There’s something primordial about the ruins of Six Flags New Orleans. Overgrown with Smilax thorns that loop around the skeletal remains of kiddie rides and home to alligators and boars, the former amusement park feels less like a real-world location and more like a figment from … | Continue reading
Located in the coastal town of Broome in Western Australia, the Lord McAlpine Statue is a significant landmark that commemorates the life and contributions of Lord Alistair McAlpine, a pivotal figure in the region's development and tourism industry. Lord McAlpine, or Robert Alist … | Continue reading
This story was originally published on The Conversation. It appears here under a Creative Commons license. When wildfire smoke is in the air, doctors urge people to stay indoors to avoid breathing in harmful particles and gases. But what happens to trees and other plants that can … | Continue reading
A push for flour milling in the 1880s made Minneapolis the "Flour Milling Capital of the World" for nearly 50 years. Today, Phelps Mill offers a unique glimpse into the agricultural and industrial history of rural Minnesota. The mill was built in 1889 to meet the growing demand f … | Continue reading
The Tokyo Metropolitan Medicinal Botanical Garden, located in the city of Kodaira, in the western suburbs of the Japanese capital, isn't your typical green space. Founded in 1946, the seven-acre herbarium is split into 14 sections that consist of specifically-themed greenhouses, … | Continue reading
Located in the heart of the Kimberley region in Western Australia, Bamboo Creek Tin Mine is a historical mining site that offers a glimpse into the region's rich mining heritage. The site, now abandoned, stands as a testament to the tin mining activities that once flourished in t … | Continue reading
Is the tomb of Vlad the Impaler, the basis for Bram Stoker’s character Dracula, actually located in the cloister of a 13th-century church in the center of Naples? Some researchers believe so, and the church that hosts the tomb, Santa Maria di Nova, happily promotes the connection … | Continue reading
It all started on June 15, 2024, when an Albanian soccer fan at the UEFA European Championship tournament in Germany mocked a rival Italian fan by committing an unspeakable cultural crime: breaking spaghetti in half. In a video that went viral, the Italian fan falls to his knees … | Continue reading
In the city of Hiratsuka, an unusual legend is told and an unassuming mound in the corner of a cemetery attests to its apparent credibility. According to the story, the incident took place during the Kounomachi, an annual festival jointly rub by five major shrines in the former S … | Continue reading
Each week, Atlas Obscura is providing a new short excerpt from our upcoming book, Wild Life: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Living Wonders (September 17, 2024). Like most dump sites, the Boragaon landfill in Guwahati, Assam, is an overwhelming place, made up of ever-shifting … | Continue reading
The quaint downtown of Marlborough, New Hampshire boasts little more than a pizza joint, hardware store, and gas station. For this reason, it seems like an unlikely place to see a colorfully painted storefront and a whimsical, three-foot long, crochet caterpillar on the sidewalk. … | Continue reading
The story of a glass company named after the town of Fostoria, Ohio, is told almost 300 miles away in Moundsville, West Virginia. The company was founded in 1887 near the town of Fostoria, Ohio, to take advantage of a newly discovered natural gas field. But after just four years, … | Continue reading
In an empty lot next to the O2 arena stands this peculiar sight. The upside-down pylon stands 35 metres tall and was originally installed as part of the London Design Festival in 2015. Its placement provides a perfect spot for those traveling by to ponder its existence—whether it … | Continue reading
Legend has it that a mighty tomahawk once brought down a fearful giant, turning it to stone and scattering its pieces near Horsetooth Reservoir. Now if you look carefully at the rock climbing structures by Spring Canyon Park’s playground, you’ll notice a nose, a mouth, and an eye … | Continue reading
Kayak through the flooded remains of this abandoned limestone mine. The water stays about 50 degrees Fahrenheit year-round as does the cave overall. You can see fossils embedded in the walls and ceiling and living creatures too, mostly trout and bats. The caves are equipped with … | Continue reading
Just as the Earth is waking up from winter, mature agave send flower stalks toward the sky. It signals the moment when the plant is at its most calorically dense. While many might associate agave with distilling, it is also a seasonal food, one of the earliest fresh foods that wa … | Continue reading
