The World’s Oldest Aquarium Fish  Methuselah—named for the Biblical patriarch said to have lived 969 years—is a lungfish, a species thought to be the evolutionary link between fish and amphibians. She also isn’t like most fish. She seems to like belly rubs and chin scratches and dines on restaurant-grade prawns and ripe, seasonal figs. She arrived at the California Academy of Sciences in 1938; no one knows exactly how old she was then, but now she can claim the title of the oldest aquarium fish in the United States, and perhaps even the world.  READ MORE → GASTRO OBSCURA Cheese Heaven Awaits There’s something about cheese that elicits a kind of passion and loyalty unrivaled in the culinary world. That might be why people are willing to traverse mountains, wander through caves, and milk even the most mighty beasts, all in the pursuit of delicious dairy. Whether it’s a theme park devoted to all things cheese, a 22-million-year-old cave that ages Gruyere, or a monument celebrating a surprising cheesemaker, here are 13 places where fans can let their fromage-flag fly, brie-lieve it or not. READ MORE → ATLAS OBSCURA COURSES Curate Your Personal Collection Museums tell deliberate stories. In this four-part seminar with Alexis Hyde, former curator and Director of the Museum of Broken Relationships in Los Angeles, discover how to bring museum-making into your home and learn to curate a collection of your own. This course will help you incorporate museum systems and philosophies into your life and collections. ENROLL NOW → FLORENCE, ITALY Secret Art In 1530, to escape the wrath of the Pope, Michelangelo holed up in a tiny secret room under the Medici Chapel of the Basilica di San Lorenzo. The artist had been working on the lavish tomb when all hell broke loose in Florence, and he was forced into hiding. With nothing but time and a little charcoal on his hands, he covered the bare walls with some prisoner graffiti. READ MORE → Salt Lake Art Munich-based photographer Tom Hegen has seen some salty places. Over the past several years, he has traveled from Africa to Australia capturing the brilliant colors and unexpected patterns that result from the evaporation processes that make sea salt. For the third installation of his “Salt Series,” Hegen visited Utah’s Great Salt Lake, the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. Catch a glimpse of the massive abstract images here. READ MORE → THE ATLAS OBSCURA PODCAST Quarantine at Malta Lazaretto Six years ago, writers Geoff Manaugh and Nicky Twilley began working on a book about quarantine, which across history, had produced some beautiful buildings all around the world. So they set off on a quest to document these places, spending years researching and writing about this abstract idea. Today, they take us into the Malta Lazaretto, a crumbling, centuries-old quarantine facility, to explore the history and future of quarantine. FROM THE ARCHIVES Barbed Wire Telephone Lines In 1874, there was barbed wire, and in 1876, Alexander Graham Bell’s revolutionary telephone. Together, in an amazing display of rural ingenuity, they connected isolated homesteads to their rural neighbors and the rest of the world. To turn the steel fence wires into telephone lines, they simply had to be connected to a telephone in a house or barn with a piece of smooth wire. The signal then passed through the smooth wire, and along the length of the barbed wire, either to a switchboard or to other houses down the line. In some cases, as many as 20 telephones were wired together—all of which would ring simultaneously with each call, regardless of who was making it and who they were trying to reach. READ MORE → ROME, ITALY St. Valentine's Skull A skull resides in a glass reliquary in Rome’s Basilica di Santa Maria in Cosmedin, surrounded by flowers. Lettering painted across the forehead identify the owner as none other than the patron saint of lovers, St. Valentine. Knowing just exactly whose skull it is, though, is complicated. READ MORE → FREE MEMBERS-ONLY EVENT Charm School: Victorian Valentines Day In this special episode of Nina Nightingale’s Charm School, we’ll touch on some curious histories of Victorian valentines — which more than often not were mean and rude rather than sweet! We'll learn about flower codes and love symbols, and then learn to make a scented sachet of secrets to gift to your special someone on the big day. If you aren't a member yet, you can sign up during the RSVP process for this event. GET TICKETS → FROM THE ARCHIVES The Seychelles ‘Love Nut’ Look for photos of paradise, and the chances are good that you would come across pictures of the Seychelles, a rocky archipelago in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar. The beauty of the islands is so heavenly: Clear water. White sand. Warm wind. But the true pride of the Seychelles is an endangered ancient palm tree called the coco de mer. Sixty-five million years ago mass extinction wiped out dinosaurs and countless other species, but not the coco de mer. Today, the Seychelles islands of Praslin and Curieuse are home to the only two remaining wild populations of these rare palms. READ MORE → BEIJING, CHINA Beijing Ancient Observatory This observatory is one of the oldest stellar observation sites in the world, and even more astoundingly, it operated entirely without telescopes. The historic observatory was originally built in 1442 during the Ming Dynasty, but was actually the evolution of an older, smaller observatory established in 1227. The building itself is now part of the Beijing Planetarium and houses a museum dedicated to Chinese astronomy. READ MORE → SPONSORED BY COLORADO TOURISM 18 Breathtaking Colorado Adventures Sometimes, the best adventures can be the ones that take you off of the well-worn paths, and onto the ones still ripe for exploration. Colorado is known for its breathtaking landscapes that can be enjoyed in places from cities to mountain tops—and if you’re looking for a primer, start with this list. From landscapes formed by volcanoes to spiritual towers molded atop mountains, your next discovery is waiting. READ MORE →