fantasy locations
8 Real-World Forests That Look Like They Belong in a Fantasy Novel
These enchanting groves are the perfect settings for a heroic quest.
All Stories
glaciers
India's Desert Farmers Are Saving Themselves With Artificial Glaciers
Villagers in Ladakh have been building them since the late 1980s.
egyptian collections
The Secret Egyptian Chapel Hidden Inside a Chicago Break Room
The sealed-off chamber is 4,300 years old.
19th century
The Nation’s First Tuberculosis Hospital Was Built Inside a Cave
Patients in Kentucky took their cures underground.
money
Israel Finds 22 Pounds of Ancient Coins, Artifacts in Norwegian Diplomat's Car
He was arrested.
crime
The Married Woman Who Kept Her Lover in the Attic
Dolly Oesterreich, her "Bat Man," and one of the strangest sex scandals ever.
sexism
What Happened to 'The Most Liberated Woman in America'?
Barbara Williamson co-founded one of the most famous radical sex experiments of the 1970s. Then she got wild.
bears
The Story of Sam Patch, America's First Professional Waterfall Jumper
Patch had a fondness for plunging into the abyss—in front of a paying audience.
oceans
Electric Eels Revealed to Make Leaping Attacks, Confirming 200-Year-Old Legend
They are sneakier than you thought.
earthquakes
Practicing for the Pacific Northwest's Massive Future Earthquake
"Cascadia Rising" will feature 20,000 soldiers, ham radio operators, and emergency personnel.
cults
These Eerie Bronze Hands Were Tokens of a Mysterious Ancient Cult
The Hand of Sabazius is one of the last artifacts of this lost religion.
oceans
Found: Secretly Glowing Sharks
They might look grey to us, but they're glowing a biofluorescent green.
floods
Heavy Rains Expose Rarely-Seen Aquifer in Texas Cave
Just because a cave is flooded doesn't mean it's ruined.
propaganda
How a Siege in Algeria Sold France on Iced Coffee
Supposedly, heroic French soldiers enjoyed taking their coffee with water.
cats
Watch a Kitten Get Rescued After Becoming Stuck in a Sunflower
It’s a mid-afternoon frolic gone wrong.
tedium
How Unions and Regulators Made Clothing Tags an Annoying Fact of Life
A brief history.
burlesque
Burlesque, Boneyards, and Bombs: The Other Wonders of Las Vegas
The offbeat traveler's guide to spots beyond The Strip.
pigs
Scientists Are Trying to Grow Human Organs Inside of Pigs
Welcome to the future.
