Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Piódão

Discover Piódão in Piódão, Portugal: Nestled in the mountains of Portugal is a tiny village made almost entirely of schist.

Hoosesagg Museum (Pants Pocket Museum)

Discover Hoosesagg Museum (Pants Pocket Museum) in Basel, Switzerland: The smallest museum in Basel, Switzerland, is a two-foot-by-two-foot window in the door of a 600-year-old house.

Wojtek the Soldier Bear Statue

Discover Wojtek the Soldier Bear Statue in Krakow, Poland: A memorial to the beloved brown bear that served in the Polish army during World War II.

The Exchange Murals

Discover The Exchange Murals in Nottingham, England: These 90-year-old murals of local kings, Vikings, and outlaws hide in plain sight in a beautifully baroque shopping arcade.

Hermitage of Santo Cristo

Discover Hermitage of Santo Cristo in Talaván, Spain: Disturbing winged beings decorate the walls of this strange abandoned hermitage.

Modjeska Shakespeare

Discover Modjeska Shakespeare in Silverado, California: This 75-year-old Shakespearean sculpture is painted by a local artist for every season.

Oakham Castle Horseshoes

Discover Oakham Castle Horseshoes in Oakham, England: Hundreds of huge, centuries-old horseshoes adorn the walls of this nontraditional 12th-century castle.

Aquilean Whale Tail Sculptures

Discover Aquilean Whale Tail Sculptures in Juneau, Alaska: A whale of a public art display towers atop Juneau's cruise ship dock.

Last Home of Descartes

Discover Last Home of Descartes in Stockholm, Sweden: A plaque marks the house in Stockholm where the French philosopher René Descartes lived up until his death.

Spreckels Organ Pavilion

Discover Spreckels Organ Pavilion in San Diego, California: The world's largest outdoor organ is played weekly by one of just two civic organists in the U.S.

Jimmy Carter’s Hot Dog Bun

Discover Jimmy Carter's Hot Dog Bun in Toledo, Ohio: This restaurant proudly displays bread signed by the 39th president.

Self-Realization Fellowship Meditation Gardens

Discover Self-Realization Fellowship Meditation Gardens in Los Angeles, California: This peaceful garden is hidden on the grounds of a spiritual organization founded by a pioneer yogi.

Insectropolis

Discover Insectropolis in Toms River, New Jersey: A "Bugseum" dedicated to all things insect-related resides behind a pest control company.

Yodgorlik Silk Factory

Discover Yodgorlik Silk Factory in Margilan, Uzbekistan: Witness traditional silk production in the Uzbek city that's been a hub of sericulture for over a thousand years.

Skagway Centennial Statue

Discover Skagway Centennial Statue in Skagway, Alaska: A monument commemorating the role of Alaska's native Tlingit guides in the Klondike Gold Rush.

Karpacz’s Gravitational Anomaly

Discover Karpacz's Gravitational Anomaly in Karpacz, Poland: On this Polish road, an optical illusion makes cars seem to roll uphill.

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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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