Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Abandoned Salt Mine

Located on an uninhabited desert island in the Gulf of California and only accessible by a two-hour boat ride from Loreto, this is the site of what used to be a massive salt mine and pink salt lake. Along the seashore are the dilapidated remains of a pi…

Nahualac Pond

This shrine was built during prehispanic times as a way to honor the Mesoamerican creation myth, where Cipactli (a crocodile that represents the earth) was floating on water. From his body, all the land and sky were created. A tetzacualco (shrine) sits…

Museo del Ferrocarril Antigua Estación del Golfo

Discover Museo del Ferrocarril Antigua Estación del Golfo in Monterrey, Mexico: A Beaux-Arts architectural surprise and a charming nostalgic tour through northern Mexico’s railway revolution.

Casa Madero

Only vines grown in the toughest soil conditions produce the best grapes; their roots have to fight for every last drop of water year after year. Likewise, the wine estate, now known as Casa Madero, has for over four centuries continually adapted, makin…

Glorieta Plaza de Sevilla (Seville Plaza Roundabout)

This area of the Insurgentes Mixcoac colonia (neighborhood) of Mexico City, could well be called “Little Spain.” Not necessarily because of a large migrant community from the European country, but rather just because of its street names. Málaga, Sa…

Boeing 727 Crash Experiment

At around 10 a.m. on the morning of April 27, 2012, silence in the vast and empty Laguna Salada desert was shattered as a Boeing 727 slammed into the ground. The impact tore the cockpit apart and debris flew across the sandy landscape. Then, just as qui…

República de Guatemala 28

Discover República de Guatemala 28 in Mexico City, Mexico: A trompe l'oeil mural remembers the original colonial building that once stood here.

Fuerte de San Miguel

Much like its sister Fort of San José el Alto, the Fort of San Miguel was built in the 18th century. Both forts served to defend the city and the Bay of Campeche from pirate attacks. As a Colonial stronghold of Spanish authority, the city was often tar…

Parish of Divine Providence

As the Del Valle colonia (neighborhood) in Mexico City expanded in the 1960s, the small Catholic chapel that served this area became too small, so the local residents financed the construction of a larger building. Designed by architects Amaury Pérez d…

Tlachtemalácatl (Mesoamerican Ballgame Stone Ring)

Coyoacán was once a town completely separate from Mexico City. As such, it needed its own central square, what is now the Plaza Hidalgo. When this plaza was being built, a large stone ring with a figure carved on it was unearthed. This was a tlachtemal…

Real de Catorce

When the minerals of a mining town have been fully extracted, there is a chance that it will become a ghost town. That is what happened to Real de Catorce in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí when its silver ran dry in the early 20th century. But i…

Chocolate ‘OJERT’ Mural Advert

Discover Chocolate 'OJERT' Mural Advert in Izamal, Mexico: A hand-painted advertisement for chocolate adorns the walls of this historic building.

Santuario de Schoenstatt ‘Maria, Camino al Cielo’

From Monterrey, climb the Cerro del Mirador mountain, and find the Church of Schönstatt amongst the hilltops. Leave comfort behind, depart on a physical journey, and find peace away from the big city. There are many of these little chapels located…

Librería Porrúa’s Sor Juana Book Mosaic

Inés de Asbaje y Ramírez de Santillana, who would later come to be known by the name of Sor (Sister) Juana Inés de la Cruz (Sor Juana for short), was a 17th-century writer who made an impact not only on the literature but also the religious establish…

Galerías Plaza de las Estrellas

Opened in 1982, Galerías Plaza de las Estrellas was one of Mexico City’s first indoor shopping malls. In order to stand out from its competitors, a Walk of Fame was installed inside. Some peculiar prints are to be found here, boxer Julio César Cháv…

Casa China

For sale since 2017, Valladolid’s Casa China (Chinese House) is a very large building, painted in bright shades of red, green, and yellow, that stands out thanks to its East Asian-inspired architecture. With two guardian lions flanking the entrance an…

Ex-Convento Franciscano de Kikil

Discover Ex-Convento Franciscano de Kikil in Kikil, Mexico: The ruins of a 16th-century Spanish convent tell a forgotten history.

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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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