Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Aspendos Theater

Discover Aspendos Theater in Serik, Turkey: The best-preserved ancient theater in the world.

Museu do Pão

Discover Museu do Pão in Seia, Portugal: Come for the bread-themed puppet show, stay for the buffet.

Manasija Monastery

Discover Manasija Monastery in Despotovac, Serbia: This 15th-century Serbian Orthodox monastery also contained a school for illuminating manuscripts.

Corti Brothers Grocery

Discover Corti Brothers Grocery in Sacramento, California: The last of a gourmet supermarket chain, this store helped spark California's Food Revolution.

Flohmarkt Lager

Discover Flohmarkt Lager in Vienna, Austria: Inside the corridors of this flea market, visitors are sure to find some obscure and odd treasures.

Texas Theatre

Discover Texas Theatre in Dallas, Texas: This theatre was made famous after Lee Harvey Oswald was captured inside watching a film.

Souk al-Saqatiya

Discover Souk al-Saqatiya in Aleppo, Syria: Amid the rubble of Aleppo's Old Quarter, part of a historic market has been restored and re-opened.

Gadsden Pacific Toy Train Museum

Discover Gadsden Pacific Toy Train Museum in Tucson, Arizona: An amazing collection of model trains, collectibles, and artifacts that span the last 100 years.

Iguana Bridge

Discover Iguana Bridge in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico: This bridge over the River Cuale leads to a neighborhood that was once an escape for Hollywood's elite.

Madron Well

Discover Madron Well in Madron, England: Legend says this ancient pagan site can cure all ailments.

Avshalom Cave

Discover Avshalom Cave in Israel: This amazing ancient cave was kept secret for seven years to protect it from the public.

Onkel Toms Hütte (Uncle Tom’s Cabin)

Discover Onkel Toms Hütte (Uncle Tom's Cabin) in Berlin, Germany: The 1852 novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" lends its name to a subway station, a street, and several shops on the edge of Berlin.

St Briavels Castle

Discover St Briavels Castle in Saint Briavels, England: You can enjoy a (possibly haunted) stay at the medieval Norman castle that was once a favorite hunting lodge of King John.

Kiha

Discover Kiha in Tokyo, Japan: It's bad manners to eat and drink on the subways of Tokyo, unless the train is this bar. .

History of Diving Museum

Discover History of Diving Museum in Islamorada, Florida: A unique collection of diving equipment spanning antiquity to the present day.

Farm.One

Discover Farm.One in New York, New York: Underneath the bustling city streets, a hydroponic farm grows unique herbs in an urban oasis.

William Penn’s Grave

Discover William Penn’s Grave in Jordans, England: The remains of the man who founded Pennsylvania lie in an unassuming grave in the English countryside.

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

PP ToS