Places Added by Max Cortesi

Ancient barriers wrap around what was once an important stop along the Silk Road.

This temple located on a vertical drop of a rocky mountain houses relics from the Song Dynasty.

Traces of the thriving lake trade that once linked the Soviet Union with Mongolia.

An exquisite and eclectic selection of African masks stands out within a massive woodcarving marketplace.

Dinosaur eggs were first discovered at these fiery red cliffs.

Thousands of artifacts tell Mongolia's military history, from the Bronze Age to the present.

The tower in this 1,000-year-old mud-brick village seems to vibrate for no apparent reason.

A nondescript dirt lot hides an intriguing center of shamanic healing.

This retro, UFO-like structure is a remnant of the Soviet-era circus.

These abandoned ruins in the middle of Jaffna have withstood centuries of tumultuous power struggles.

An ancient sanctuary that has long been a holy site for the Chaldean Christian Church.

An abandoned 19th-century iron factory perched along the outskirts of an idyllic village.

A mysterious, hidden cluster of Buddha sculptures carved into the rocks.

A mesmerizing reservoir nestled at the heart of a pre-Islamic Yemeni village.

An abandoned fishing village in pre-oil Qatar.

This beautiful arched gate is all that remains of the fortress the ancient mountaintop town of Amadiya once was.

These strange piles of magnetized volcanic ash travel across the desert about 50 feet per year.

The enormous diamond-shaped building packs a trove of academic and literary treasures into one futuristic space.

Natives of this mud-brick desert village use an ancient irrigation system to grow sweet, seedless grapes.

The shallow, salty inlet was a safe haven for 19th-century pirates.

The ancient necropolis houses the immense rock-cut tombs of four Persian kings.

This mix of Islamic art, vintage vehicles, weaponry, architecture, and history is an ode to eclecticism. 

These beautiful historic watchtowers were used for both scanning the desert for enemy invaders and observing the celestial world.

The largest and, arguably, most scenic fortress in Bhutan.