Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Cabinet

Discover Siegfried's Mechanical Music Cabinet in Rüdesheim am Rhein, Germany: This marvelous array is one of the largest collections of mechanical instruments in Europe.

The Doll Museum

Discover Museo de la Muñeca in Onil, Spain: Learn how dolls are made in this fascinating museum inside a 19th-century mansion.

Constitution Hill

Discover Constitution Hill in Ceredigion, Wales: A 19th-century funicular railway shuttles visitors up this surprising sea cliff to one of the world's largest camera obscuras.

Casa Redonda

Discover Casa Redonda in Buenos Aires, Argentina: A mysterious architectural gem in one of the most elegant areas of Buenos Aires.

Bertha’s Beach

Discover Bertha's Beach in Falkland Islands: This remote stretch of sand is a penguin lover's paradise.

Innisfree Garden

Discover Innisfree Garden in Millbrook, New York: This once-private estate is now a dreamy, meditative garden that's open to the public.

‘Sentinel’

Discover 'Sentinel' in England: This eye-catching roundabout sculpture commemorates one of England's best World War II-era "shadow factories.".

Freud Museum London

Discover Freud Museum London in London, England: The pioneer of psychoanalysis spent the final year of his life here, still seeing patients on that famous couch.

Apple Valley Hillbilly Garden and Toyland

Discover Apple Valley Hillbilly Garden and Toyland in Calvert City, Kentucky: A whimsical folk art garden full of punny pieces and a diorama containing 3,500 toys.

El Majuelo Ruins

Discover El Majuelo Ruins in Almuñécar, Spain: The extensive relics of an ancient Roman and Phoenician fish processing plant hide in a town park.

Norbury Hall Park

Discover Norbury Hall Park in London, England: This peaceful park with centuries of history hides in an overlooked section of South London.

Barter Books

Discover Barter Books in Alnwick, England: This enormous secondhand bookstore inside a Victorian train station sparked the "Keep Calm and Carry On" craze.

World Peace Flame Pathway

Discover World Peace Flame Pathway in The Hague, Netherlands: Lumps of significant stone from around the world surround a flaming monument for peace.

Ukiah Latitude Observatory

Discover Ukiah Latitude Observatory in Ukiah, California: One of only five observatories in the world built to measure the Earth's wobble.

Fallen Aviators Monument

Discover Fallen Aviators Monument in Athens, Greece: This striking sculpture of Icarus honors Greece's fallen flyers.

Grosse Point Lighthouse

Discover Grosse Point Lighthouse in Evanston, Illinois: A historic beacon built in the aftermath of the worst maritime disaster on the Great Lakes.

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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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