Archives: Atlas Obscuras

The Ancient Gate of Amadiya

This beautiful arched gate is all that remains of the fortress that the ancient mountaintop town once was.

Valley of the Dinosaurs

Discover Valley of the Dinosaurs in Sousa, Brazil: One of the few places in the world where visitors can walk alongside fossilized tracks from 80 different dinosaur species.

Pskov-Caves Monastery

Discover Pskov-Caves Monastery in Pechory, Russia: This 15th-century cave complex is one of the very few monasteries to stay open throughout World War II and the Soviet regime.

Man Falling Into Death

Discover Péter Mansfeld Monument in Budapest, Hungary: This statue of a falling man commemorates a teenage martyr of the Hungarian Revolution.

Filles Dansantes

Discover Filles Dansantes in Ridder, Kazakhstan: A statue of traditional Kazakh dancers adds some beauty to this Soviet-era mining city.

Saddam Hussein’s Blood Quran

Discover Saddam Hussein's Blood Quran in Baghdad, Iraq: A 605-page Quran penned in the blood of a dictator is locked away in a mosque.

The Ronning Burl

Discover The Ronning Burl in Port McNeill, British Columbia: A Canadian port town is oddly home to two of the largest tree burls in the world.

Keppel’s Column

Discover Keppel's Column in Rotherham, England: An oddly shaped tower built to mark the acquittal of Admiral Keppel in a controversial 1770s case.

Ust-Kamenogorsk Lock

Discover Ust-Kamenogorsk Lock in Ust'-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan: Tucked away along a riverbend in an area known for its uranium mines is one of the world's tallest locks.

Le Grand K

Discover Le Grand K in Saint-Cloud, France: The former global standard for the exact mass of one kilogram sits under lock and key outside Paris.

Church Hill Tunnel

Discover Church Hill Tunnel in Richmond, Virginia: Under a playground is a little-known sealed train tunnel that likely contains the bodies of workers trapped by cave-ins.

Annora’s Tomb

Discover Annora's Tomb in Oxford, England: The weathered grave of a medieval anchoress who walled herself up in a cell attached to a church.

Frunze Museum

Discover Frunze Museum in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan: Dedicated to a Bolshevik revolutionary, this museum is a true time capsule of the Soviet era.

Harry’s New York Bar

Discover Harry's New York Bar in Paris, France: A favorite Paris bar for U.S. expats, including Gershwin, Hemingway, and James Bond.

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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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