castle.

Dude Chilling Park

Discover Dude Chilling Park in Vancouver, British Columbia: A renegade art installation in a small Vancouver park is now officially sanctioned by the City Parks Department.

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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

PP ToS