While many people head to the amphitheater of Durrës, not many appear to take the time to visit the nearby remains of the old Byzantine marketplace. The Byzantine Forum is located in the center of modern Durrës, as it would have been when it was originally constructed at the hear … | Continue reading
When World War II started, the islands of Malta in the center of the Mediterranean Sea were not immediately targeted by the Axis powers, even though the islands were a British colony and the British military maintained a major presence on the islands. Then, on June 10, 1940, Ital … | Continue reading
Only a 20-minute drive from Nadi on the Fijian island of Viti Levu, the Garden of the Sleeping Giant is a hidden treasure tucked into a valley off the main road. Containing over 2,000 different types of orchids, this park has several self-guided trails throughout the complex that … | Continue reading
This location honors R. Lee “Gunny” Ermey, who was a decorated Marine and an actor in movies and on television. Gunny is the only Marine to have been brought out of retirement and promoted. In 2002, the Marine Corps promoted Ermey to E-7 Gunnery Sergeant, the rank he portrayed in … | Continue reading
California’s highway State Route 54, skirting southeast of San Diego, doesn’t seem like it would be the catalyst for challenging some of the longest-held ideas about human evolution and our spread across the planet. And yet, in 1992, along SR 54’s ribbons of asphalt and exit ramp … | Continue reading
In 1926, Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen flew his airship Norge over the North Pole, making him and his crew the first people to fly over the northernmost point on the planet. On the way, Amundsen had to dock the airship at several mooring towers for refueling. One of those tow … | Continue reading
On June 20, 1333, Lord Nitta Yoshisada launched a major attack on the Kamakura shikkenate, leading an army of 250,000 rebels. For the first ten days, he fought well in Musashi Province, before riding south to invade the capital. Lord Nitta's rebellion was split into three troops, … | Continue reading
Leo was a dachshund, residing in Pančevo, Serbia with the Ilić family for nearly two years. He was a pint-sized, spirited, and cheerful dog who adored people, and, in turn, people adored him. Little did anyone anticipate the reservoir of courage harbored within this diminutive be … | Continue reading
After 17 years of standing prepared for a potential conflict that thankfully never occurred, this military ship was peacefully decommissioned. So how did it land on this beach with its hull slowly rotting away? The ORP Wicher II and ORP Grom II were warships built by Soviet Russi … | Continue reading
It was 1953 and U.S. President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower sat at a big mahogany desk working on a plan to end the Korean War. A small team of elite Washington staffers lounged nearby on mid-century leather sofas or in custom bucket chairs, smoking over hand-carved wood tables. Ei … | Continue reading
Two miles east of Rainbow, Oregon, along the McKenzie River Scenic Byway, a southward turn onto a paved forest road leading to the Cougar Reservoir eventually gives way to a decently-maintained, although somewhat stomach-churning, gravel track. Follow the cliff-hugging road overl … | Continue reading
In feudal times, Denzuin was known as one of the three greatest temples in Edo (Tokyo), alongside Zōjō-ji and Kan’ei-ji, but today it is not as popular as the other two. Still, the temple is a nice place and there are a few interesting monuments. In the small garden, for instance … | Continue reading
In 1562, the Holy Roman Inquisition arrived in Malta, which was then under the control of the Knights of St. John. With Protestantism on the rise across Europe, the Inquisition’s goal was to seek out and punish Protestants and other heretics across the Maltese Archipelago. The or … | Continue reading
This hidden gem is a museum focused on the sport of skiing and the notable Norwegians who shaped it. Sondre Norheim, the father of modern skiing, was born in this small town and contributed to a simple yet monumental change to skiing which led to what is known today as Telemark s … | Continue reading
The road to Acadia National Park is littered with lobster rolls. And while there is no shortage of competently executed options, transcendent ones are rare. At Trenton Bridge Lobster Pound, located just before the bridge to Mount Desert Island, biting into a hot, drawn butter-dre … | Continue reading
Over the Via Giulia in Rome lies the Arco dei Farnesi (The Farnese Arch). This arch was originally part of a design by Michelangelo, commissioned by Pope Paul III, to create a bridge that connected Palazzo Farnese with the Villa Farnesina in Trastevere over the Tiber River. This … | Continue reading
