Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Faro a Colon (Columbus Lighthouse)

Discover Faro a Colon (Columbus Lighthouse) in Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic: The final resting place of Christopher Columbus – or possibly someone else.

Museo Del Ambar (Amber Museum)

Discover Museo Del Ambar (Amber Museum) in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic: Collection of fossils, plants, and ancient animals encased in amber.

Cueva de las Maravillas (Cave of Wonders)

Discover Cueva de las Maravillas (Cave of Wonders) in La Caña, Dominican Republic: Hundreds of pieces of ancient Taíno art cover the walls of this Caribbean cave system.

El Meson de la Cava

Discover El Meson de la Cava in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: Renowned restaurant tucked in a cave once occupied by buccaneers.

Los Tres Ojos

Discover Los Tres Ojos in Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic: This trio of Dominican cave lakes comprise a colorful biosphere of natural life.

Marisela Escobedo Memorial Plaque

Discover Marisela Escobedo Memorial Plaque in Chihuahua, Mexico: This simple plaque remembers the fearless human rights defender's tragic death.

Former Train Station of Izamal

Discover Former Train Station of Izamal in Izamal, Mexico: An abandoned train station still stands as a testament to the region's industrial and transport history.

El Halconazo Memorial

The 1968 Tlatelolco Massacre is almost certainly the best-known case of the country’s government reacting with deadly force to student protests, but it was not the last one. Just three years later on June 10, the Feast of Corpus Christi, a paramilitar…

Bacalar House of Culture

Discover Bacalar House of Culture in Bacalar, Mexico: This city's cultural center is in a restored Spanish colonial home from the 1800s.

La Piedra del 68 (The Stone of ’68)

Looking somewhat like a meteorite sitting on a pedestal, this stone is a memorial to the 1968 Tlatelolco Massacre. During the 1960s, and in 1968 particularly, massive student protests erupted around the world, from the United States to Czechoslovakia to…

Monumento de La Virgen Santísima de Guadalupe

Monterrey is a Mexican city of grand proportions. Skyscrapers populate the skyline, including the tallest building in Latin America. Beyond the metropolis, the Sierra Madre Mountain range surrounds the city, including the famous El Cerro de la Silla, …

The Tomb at Cuthá Mountain

This area was once inhabited by the chocho-popolcas, and was the central political power in the Tehuacán Valley in pre-Hispanic times. The ancient city is located on top of a mountain, and the tomb itself is located at the highest point. Also, the area…

Ex Cine Garza (Former Garza Cinema)

The Garza (Crane) surname is one of the most representatives of the Northern Mexican city of Monterrey and its metropolitan area, the country’s second most-populated. This can be seen in the municipalities of San Nicolás de los Garza and San Pedro Ga…

La Muelita (The Little Molar)

Dr. Emilio Medellín Cordero might have Mexico City’s most appropriately shaped office. Designed to resemble a tooth, it could only have been built for a dentist, and the blue neon sign hanging above it, makes it clear that yes, here you can find a de…

Plaza Aniceto Ortega del Villar

Discover Plaza Aniceto Ortega del Villar in Pachuca de Soto, Mexico: The heart of Pachuca's small museum district pays tribute to a unique figure of Hidalguense history.

Korea-Mexico Friendship Bell

The bell of King Seongdeok of Silla, also known as Emile Bell (“emile” meaning “mommy” in the Silla language) is one of South Korea’s National Treasures (#29), so it makes sense that reproductions of this important object are often used by the…

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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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