Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Bali’s (Other) Abandoned Plane

Discover Bali's (Other) Abandoned Plane in Kuta, Indonesia: The wing of this deserted Boeing 737 almost touches the Dunkin' Donuts next door.

St Mary The Virgin

Discover St Mary The Virgin in Clophill, England: A reportedly haunted 14th century church is curiously facing the “wrong direction.”.

Reptile Zoo

Discover Reptile Zoo in Monroe, Washington: "The Reptile Man's" very own roadside zoo features an albino alligator.

Seattle’s Wall of Death

Discover The Wall of Death in Seattle, Washington: A "sinister, whimsical, tacky, and really orange" public art installation hidden under a Seattle bridge.

Abandoned Council of Ministries Building

Discover Abandoned Council of Ministries Building in Sukhumi, Georgia: Ruins of a former government building destroyed during the Georgian-Abkhaz war in the wake of the fall of the Soviet Union.

The Arctic Club

Discover The Arctic Club in Seattle, Washington: The historic bar where local ship captains, traders, and gold miners would come together to do business a century ago.

Cuneo Mansion

Discover Cuneo Mansion in Vernon Hills, Illinois: The study has wall paneling from a 17th century ship.

Collins Beach UFO Boat

Discover Collins Beach UFO Boat in Portland, Oregon: This abandoned boat sits on a nude beach, is shaped like a UFO, and is covered in graffiti.

Menu

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