November 10, 2021

Ancient Kingdom, Victorian Serial Killer Victorian England, 1888. London was up in arms, wracked with fear over the reign of terror of Jack the Ripper. The man who headed the investigation, Charles Warren, was a target of many in the press and the public, mocked and excoriated over his failure to catch the serial killer. Anxious Londoners, caring only for catching the killer, didn’t much care that Warren had only a few decades earlier once helped uncover the secrets of an ancient kingdom under what is today Jerusalem—excavations which still cast a long shadow over modern-day archaeological work as tensions rise over the city’s heritage.  READ MORE → BLOOMINGDALE, INDIANA Jungle Park Speedway Mention Indiana and auto racing and the first thing that comes to mind is probably the Indy 500. Indeed, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and its annual 500-mile race are famous the world over. And while that two-and-a-half-mile oval may be considered one of the premier racing venues in the sport, there’s another track in the Hoosier state that has an equally famous—or infamous—history as a notoriously dangerous speedway. READ MORE → ATLAS OBSCURA COURSES Lockpicking Practicum Join Schuyler Towne to learn the basics of lockpicking and how to design a lock from scratch. This five-session seminar will equip you with a handy, practical skill and give you a better understanding of the ethical lockpicking community. ENROLL NOW → GASTRO OBSCURA Chasing Frozen Glory To visitors, Nara is famous for the deer that roam its capital city, its ancient temples, and its kofun tombs, but not necessarily its food scene. If shaved ice makers like Sōsuke Hirai have their way, however, Nara’s kakigori—a Japanese shaved-ice dessert—will one day have its place on the country’s culinary map, where the delicate ice mountains serve as a canvas for incorporating modern twists on Nara’s ingredients and traditional flavors. An example: shaved ice layered with persimmon leaf tea syrup; caramel, honey, and milk syrup; chunks of poached persimmon; a heart of custard cream; and a crown of milk foam drizzled with more honey. Yum. Dig in. READ MORE → 8 Viking-Style Churches Stave churches, or stavkirker as they’re known in Norway, are feats of engineering. Made of wood, often without nails or screws, these churches often sport a mix of Christian icons and Norse design elements, including sometimes, a stray pagan deity or Viking hero. While there may have been as many as 2,000 scattered throughout Scandinavia, today, fewer than 30 remain. Here are some of our favorites. READ MORE → ATLAS OBSCURA COURSES Cheese: History, Tasting, and Pairing Join cheesemonger, author, and self-proclaimed Cheese Preacher Erika Kubick for a glimpse into the long relationship between humans and cheese. In this four-part lecture series, trace the history of cheesemaking and learn how to taste, identify, serve, and pair different kinds of cheese. ENROLL NOW → Everything’s Bigger in Australia From pineapples to poisonous toads, Aussies love their enormous roadside attractions. Drive along any highway or stop by a small town in Australia and chances are you’ll come across a giant roadside statue of something unexpected. These “big things” are a quirky national obsession, but despite being cherished by many, these aging behemoths are now in danger of becoming a thing of the past. READ MORE → WEXFORD, PENNSYLVANIA Fountain of Youth Originally meant to be a spring house grotto reminiscent of a Roman cavern, this 1930s spring house is fronted by an arch of stone and concrete, with an engraved stone disc declaring the “Fountain of Youth.” Conflicting stories abound about the source of the water. Some say that this spring house was built over a natural spring, others that it was mistaken for a natural spring but was really a leak in the golf course’s water system. READ MORE → FROM THE ARCHIVES Fall or Autumn? Depending where you are, the season before winter has two names: autumn, or fall. But up until around the 16th century, the English language did not really have distinct words for either spring or fall. Fall was, in fact, the very last of the four seasons to become codified with a name, or even the designation as a season on par with the others. So how did it get two names? Here’s a short history. READ MORE → TALKEETNA, ALASKA Dr. Seuss House Hidden in the sparse woods outside Talkeetna, Alaska, is a bizarrely singular home known by locals as the Dr. Seuss House, though that isn’t what its creator calls it. While this whimsical house has no direct relation to the famed author, it is easy to see how the structure got its nickname, since it looks like something straight out a Dr. Seuss book. The house’s official name is Goose Creek Tower, but the creator of the towering home calls it his “poem to the sky.” READ MORE → SPONSORED BY WORKMAN PUBLISHING Prisoners of Geography The international bestseller Prisoners of Geography comes to life with 12 eye-opening, colorful maps and hundreds of illustrations! See how rivers and mountains, local resources, and natural defenses direct the course of history—and our own lives—in this atlas for all ages. LEARN MORE →