Now that nearly everybody carries a camera with them in their phone, photography is ubiquitous. But there were times when taking a picture was a big deal, and required expensive and hard-to-find equipment. In these early days, people became famous for their photography skills—some to the point where their names became synonymous with their photographs.  ...

The freshness of spring is already in the air by February in the Croatian hilltop village of Viskovo. A riotous noise approaches: a cavalcade of bell-ringing, music, and screaming. In a magical-seeming ritual, an army of men in grotesque animal masks dance, draped in sheepskins, armed with axes and clubs. They huddle into a concentric circle and shake...

Ryūjin, literally translated as "Dragon God," is one of the major deities in Japanese mythology. An embodiment of the forces of nature, the dragon represents the sun, the sky, the element of water, disasters, fortune, and power. His worship stems from ancient animism and continues to be popular across Japan, with hundreds of Shintō shrines dedicated...

It was just about 4 a.m. when an otherworldly scream cut through the forests lining the Xingu River in northern Brazil. A couple walking along a nearby road hurried to hide behind a rubber tree. From that vantage point, they could see a shadowy figure approaching them. As it grew closer, they recognized the outline of a man, but the creature was covered...

In the town of Battle, named for its role as the site of 1066’s Battle of Hastings, stands St. Mary's Church. The church is home to a grand piece of embroidery known as The Battle Tapestry. Designed by local artist Tina Greene, this masterpiece showcases the key historical events that took place in the town between the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and...

Listen and subscribe on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major podcast apps. In this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast, we travel back to the eve of World War II, when there was one place that was the source for all good stories: the Hotel Imperial in Vienna. It exuded luxury and power, and in the 1920s and ‘30s it was also the...