All Stories

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

logic

Puzzle Monday: Breaking the Grid

Lowriders are generally customized by their owners. The "SJ" on this '63 Chevy Impala is short for San Jose. The car owner also chose the color teal to celebrate the San Jose Sharks hockey team.

automotive history

After a Decades-Long Ban, San Jose's Lowriders Are Ready to Cruise Again

This vibrant culture never faded away in the city's Mexican American community.

Was This King Charles I’s Death Vest?

execution

Was This King Charles I’s Death Vest?

It is said the English monarch wore the sleeved waistcoat at his public execution in 1649.

Queen Henrietta Maria of England was shot at, won battles, and raised an army on behalf of her husband, King Charles I. But history has remembered her only as a villain. Portrait circa 1639 by Anthony van Dyck.

warrior queens

The Untold Story of Henrietta Maria, England’s Warrior Queen

The “she generalissimo” nearly won the English Civil War for her husband, King Charles I.

An abandoned tank on Flamenco Beach

anthropology

Abandoned U.S. Navy Tanks Litter This Beach in Puerto Rico

The beach was used by Navy pilots for bombing target practice.

Sicanje, an Ancient Balkan Tattoo Tradition, Draws a New Generation

balkan

Sicanje, an Ancient Balkan Tattoo Tradition, Draws a New Generation

For millennia, women adorned their daughters, and sometimes sons, with symbols of belonging and protection. Then the practice vanished—until now.

Podcast: Larry Spring Museum of Common Sense Physics

science museums

Podcast: Larry Spring Museum of Common Sense Physics

Exploring the intersection between science and folk art.

Jellyfish have been touted as a food source of the future, but finding an appetizing way to prepare them is a challenge—one that some Italian chefs are embracing.

sustainable

The Quest to Make Jellyfish Delicious

Italian chefs are teaming up with scientists to fry, sauté, and pickle the creatures into the food of the future.

At 10-times magnification, sand from Alaska's Point Spencer resembles semiprecious stones.

microscopes

These Tiny Jewels Come From One of Alaska's Most Unusual Beaches

This microscopic treasure was collected from a remote site near the Arctic Circle.

Podcast: Trailing of the Sheep

holiday

Podcast: Trailing of the Sheep

What happens when thousands of ovids take over an Idaho town.

In 2022, lettuce bested the prime minister in a contest of endurance.

puns

Why Do We Roast Politicians With Food-Based Insults?

When you can't throw a vegetable at a rotten official, call them one.

Podcast: African Heritage House

hotels

Podcast: African Heritage House

The story behind one of the greatest collections of African art in the world.

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

calendars

Puzzle Monday: Unofficial Japanese Food Holidays Crossword

The finished chocolate sauerkraut cake.

historical recipes

Who Decided to Put Sauerkraut in Chocolate Cake?

The infamous ‘Don’t Ask Cake’ is better than it sounds.

With ice as the medium, wind, water, and falling objects create art on a frozen lake in Slovenia.

drones

How Water, Wind, and Chance Sculpted an Icy Work of Art

Lake stars, ice rings, and other natural phenomena brought magic to a small Slovenian lake.

The Ireichō is a sacred book of names listing the 125,284 Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II.

objects of intrigue

This Is the First List of Japanese Americans Incarcerated in Internment Camps in WWII

The new work of art includes 125,284 names.

Podcast: Moving Monuments With the Places Team

lighthouses

Podcast: Moving Monuments With the Places Team

Sometimes, to stand the test of time, buildings can't stay where they are.

Podcast: On the Appalachian Trail

appalachia

Podcast: On the Appalachian Trail

A listener takes us across one of the most storied backpacking routes in North America.