Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Witch’s Hat Depot

Discover Witch's Hat Depot in South Lyon, Michigan: This 19th-century former train station’s unusual roof shape earned it a rather witchy name.

Casa Neverlandia in Austin

Discover Casa Neverlandia in Austin, Texas: This eclectic, mosaic-clad home includes a bamboo ping-pong loft and a "Whispermaphones" intercom.

Erasmus Darwin House

Discover Erasmus Darwin House in Staffordshire, England: The house where Charles Darwin's grandfather formed many of his influential ideas and inventions.

Cambodia–Vietnam Friendship Monument

Discover Cambodia–Vietnam Friendship Monument in Phnom Penh, Cambodia: Bombed and burned, this monument represents the often controversial ties between Vietnam and Cambodia.

The Chicken Church

Discover The Church by the Sea in Madeira Beach, Florida: Visitors flock to see this church tower's unintended feature: It happens to resemble a giant chicken from multiple points of view.

Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge

Discover Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge in Falkland Islands: An abandoned suspension bridge on the Falkland Islands is crumbling into the water.

Museum of Timekeeping

Discover Museum of Timekeeping in Upton, England: A magnificent mansion hides a delightful collection of historic timepieces.

Wat Phnom

Discover Wat Phnom in Phnom Penh, Cambodia: The capital of Cambodia is named after the hill on which this ancient temple complex stands.

Fairy Tale Museum of Cyprus

Discover Fairy Tale Museum in Nicosia, Cyprus: A magical museum of fairy tale treasures near Cyprus' buffer zone.

Buttertubs Pass

Discover Buttertubs Pass in North Yorkshire, England: A steep and winding road in the Yorkshire Dales passes by these deep natural potholes.

Wilbur D. May Museum

Discover Wilbur D. May Museum in Reno, Nevada: An eccentric millionaire's personal curio collection includes at least one shrunken head.

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i
To represent a masterpiece of human creative genius. 260 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. 474 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. 499 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. 633 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. 135 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. 167 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). 252 vii
To contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance. 148 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. 96 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. 166

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