Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Schießplatzheide (Firing Range Heath)

Discover Schießplatzheide (Firing Range Heath) in Augsburg, Germany: Deep in the forest next to Augsburg are abandoned bunkers and bullet traps from the region's military past.

Johanneshovs Skans (Johanneshov Sconce)

Discover Johanneshovs Skans (Johanneshov Sconce) in Stockholm, Sweden: Part of an abandoned19th-century fortress hides in plain sight inside a modern office building.

Hotel Ještěd

Discover Hotel Ještěd in Liberec, Czechia: This unusually shaped mountaintop tower looks like a UFO floating over the city.

Crypt of the São Paulo Cathedral

Discover Crypt of the São Paulo Cathedral in São Paulo, Brazil: The crypts are so large they're basically their own underground church.

Abandoned DeJarnette Sanitarium

Discover Abandoned DeJarnette Sanitarium in Staunton, Virginia: A former mental hospital founded in the 1930s by a eugenicist who advocated for the forced sterilization of patients.

Confederate Mound

Discover Confederate Mound in Chicago, Illinois: The final resting place of up to 6,000 Confederate soldiers, the largest mass grave in the Western Hemisphere.

Belhaven Bridge

Discover Belhaven Bridge in Dunbar, Scotland: At high tide this strange footbridge appears to have no purpose whatsoever.

Taira no Masakado’s Grave

Discover Taira no Masakado's Grave in Chiyoda City, Japan: A shrine dedicated to a 10th-century samurai emperor, whose head is not buried on site (contrary to popular belief).

Mya Thein Tan Pagoda

Discover Mya Thein Tan Pagoda in Min Kun, Myanmar (Burma): This magnificent white pagoda was constructed to resemble a sacred Buddhist mountain.

Mausoleum of Yugoslav Soldiers

Discover Mausoleum of Yugoslav Soldiers in Olomouc, Czechia: This almost a century old piece of architecture had been overlooked by most, except for the drunk and the homeless.

John Goodway Sycamore Tree

Discover John Goodway Sycamore Tree in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: This massive sycamore tree has been labeled as one of the largest in the state.

Keramat Kusu

Discover Keramat Kusu in Singapore: Three Malay graves are at the center of an annual pilgrimage that reflects syncretic practices.

Qshla Koya

Discover Qshla Koya in Koysinjaq, Iraq: Qshla Koya is an Ottoman fortress located on a hillock in the central quarter of Koya.

Sansouci Puppet Museum

Discover Sansouci Puppet Museum in Wilmington, Australia: This small town museum is home to the largest collection of puppets in Australia.

The Luchtsingel

Discover The Luchtsingel in Rotterdam, Netherlands: Built by crowdsourcing, this wooden foot bridge saved a part of Rotterdam that was languishing in wait of city funding.

‘Alien’ Gargoyle

Discover 'Alien' Gargoyle in Paisley, Scotland: A familiar otherworldly creature guards this 12th-century Scottish abbey.

Rijnlandse Roede (The Rhenish Rod)

Discover Rijnlandse Roede (The Rhenish Rod) in Leiden, Netherlands: An unassuming rod in the Netherlands was once the old standard unit of length for the entire Dutch empire.

Warstone Lane Cemetery Catacombs

Discover Warstone Lane Cemetery Catacombs in Birmingham, England: A hidden gem in the middle of the city's infamous Jewelry Quarter.

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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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