Darwin8u's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
Loading map...
Bruges, Belgium

House Bouchoute

The compass on its front was a handy tool for 17th-century merchants who needed to know the direction of the wind.
Bruges, Belgium

Smallest Gothic Window in Bruges

You can spot this teeny tiny stained-glass window from the Bonifacius bridge.
Bruges, Belgium

Basilica of the Holy Blood

Christ's blood preserved in a Belgian town.
Florence, Italy

Il Porcellino

This bronze boar's snout has been rubbed to a golden sheen by visitors seeking good fortune.
Florence, Italy

Vasari Corridor

This private skyway is filled with art and was expanded explicitly so that Hitler could appreciate a river.
Florence, Italy

Medici Hall of Maps (Sala delle Carte Geografiche)

Over 50 exquisite hand-painted Renaissance maps decorate a Medici storage room.
Florence, Italy

Babae Wine Window

Drink wine handed out through a window as part of an age-old tradition.
Florence, Italy

Michelangelo's Hidden Drawings

The doodles of a genius line the walls of a secret room under the Medici Chapel, where they were hidden for nearly 500 years.
Florence, Italy

Galileo's Middle Finger

The middle finger of modernity.
Ravenna, Italy

Baptistery of Neon

Psychoanalyst Carl Jung reported a paranormal experience after visiting this mosaic-lined Roman baptistry.
Ravenna, Italy

Mausoleum of Theoderic

The roof of this ancient mausoleum is made from a single Istrian stone weighing a massive 230 tons.
Ravenna, Italy

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

An incredible mosaic-lined monument said to have held the remains of an ancient Roman empress.
Ravenna, Italy

Basilica of San Vitale

This 6th-century church has the largest and best-preserved collection of Byzantine mosaics outside Constantinople.
Ravenna, Italy

Dante's Tomb

Italian poet Dante Alighieri is entombed in this small mausoleum in Ravenna, and his hometown of Florence has never been too happy about it.
Ravenna, Italy

Flooded Crypt of San Francesco

Filled with goldfish swimming in a shallow pool of sea water, this ancient crypt is more wishing well than burial site.
Ravenna, Italy

Arian Baptistry

A medieval, mosaic-lined baptistry built by a heretical Christian sect.
Berlin, Germany

Berlin Story Bunker

This World War II bunker now survives as a documentation of the Nazi regime and war crimes.
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam

Established in 1638 to battle the Black Death, Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam is a treasure trove of rare flora.
Honfleur, France

Jardin du Tripot

An art-filled botanical garden and former dyeworks hiding in plain sight.
Mont Saint-Michel, France

Mont Saint-Michel

This 1,300 year old monastery built atop a single rock was once only accessible depending on the whims of the tide.
Berlin, Germany

The Bebelplatz

The site of the famous Nazi book burning campaign of 1933 remembers its "Night of Shame".
Prague, Czechia

Strahov Monastery

Two stunning 17th-century libraries and a cabinet of curiosities.
Berlin, Germany

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

Thousands of coffin-like pillars make up this controversial Holocaust memorial.
Dresden, Germany

Dresden Frauenkirche

This Dresden church was purposely rebuilt Protestant after being demolished in World War II.