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Letters

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The use of the letter x as a mathematical unknown is a relatively modern convention. Algebra has been around for a lot longer.
mathematics

Why Is 'X' Such a Big Deal?

From Twitter's rebranding to algebra, this single letter has an uncommon amount of...X factor. A historian of mathematics gets to the root of it.
Peter Schumer August 4, 2023
One of the 2.000 mummified ram heads found in the Temple of Ramses II, in the historical city of Abydos, Egypt.
cemeteries

Wonder Is Everywhere: 2,000 Ram Skulls, a Cold War Mystery, and More From Around the Web

Get a peek into what we’re obsessed with right now.
April White April 14, 2023
national parks

Podcast: The Dedan Kimathi Post Office Tree

A strangler fig played a pivotal communication role for Kenya's freedom fighters.
The Podcast Team March 8, 2023
Letterbox Village
Wellington, New Zealand

Letterbox Village

Leave a trinket at this artistic collection of mailboxes.
nature

Thoughtful, Surprising Last-Minute Gifts

A gift guide from the Atlas Obscura team.
Atlas Obscura December 2, 2022
objects of intrigue

Was This Letter Written by Sherlock Holmes?

If you are “Playing the Game,” the answer is elementary.
April White September 15, 2022
politics

Podcast: The Loneliest Post Office

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.
The Podcast Team September 6, 2022
Goudier Island, off the northwest coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. is home to what one stamp collector from England described in 1946 as “the loneliest post office in the world.”
politics

Letters from the Loneliest Post Office in the World

A story of Antarctic adventure seekers, stamp collectors, politics, and penguins.
Andrew Avery May 5, 2022
Saya Kubota, the creator of Missing Post Office.
Mitoyo, Japan

Missing Post Office

A unique art exhibit home to letters addressed to those unable to receive them.
Post Office Bay, on the island of Floreana in the Galapagos.
islands

Podcast: Post Office Bay

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.
The Podcast Team December 13, 2021
Edward Jenner's letter to John Glover Loy.
objects of intrigue

Vaccination Could Easily Have Been Called 'Equination'

A recently sold letter from medical pioneer Edward Jenner provides some insight as to why.
Matthew Taub June 24, 2021
Landlubbers discovered the stuffed-bottle surprise.
trains

Found: A Landlocked Message in a Bottle in a Detroit Train Station

More than a century ago, a couple of guys had some beer and an idea.
Jessica Leigh Hester June 14, 2021
There are tools of the trade, but letters can also be locked with careful folding alone.
manuscripts

Deter Prying Eyes by Locking Your Own Letters

A how-to for those who want to use folds, tucks, slits, and more to turn letters into little works of art.
Abigail Cain May 27, 2021
science

Cracking the Code of Letterlocking

A tale of Black Chambers, lost correspondence, and high technology.
Abigail Cain May 14, 2021
The message on display.
Sydney, Australia

The Queen's Letter

This letter written by Queen Elizabeth II in 1986 won't be opened until 2085.
Wallis turned all of this code into written sentences.
mathematics

Sold: 53 Letters Deciphered by a Groundbreaking English Codebreaker

Cagey about his methods, John Wallis was a bit of a cipher himself.
Matthew Taub October 7, 2020
Elizabeth's letter includes a sign-off Heller saw in one of Austen's own letters: Initials, and a particular spelling of the phrase, "Yours affectionately."
literature

How a Team of Calligraphers Brought Jane Austen's Fictional Letters to Life

You can now hold Mr. Darcy's dispatches in your hands.
Jessica Leigh Hester September 23, 2020
Berthold Laufer's cylinders: one row for vocals, the other for instruments.
museums

Do These Tubes Hold the Oldest Known Stereo Recordings?

In 1901, a traveling researcher recorded some Chinese opera, and accidentally made music history.
Matthew Taub July 15, 2020