Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Schimpff’s Confectionery

Discover Schimpff's Confectionery in Jeffersonville, Indiana: This candy shop has been serving up sweets to the Louisville area since the 1850s.

McBaine Bur Oak

Discover McBaine Bur Oak in Columbia, Missouri: This majestic tree has survived 400 years of storms, droughts, and floods, and is a beloved natural landmark in Missouri.

Nelson Mandela Capture Site

Discover Nelson Mandela Capture Site in Howick, South Africa: A mesmerizing sculpture marks the site where the activist was arrested after evading capture for 17 months.

Vidin Synagogue

Discover Vidin Synagogue in Vidin, Bulgaria: The second-largest Jewish temple in Bulgaria was deserted after World War II, seized by the communist government and then abandoned again.

A Memorial to Optimism

Pollyanna’s influence reaches much further than the cheerful character's New England roots.

Baron Empain Palace

Discover Baron Empain Palace in El-Montaza, Egypt: Located near Cairo's El Korba district, the abandoned mansion continues to inspire mystery and rumor throughout the city.

‘My Dear Mother’ Clock

Discover 'My Dear Mother' Clock in Devon, England: Instead of numerals, the unusual clock face spells out a memorial to a lost loved one.

Hagia Sophia Wishing Column

Discover Hagia Sophia Wishing Column in Istanbul, Turkey: Legend says if you stick your thumb in the hole and it gets wet your wish will be granted.

Barnsdall Main Street Oil Well

Discover Barnsdall Main Street Oil Well in Barnsdall, Oklahoma: A tiny but mighty little pumper sits in the middle of the street, waiting for the next big oil strike.

Dulles Airport Mobile Lounges

Discover Dulles Airport Mobile Lounges in Sterling, Virginia: These unusual rooms on wheels are holdovers from the 1960s.

Fallbrook Pioneer Odd Fellows Cemetery

Discover Fallbrook Pioneer Odd Fellows Cemetery in Fallbrook, California: Famous and forgotten figures lie beneath the faded headstones and decaying planks of wood.

Wheatland

Discover Wheatland in Lancaster, Pennsylvania: The home of possibly the least-loved U.S. president stands as a sort of unpopular Monticello.

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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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