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Amateur Archaeologists Uncover 'Sharp' Bronze Age Sword in Denmark
(Photo: Museum Vestsjælland)Recently, a couple of amateur archaeologists were out "on a stroll," as the Local puts it, in rural Zealand, the largest island in Denmark. They had a metal detector, and...
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Artists are Salvaging Train Stations' Analog Departure Boards
The Solari board at MoMA. (Photo: Max Erds/CC BY 2.0)For years, noisy analog departure boards have been disappearing from Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. These boards, most remarkable for the flapping,...
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The Odd Hybrid Businesses That Defined the Early American Service Sector
A San Francisco Laundromat/Coffeeshop hybrid, with arcade games. (Photo: Stepan Mazurov/CC BY-SA 2.0)We take for granted the supposedly neat lines that divide industries from each other. We know that a...
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Found: The First Television Interview Nelson Mandela Ever Gave
Mandela spoke to an unknown reporter about ANC goals. (Photo: AVROTROS footage)In the 1956, more than 150 people belonging to an anti-apartheid coalition were arrested in South Africa and tried for...
View ArticleA Hacker From South Africa Just Rescued The First NASA Computer In Space
The Guidance and Navigation Control computer launched on 1966's Apollo-Saturn 202 mission, was the first of its kind. It successfully led a rocket in and out of suborbit, paving the way for the mission...
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Inside an Abandoned Connecticut Opera House With a Jail Beneath its Stage
Opened in 1899, Sterling Opera House was one of Connecticut's premiere entertainment venues. (All Photos: Luke Spencer)Discovering an abandoned, beautifully preserved opera house from the 19th century...
View ArticleListen to the Mystical Music Box Version of Haddaway's 'What Is Love'
When you twist the crank of a music box, you expect to hear the notes of classical masterpieces, like Beethoven’s “Für Elise” or “Bach’s Minuet in G.” But this customized paper-tape hand crank music...
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Inside a Comedy Writer’s Treasure Trove of Mid-Century 3-D Photos
A stereoscopic camera, with people around viewing slides. (All photos: Atlas Obscura)The scene is very 2016—eight of us together in a room, each completely absorbed in what's happening inside our...
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Swedish Government Boards Achieve Gender Parity After 28 Years of Work
The cabinet of Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, which is half male and half female. (Photo: Frankie Fouganthin/CC BY-SA 4.0)In 1988, then Swedish Prime Minister Ingvar Carlsson—also responsible...
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This Dog Fell Overboard and Was Rescued After Swimming Six Miles to Shore
Riley, as shown in a WPBN news story. [Screenshot: Atlas Obscura]It was a long 24 hours this past weekend for Riley, a Michigan dog who fell overboard from a boat and was found a day later, having...
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7 Nuclear Test Sites You Can Visit Today
Atom bomb test at the Enewetak atoll in the Marshall Islands. (Photo: National Nuclear Security Administration/Public Domain)The atomic age began on July 16, 1945, when the Manhattan Project detonated...
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Take a Trip with Traveler
Ever see a truly remarkable salt flat or vertiginous glass suspension bridge in the Atlas and wish you had some extra cash to put towards getting there? You’re in luck. This fall, Traveler Beer...
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Atlas Obscura's Guide to the Longest Running Scientific Experiments
When, in 1596, cartographer Abraham Ortelius looked at a map he was working on, he noted something strange: The coasts of the continents looked as if they had once fit together. Ortelius noted in his...
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Found: Philae’s Final Resting Place
The last photograph of Philae. (Photo: ESA)In November of 2014, the Philae lander touched ground on Comet 67P and became the first object made by humans ever to land on a comet.Then, it bounced.Philae...
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This Library Is Threatening Jail Time Over Overdue Books
Return your books or go to jail. (Photo: Elnur/Shutterstock.com) Overdue library books are finally becoming the sort bad boy signifier nerds have always wanted them to be, at least if one Alabama...
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Exit Interview: I Played With LEGO for a Living
Robbie McCarthy, former LEGO Master Model Builder. (Photo: Daniel Knighton/Getty Images)A select few people around the globe are living the ultimate childhood dream: getting paid to play with LEGO.The...
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The Story Behind the Most Famous Photo from Hurricane Andrew
Miami Metrozoo flamingos, riding out Hurricane Andrew. (Photo: Copyright Ron Magill)Hurricane preparedness is a tough job. This past weekend, many Americans got ready for Hermine, securing their...
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Why Are Thousands of People Watching This Livestream of a Wyoming Town?
A screenshot from the Jackson Hole Town Square livestream, featuring the famous red truck. (Screenshot: Youtube)Have you ever wanted to go to Jackson Hole, Wyoming with several thousand very vocal...
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Incredible Photos of the Hermit Crabs Who Live In Trash
A blueberry hermit crab with a cassette gas tank cap. (All Photos: Shawn Miller)With a new report released yesterday into the vast increases in ocean temperatures, human activity on marine life affects...
View ArticleWatch 1,000 Kyrgyz Musicians Play their National Instrument, the Komuz
At an arena in Cholpon-ata, a lakeside resort in Kyrgyzstan, the 2016 Word Nomad Games kicked off in spectacular fashion on September 3. Horse riders showboated their skills; some of them rode while on...
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