Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Yamchun Fort

Discover Yamchun Fort in Ishkoshim, Tajikistan: This ancient Silk Road outpost overlooking the Wakhan Valley is miraculously still standing.

Palace of Depression

Discover Palace of Depression in Vineland, New Jersey: This Great Depression-era creation was once known as the strangest house in the world.

Fonts Point in the Borrego Badlands

Discover Fonts Point in Borrego Springs, California: A remote desert lookout offers unparalleled views of the California badlands for those who brave the trek.

Elkhorn Ghost Town

Discover Elkhorn Ghost Town in Boulder, Montana: This off-the-beaten-path abandoned town is a relic of Montana's silver mining boom.

Foynes Flying Boat Museum

Discover Foynes Flying Boat Museum in Foynes, Ireland: The world's only flying boat museum honors a small Irish village that sent 20th-century aviation to new heights.

Croissant Museum

Discover St. Martin’s Croissant Museum in Poznań, Poland: The traditional Polish croissant, folded 81 times into the shape of a horseshoe, is a legally protected cultural treat.

Historic Terminal A in Washington, D.C.

Discover Ronald Reagan National Airport's Historic Terminal A in Arlington, Virginia: The romance of early commercial flight still fills this Art Deco destination.

Chachersk Airplane

Discover Chachersk Airplane in Čačersk, Belarus: A decommissioned Soviet airplane has been used as a movie theater and a cultural center.

The Brocken

Discover The Brocken in Wernigerode, Germany: On the highest peak in the Harz Mountains, science and the occult faced off in a failed attempt to turn a goat into a boy.

Freud’s Dream Museum

Discover Freud's Dream Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia: Dark, eerie exhibits make for a surreal exploration of the subconscious.

St. Mary’s Guildhall

Discover St. Mary's Guildhall in Coventry, England: Built in the 1300s, this magnificent building that hosted England's kings and queens transports you to the Middle Ages.

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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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