Deciding who makes the best pizza in a city like New York is an inherently impossible task. But if you’re speaking strictly of Neapolitan-style pies—as opposed to Detroit-style squares, New York slices, Roman pizza al taglio, or Chicago’s towering amalgamations of sauce and chees … | Continue reading
Located in Elmer L. Andersen Library, the University of Minnesota's Sherlock Holmes Collections is the world's largest archive dedicated to the fictional sleuth and author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Boasting over 60,000 items, the collection includes everything from original manuscr … | Continue reading
In a corner of Neue-Welt-Gasse street in Graz stands an old building with a small sculpture of an elephant in its niche, an oft-overlooked detail in the Franciscan quarter. It's a memento from an inn called Der kleine Elefant ("The Little Elephant") that existed on the site aroun … | Continue reading
The Lock Museum of America holds the key to a good time, including a fascinating collection of locks, safes, handcuffs, and ornate doorknobs from the Victorian era. Learn about the 4,000-year-old Egyptian lock, a treasure chest from the Spanish Armada, and a cannonball safe that … | Continue reading
Ask any preschooler to color the sky, and they will probably reach for a blue crayon. If you ask an adult to describe Earth, they will mention that same hue; the most famous descriptions of our planet call it a “Blue Marble” or a “pale blue dot.” The sky looks blue to our light-l … | Continue reading
Coal mining is a hard and dangerous job and is not a job that is normally associated with art. However numerous miners have turned their hands to painting and or sculpture. The northeast of England has contributed greatly, with the most well-known in the area being the Ashington … | Continue reading
Before she was "the first lady of civil rights," Rosa Parks was Rosa Louise McCauley, born on February 4, 1913, in Tuskegee to Leona, a school teacher, and James McCauley, a skilled carpenter and stonemason. Shortly after her birth, her family moved into this house owned by her g … | Continue reading
Town of Maine Cemetery in Park Ridge, Illinois, is a hallowed and historic place with notable graves in every direction. But amongst the sculptures and beautiful landscaping stands a unique headstone that, to board game fans, will be all too familiar. Helen Cornelius Bowden was a … | Continue reading
The ritzy Ginza district of Tokyo is home to many cafés, some fancy, some vintage, many both. An iconic coffeehouse, the Café Paulista opened on Central Street in 1970, but its history goes back even further. In fact, it claims to be the oldest café in Japan. In 1908, entrepreneu … | Continue reading
Joffre Gorge, nestled within the rugged landscapes of Karijini National Park in Western Australia, stands as a natural amphitheatre of unparalleled beauty and geological significance. This stunning gorge is renowned for its unique formation, carved over millions of years by the f … | Continue reading
Legendary cryptids seem to roam every remote corner of the globe, from the yeti of the snow-capped Himalayas to the Mongolian death worm of the Gobi Desert's unforgiving sands. But among these cryptids, perhaps the most well-known is the elusive lake monster. These plesiosaur-lik … | Continue reading
If you ever have the pleasure of driving from Palm Springs to Phoenix, hopefully you planned a stop at the Salton Sea. If you did, you might find yourself on Highway 78. After passing through the green farm fields of the desert community of Imperial County, you will be met with s … | Continue reading
Jane Austen is such a groundbreaking English author that it’s only fitting that she be commemorated in bronze near her birthplace in Bastingstoke. For all of those Austenites out there, this is a place to visit in addition to her grave in Winchester Cathedral and the house where … | Continue reading
Nestled amidst the rolling hills of Menorca, the Naveta des Tudons stands as one of the island's most mysterious prehistoric monuments. This structure, dating back to the Bronze Age, is shaped like an inverted boat, which is precisely what naveta means in Catalan. It served as a … | Continue reading
The African continent’s westernmost point is Pointe de Almadies. Located within the greater Dakar urban area, on the northwestern end of Senegal's Cap Vert peninsula, the peaceful and somewhat rocky coastal point can be found behind an abandoned resort. The geographic marker is l … | Continue reading
In 1858, John D. Caton, an Illinois Supreme Court Justice and amateur scientist, wrote a letter to Scientific American magazine. Published under the eye-catching title “Lightning and Milk,” Caton’s letter detailed an experiment he had performed in an attempt to explain what was t … | Continue reading