Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Brown Derby

Discover Brown Derby in Los Angeles, California: Outposts of this restaurant chain were shaped like jaunty chapeaus.

Stoosbahn Funicular

Discover Stoosbahn Funicular in Schwyz, Switzerland: The steepest classic funicular in the world glides along a dizzying incline.

Trongsa Dzong

Discover Trongsa Dzong in Trongsa, Bhutan: The largest and, arguably, most scenic fortress in Bhutan.

Sputnik IV Crash Site

Discover Sputnik IV Crash Site in Manitowoc, Wisconsin: A metal ring in the middle of the road marks the exact spot where the Soviet satellite crash-landed in 1962.

Marble Bath

Discover Marble Bath in Inyo County, California: This desert oddity hides in plain sight thanks to a cartographic error and a desert explorer with a punny sense of humor.

Naturbauten Park

Discover Naturbauten Park in Nentershausen, Germany: At this unusual park, domes, ladders, chairs, and more are made from trees.

Sail of the USS Parche

Discover Sail of the USS Parche in Bremerton, Washington: The only surviving piece of a submarine said to be the most decorated vessel in U.S. history.

Poland’s Cloud Demon Repelling Tower

Discover Zabytkowa Dzwonnica (Cloud Demon Repelling Tower) in Gmina, Poland: This tower in a small Polish village uses the power of a sacred bell to ward off mischievous weather spirits.

Ocean Wave Power Plants

Discover Ocean Wave Power Plants in Øygarden kommune, Norway: Ruins of two abandoned stations destroyed by the power they sought to harness.

Union Stock Yard Gate

Discover Union Stock Yard Gate in Chicago, Illinois: One of the few remaining relics of the meatpacking hub that made Chicago the "hog butcher to the world.".

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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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