Marvel at 30 of the world’s most spectacular spirals

The Chesterfield snail, mountain sphinx, and the stairs of reconciliation. Email not displaying correctly? View in your browser. January 23, 2020 30 Spectacular Spirals Some of the planet’s most captivating coils are more than just design eye candy. The Treetop Tower of Rüge, for instance, lets you explore a forest canopy. The puquios of Peru, on the other hand, were once part of a sophisticated, ancient hydraulic system. From the symbols carved into a Neolithic tomb in Ireland to a dazzling staircase in a lavish 16th-century mansion, here are 30 wondrous whorls sure to set your head spinning. Read More → SINTRA, PORTUGAL Quinta da Regaleira This eccentrically decorated palace is replete with grottoes, fountains, tunnels, and caves. Read more → BUȘTENI, ROMANIA The Mountain Sphinx Tucked in the Bucegi Mountains of Romania, lies a rock formation shrouded in mystery and conspiracy theories. From a certain angle, its outline resembles that of Egypt’s Great Sphinx of Giza. Read more → DERBYSHIRE, ENGLAND Chesterfield Snail This enormous spiral sculpture looks strangely out of place on the edge of a housing development. Read more → GREENSBURG, KANSAS The Big Well Kansans, it seems, have dug themselves into a hole, and they couldn’t be happier about it. This extra-large hole is United States's largest hand-dug well and is topped with a state-of-the-art museum. Read more → NAZCA, PERU Puquios This old and extensive system of subterranean aqueducts, surface channels, reservoirs and spiraling holes allowed the Nazca civilization to distribute water in one of the most arid places in the world. Read more → CORINNE, UTAH The Spiral Jetty This earthwork sculpture in the Great Salt Lake is hidden underwater and only reemerges during drought. Read more → Graz, Austria Stairs of Reconciliation These stairs split and rejoin several times as they circle upward to the top, and has often been interpreted as a symbol of eternity. Read more → Visit AtlasObscura.com · View in Browser · Unsubscribe · See All Newsletters 61 Greenpoint Ave #622, Brooklyn, NY 11222