Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Nushabad Underground City

Discover Nushabad Underground City in Nushabad, Iran: A 1,500-year-old, 3-story subterranean city where ancient Persians took refuge in times of war.

Wheeler Ferris Wheel

Discover Wheeler Ferris Wheel in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: The surprising home of the iconic Santa Monica Pier Ferris Wheel.

The Last Wild Apple Forests

Discover The Last Wild Apple Forests in Almaty, Kazakhstan: Granny Smiths and Fujis can both be traced back to Kazakhstan, where apples still grow wild.

Plum Island Pink House

Discover Plum Island Pink House in Newbury, Massachusetts: This picturesque abandoned home is rumored to be a spite house.

Charlie the Water Buffalo

Discover Charlie the Water Buffalo in Adelaide River, Australia: The taxidermy remains of the mighty beast made famous by a Crocodile Dundee film.

Willa Cather Prairie

Discover Willa Cather Prairie in Red Cloud, Nebraska: Over 600 acres of idyllic open grassland honor Nebraska’s georgic storyteller.

Sataplia Nature Reserve

Discover Sataplia Nature Reserve in Georgia: The cave holds a spectacular array of stalactites and stalagmites, including one shaped like a giant human heart.

Baha’i Temple

Discover Baha'i Temple in Panama City, Panama: From a distance, Latin America's first Baha'i Temple looks like an enormous egg perched atop a hill.

‘Tomb of the Years’ at Tenayuca Pyramid

Discover 'Tomb of the Years' at Tenayuca Pyramid in Tlalnepantla, Mexico: An archaeological museum at the Aztec pyramid displays signs of the New Fire ritual performed every 52 years.

Noir Arts & Oddities

Discover Noir Arts & Oddities in Kansas City, Missouri: Tucked away between two 19th-century buildings, this small shop specializes in the macabre.

St. Peter’s Church

Discover St. Peter's Church in Tyne and Wear, England: One of England's oldest stone churches and the birthplace of the "father of English history.".

Ascension Cathedral

Discover Ascension Cathedral in Almaty, Kazakhstan: In Kazakhstan, a colorful cathedral with many lives once survived the most powerful earthquake in the region.

‘Shadows in Another Light’

Discover 'Shadows in Another Light' in Tyne and Wear, England: This steel sculpture made from a recycled crane towers above a former shipyard.

The Old Man of Storr

Discover The Old Man of Storr in Isle of Skye, Scotland: An ancient Scottish rock formation said to be the gravesite of a giant remains ensconced in legend and intrigue.

Indian Caverns

Discover Indian Caverns in Spruce Creek, Pennsylvania: A soon-to-be-forgotten roadside spectacle loaded with local lore.

LaBeL RéCuP’

Discover LaBeL RéCuP' in Paris, France: An off-the-beaten-path boutique stuffed with an eclectic collection of upcycled goods.

World’s Largest Light Bulb

Discover World’s Largest Light Bulb in Edison, New Jersey: A giant light 13 feet high shines near Thomas Edison's old Menlo Park lab.

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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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