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Luka Mozaika
Vela Luka, Croatia

Luka Mozaika

This work of art is considered the world's longest mosaic.
Frankfurt, Germany

Frankfurt Book Burning Memorial

Somber memorial to the May 10, 1933, book-burning which took place on this spot.
An 1868 image of Pikes Peak, towering over lesser mountains, by Leon Jean-Baptiste Sabatier.
history

Colorado's Pikes Peak Is an Eclipse Hot Spot (for 2045)

The Mountain West helped put American science on the map during the 1878 total solar eclipse, and it's the place to be for the next big American eclipse.
Rebecca Boyle April 3, 2024
politics

Podcast: Nevada Week: Molossia

An 11-acre micronation in the Nevada desert with its own rules and regulations.
"Allow me to address to you / With my deepest tenderness / This beautiful fish, fresh and discreet / To which I have confided my secret," says this April Fish card in French.
history

Why April Fools Day in France Involves Fish Pranks

It's a long and fishy history.
Amelia Parenteau March 31, 2024
Wellsville, Kansas

Black Jack Battlefield

Some say that the battle fought at this Kansas site in 1856 was the first unofficial battle of the American Civil War.
Nice, France

Fontaine du Soleil (The Sun Fountain)

This saucy statue once caused outrage among locals.
One of the many stands vending orange cider at the fair.
food

The Hottest Drink of the 1893 World's Fair Was an Artificial Orange 'Cider'

"You're drinking something that some guy just cobbled together out of Lake Michigan water and food dye.”
Anne Ewbank March 25, 2024
When planning for the total solar eclipse, look for safety lenses that meet an international safety standard known as ISO 12312-2.
science

How to View an Eclipse Safely

Don't be like Sir Isaac Newton, who nearly blinded himself during an eclipse.
Hessom Razavi March 25, 2024
All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura
islands

The Atlas Obscura Crossword: Beyond the Moai

AO Puzzles March 25, 2024
Herndon, Virginia

Laura Ratcliffe Hanna Family Cemetery

Across from a hotel parking lot, a Confederate spy rests under a large tombstone with her Union Veteran husband behind a copse of trees in a small, well-maintained cemetery.
The Easter egg tree custom, pictured here in Saalfeld, Germany, has gained some ground in the United States.
graveyards

7 Unexpected Easter Traditions

Why hide eggs when you can hang them on a tree?
April White March 22, 2024
Singapore

The Majestic Theatre

The elaborate façade of this old Cantonese opera house celebrates the building's history and the love story that founded it.
Brussels, Belgium

Birthplace of Audrey Hepburn

One of Hollywood's most iconic actresses was born in an upscale Brussels neighborhood in 1929.
Belgrade, Serbia

Znak Pitanja (?)

Belgrade’s oldest restaurant has a rather unusual name.
Stockbridge, England

Danebury Hillfort

One of the most studied Iron Age settlements in Europe.
Edro III Shipwreck
Peyia, Cyprus

Edro III Shipwreck

While most shipwrecks are submerged, this ship in Cyprus ran ashore.
Trouvelot's 1870s lithograph of the northern lights attracted the interest of astronomers—and led to a job offer at the Harvard College Observatory.
science

How Invasive Moths Improved 19th-Century Astronomical Illustrations

After accidentally introducing invasive moths to North America, amateur entomologist Étienne Léopold Trouvelot turned his eyes to the skies and changed science.
Vittoria Traverso March 20, 2024