Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Hotel Arbez

Discover Hotel Arbez in Les Rousses, Switzerland: Part of this hotel resides in Switzerland, the other in France complete with a border that cuts through the honeymoon suite.

Antoine’s Restaurant

Discover Antoine’s Restaurant in New Orleans, Louisiana: The oldest family-run restaurant in the United States is a living museum of New Orleans dining history.

Parque del Perro

Discover Parque del Perro in Cali, Colombia: This statue pays homage to a group of kids's childhood companion who once called the park home.

Mixcoac Archaeological Site

Discover Mixcoac Archaeological Site in Mexico City, Mexico: The ruins of the "place of the cloud snake" sit in the middle of an urban environment.

Museo de Santa María de la Asunción

Discover Museo de Santa María de la Asunción in Ixcateopan de Cuauhtémoc, Mexico: This church turned museum is dedicated to the last Mexica ruler, whose remains were allegedly buried under the altar.

‘Hi, How Are You’ Mural

Discover 'Hi, How Are You' Mural in Austin, Texas: This simple frog painting created by musician Daniel Johnston embodies the spirit of Austin.

Qumran

Discover Qumran in West Bank: The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the ruins of this ancient monastic community.

Newkirk Viaduct Monument

Discover Newkirk Viaduct Monument in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: This 15-foot tall obelisk commemorating the Philadelphia-Baltimore railroad connection sat neglected for over a century.

Dick Turpin’s Tombstone

Discover Dick Turpin's Tombstone in York, England: The final resting place of England's most notorious bandit.

Little Chief

Discover Little Chief in Calgary, Alberta: What happens when a chef with indigenous roots takes over a hotel-restaurant?

The Grande Lunette

Discover The Grande Lunette in Meudon, France: The largest refracting telescope in Europe is housed on the grounds of a former French castle.

Zoom Flume

Discover Zoom Flume in Bloomington, Indiana: Tucked away in the forests of Indiana resides an abandoned waterslide that is now a popular graffiti haunt.

David Henderson Memorial

Discover David Henderson Memorial in Lake Placid, New York: This memorial in the Adirondack wilderness honors the accidental death of a Scottish entrepreneur.

Burdekin Falls Dam

Discover Burdekin Falls Dam in Ravenswood, Australia: Queensland's largest dam includes a winding spillway that offers drivers a mesmerizing sight.

Apollo Lunar Sample Displays

Discover Apollo Lunar Sample Displays in Kathmandu, Nepal: Visitors to the National Museum of Nepal can moon over a set of well-traveled flags.

Grave of Lieutenant John Irving

Discover Grave of Lieutenant John Irving in Edinburgh, Scotland: This grave marks one of few bodies retrieved from the disastrous Franklin Arctic expedition.

Newland House Museum

Discover Newland House Museum in Huntington Beach, California: The oldest home in Huntington Beach, the farmhouse is a monument to the region's pioneer past.

Bube’s Brewery & Catacombs

Discover Bube's Brewery & Catacombs in Mount Joy, Pennsylvania: In the bowels of a 19th-century brewery lurks a fine-dining restaurant offering an array of themed feasts.

Oldest Sweet Shop in England

Discover Oldest Sweet Shop in England in Pateley Bridge, England: The oldest candy store in the world has been selling traditional sweets since 1827.

Menu

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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