Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Bruntsfield Links

Discover Bruntsfield Links in Edinburgh, Scotland: A free public golf course hides in plain sight in the heart of Scotland’s capital.

Fábrica La Aurora

Discover Fábrica La Aurora in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico: This art shopping center still boasts pieces of its past as a textile factory.

Torre Nueva

Discover Torre Nueva in La Línea de la Concepción, Spain: The defensive tower was built centuries ago to warn locals of Berber pirate attacks.

Ouadane Mosque

Discover Ouadane Mosque in Ouadane, Mauritania: This remarkably well-preserved mosque stands amid an 11th-century caravansary.

Mine Shaft Tavern

Discover Mine Shaft Tavern in Madrid, New Mexico: Home to New Mexico's longest bar, this watering hole also has a mining museum and a haunted history.

Connie’s Photo Park

Discover Connie's Photo Park in Madrid, New Mexico: A little slice of Florida face-in-a-hole kitsch, unexpectedly located in a small New Mexico town.

Las Labradas

Discover Las Labradas in San Ignacio, Mexico: This gorgeous stretch of coastline is home to beautiful views and centuries-old rock art.

Canongate Kirkyard

Discover Canongate Kirkyard in Edinburgh, Scotland: This Scottish graveyard is the final resting place of the man who inspired the character Ebenezer Scrooge.

Norumbega Tower

Discover Norumbega Tower in Weston, Massachusetts: This tower pays homage to a legendary Viking fort established in Massachusetts that never really existed.

Phaneromenis 70

Discover Phaneromenis 70 in Nicosia, Cyprus: A unique art center and shop just below a United Nations Checkpoint in central Nicosia.

Floating Farm

Discover Floating Farm in Rotterdam, Netherlands: The world's first floating farm is staffed by one human, three robots, and 35 cows.

Hulbuk Fortress

Discover Hulbuk Fortress in Pingan, Tajikistan: This medieval citadel once guarded the western entrance of the Pamir Highway.

Coyoacán Bazaar Toy Cemetery

Discover Coyoacán Bazaar Toy Cemetery in Mexico City, Mexico: Abandoned figurines adorn a small plot on the side of a craft market's entrance.

Sarris Candies Factory

Discover Sarris Candies Factory in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania: Nothing says indulgence like a 1,500-pound chocolate castle.

The Danish Windmill

Discover The Danish Windmill in Elk Horn, Iowa: In rural Iowa, an imported 19th-century windmill overlooks an unlikely enclave of Danish culture.

Rottenrow Gardens

Discover Rottenrow Gardens in Glasgow, Scotland: A serene public space nestled within the remains of Glasgow’s Victorian maternity hospital.

Jasmine Hill Gardens & Outdoor Museum

Discover Jasmine Hill Gardens & Outdoor Museum in Wetumpka, Alabama: This botanical garden has been nicknamed "Alabama's Little Corner of Greece.".

Holy Rosary Cathedral

Discover Holy Rosary Cathedral in Regina, Saskatchewan: This more than a century-old cathedral has seen its fair share of redesigns over the years.

Umayyad Palace

Discover Umayyad Palace in Amman, Jordan: This restored eighth-century palace is a shining example of ancient Umayyad architecture.

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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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