In 1900, Photographing an Entire Train Required the World’s Biggest Camera

With bellows big enough to stand in. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Le Corbusier’s Special Measuring Tape Is Making a Comeback

The architect thought his unique measurement system was revolutionary, but no one really used it besides him. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

For Sale: Writing Advice from Mark Twain

The famed author didn't think much of young writers (unless they experienced great personal tragedy). | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

How Escaped Pets Took Over Florida

When store-bought animals are released, they may go from pet to pest. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Decoding the Unusual Shape of the Nepali Flag

Where did all those angles come from? | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

After a 33-Year Absence, a Lost Beach Returns to Ireland

One researcher thinks mollusks called chitons are more complex than they seem. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

All It Takes to Create a Ghost Is a Good Story

A tale of two bars in Portland, Oregon. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

How Two Thieves Stole Thousands of Prints from University Libraries

They almost got away with it. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Communist Cookbook That Defined Prague’s Cuisine

For years, one book dictated how and what people could eat. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Cowboy Cartographer Who Loved California

Jo Mora poured the state's whole history—and his own life—into his incredibly detailed, whimsical maps. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Beneath a layer of spines, this cactus sprouts asparagus-flavored buds

The Tohono O'odham have feasted on the plant for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

What lives inside fog water droplets

From the Namib Desert to Maine, fog is teeming with life. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Wild Alaskan Island That Inspired a Lost Classic

A century later, “Quiet Adventure in Alaska” still sounds pretty good. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

How Two Men Tried to Start a Hate-Free ‘Gay Town’ in the Nevada Desert

Stonewall Park was a mid-1980s dream that never quite came to fruition. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Design Manuals for Japan's 19th-Century Sweets

Wagashi range from elegant to surprisingly modern. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

How to Decode the Shells You Find Washed Up on the Beach

A beginner's guide to identifying conchs, chitons, and more. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Political Lore of an Iconic Brazilian Sweet

Wartime rationing and women's suffrage helped popularize the brigadeiro. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

For Sale: Fancy Canceled Stamps That Recorded Daily Life in a Connecticut Town

Postage-sized portraits of life during Reconstruction. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Rebellious French Village Making Wine Banned by the E.U

Beaumont's beloved, black market wine is made with outlawed American vines. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

All Aboard the World’s First Floating Dairy Farm

More sustainable food production may call for plopping cows on the water. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Tell Us About Your Favorite Off-Brand Foods

Help us discover the best-kept secrets on the bargain shelves. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Abandoned, Apocalyptic Architecture of One Bold 1970s Retail Chain

It's the end of the world as we know it, and Best Products is having a sale. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Invisible trench bridge honors historical accuracy of this Dutch moat

Invisible bridge parts the waters, invoking biblical images and preserving the ominous feel of an ancient moat. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Stockholm's deepest subway station is also a stunning ecological wonder

Stockholm's deepest subway station has developed its own self-sufficient ecosystem. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

For Centuries, People Thought Lambs Grew on Trees

The Vegetable Lamb of Tartary puzzled scientists and philosophers. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

For Centuries, Alewives Dominated the Brewing Industry

The Church and anti-witch propaganda may have contributed to beermaking becoming a boys' club. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Ups and Downs of Being a Canal Lockmaster

Keeping a 170-year-old tradition alive on the mighty Muskingum. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

In the 1960s, the U.S. Government Set Off a Pair of Nukes Under Mississippi

It’s a nearly forgotten chapter of Cold War history that seems hard to fathom today—even for those who were there. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Science Can Now Break a Strand of Spaghetti into Just Two Pieces

Also, you're not supposed to break spaghetti. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Atlas Obscura Readers Imagine Their Future National Dishes

The food of 2050 includes crickets, plastic, and nothing at all. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Fictional Foods We Wish Were Real

Atlas Obscura readers weigh in on the fake snacks they'd most like to try. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Tattooing in the Civil War Was a Hedge Against Anonymous Death

Hidden tattoos captured soldiers' pride and patriotism, but also had a practical use. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The World's Newest, Most Gloriously Designed Maps

Cartographers, rejoice. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Unboxing a Prehistoric Fish

Watch how a 400 million-year-old species is preserved. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Ultimate Rich Kids Were the Children of Famous Explorers

Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

How to Make a Robot Move, Using Popcorn

The future is now and it’s happening, appropriately, at Cornell University. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Birth of Hawai‘i's Native-Language Newspaper Archive

Hawaiian-language experts are working to preserve a century’s worth of history. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

To Discourage Rodents from Eating Seeds, Scientists Are Getting Spicy

A ghost pepper–based coating could help ecosystems recover from wildfires. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Why So Many Diners Look Like Train Cars

Often, they traveled by rail and were built that way too. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The Disturbing Fate of a Planet Made of Blueberries

You'll never look at blueberry jam the same way again. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

What Fictional Food Do You Most Want to Try?

Just because it's not real doesn't mean it can't make your mouth water. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Glamour Shots of Reptiles, Brought to You by Science

"All right Mr. Herpetologist, I'm ready for my close-up." | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

New York's Insatiable Appetite for Truly Enormous Oysters

A massive mollusk recently found in the Hudson River is the latest example of two centuries of appreciating behemoth bivalves. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Peek Inside an Unexpected Moth Slumber Party

The flying insects usually go solo—but one lepidopterist surprised hundreds snoozing together in a hollow tree. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Cool, There's Water on Mars. But Does It Make Good Pickles?

What would happen if briny Martian liquid met a Earthling cucumber? | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

Ellen G.K. Rubin has more than 9,000 pop-up and movable books

Ellen G.K. Rubin has more than 9,000 pop-up and movable books. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

At Sea on Taiwan's Last Fire-Fishing Boats

Generations of nocturnal fishermen have lured their catch with fire. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago

The World’s Largest Speedo Collection Almost Oozed Away

In 2012, Australia's Powerhouse Museum discovered that something strange was happening with some of their swimsuits. | Continue reading


@atlasobscura.com | 6 years ago