Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Museum Boerhaave

Discover Museum Boerhaave in Leiden, Netherlands: A former plague hospital turned medical museum.

Oude Kerk

Discover Oude Kerk in Amsterdam, Netherlands: Amsterdam's oldest church, and the center of Dutch prostitution.

Hotel Inntel Zaandam

Discover Hotel Inntel Zaandam in Zaandam, Netherlands: Colorful and chaotic stacked hotel in North Holland.

Theater Tuschinski

Discover Theater Tuschinski in Amsterdam, Netherlands: A beautifully eclectic mix of architectural styles.

Labyrint Drielandenpunt

Discover Labyrint Drielandenpunt in Vaals, Netherlands: A beautiful maze marks where three countries meet.

Van Gogh Bicycle Path

Discover Van Gogh Bicycle Path in Eindhoven, Netherlands: Inspired by "The Starry Night" this Dutch bike path turns into a glowing work of art each night.

In’t Aepjen

Discover In't Aepjen in Amsterdam, Netherlands: This historic Amsterdam bar used to accept sailor's monkeys as payment.

Our Lord in the Attic

Discover Our Lord in the Attic in Amsterdam, Netherlands: The attic of a four-century-old canal house hides a clandestine church.

Giethoorn

Discover Giethoorn in Giethoorn, Netherlands: This small town in the Netherlands has no roads but instead, miles of canals and over 100 bridges.

Micropia

Discover Micropia in Amsterdam, Netherlands: The world's first zoo for microbes collecting the horrible and wonderful things living on and around us.

Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam

Discover Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam in Amsterdam, Netherlands: Established in 1638 to battle the Black Death, Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam is a treasure trove of rare flora.

Museum Vrolik

Discover Museum Vrolik in Amsterdam, Netherlands: A curious collection dedicated to human and animal anatomy and pathology.

The Torture Museum

Discover The Torture Museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands: Museum preserving torture methods from the past.

KattenKabinet

Discover KattenKabinet in Amsterdam, Netherlands: Cat art as far as the eye can see.

Nieuwe Spiegelstraat

Discover Nieuwe Spiegelstraat in Amsterdam, Netherlands: An Amsterdam street lined with antique shops each one dedicated to a different obscure collection.

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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

PP ToS