Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Vélorail Bike Train

Discover Vélorails Pays Chartrain in Bailleau-Armenonville, France: A bike train runs along a disused railway line through the tranquil French countryside.

St. Oliver Plunkett’s Head

Discover St. Oliver Plunkett's Head in Drogheda, Ireland: The severed head of a 17th-century Irish martyr lies within an intricate golden shrine.

La Palomba

Discover La Palomba in Matera, Italy: An abandoned quarry hides an open-air gallery of huge sculptures, some made from the rubble of 9/11.

Casa de Fusta

Discover Casa de Fusta in Amposta, Spain: This Canadian hunting lodge is a long way from home.

Chambeshi Monument

Discover Chambeshi Monument in Kasama, Zambia: A stone memorial marks the spot where the fighting of World War I finally ceased—three days after the armistice was signed in Europe.

Oudemanhuispoort

Discover Oudemanhuispoort in Amsterdam, Netherlands: An ancient passage filled with stalls selling used books, once frequented by Vincent Van Gogh.

Casina Vanvitelliana

Discover Casina Vanvitelliana in Bacoli, Italy: The Bourbon royal family had this unique octagonal hunting "cottage" built on a tiny islet in Lake Fusaro.

Les Fresques de Bel Air

Discover Les Fresques de Bel Air in Chartres, France: A once drab public housing estate is transformed into a colorful gallery of trompe l’oeil murals.

Fataluku Sacred Houses

Discover Uma Lulik in Lospalos, East Timor: These sacred totem houses connect the Fatakulu people with the spirits of their ancestors.

Great Orme Tramway

Discover Great Orme Tramway in Llandudno, Wales: One of the few surviving street funiculars in the world.

The Oldest 45th Parallel Marker in the U.S.

Discover The Oldest 45th Parallel Marker in the U.S. in Perry, Maine: A roadside park in eastern Maine first marked the halfway point between the equator and North Pole with a brass pin in 1896.

Operation Tracer Cave

Discover Operation Tracer Cave in Gibraltar: There was a top secret plan during World War II to seal a group of soldiers inside the rock.

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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

PP ToS