The thieving tortoise that helped rob a house

Amman’s ‘pizza church’, two doomed lovers, and more.
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	March 08, 2023

Animal Accomplices

Tortoise and Thieves

No one gets as creative as a burglar on a mission to rob without getting caught. Newspapers and televisions are an archive of interesting techniques employed by the genius-yet-criminal minds of thieves. Reaching back even further, burglars in 12th-century Persia—known as the Banū Sāsān—found an unlikely accomplice in the form of a tortoise. But the four-legged reptile wasn’t the only animal that joined the Banū Sāsān. There were also cats and apes.

Amman’s ‘Pizza Church’

It isn’t often that a church greets its parishioners with smells of fresh basil and sizzling cheese. Yet inside a tree-lined courtyard in Amman, Jordan, that’s exactly what happens. Over the last six years, St. Joseph Parish, a Catholic church in the historic Jabal Amman neighborhood, has earned an entirely new moniker: the “pizza church,” which provides a rare service to Amman’s immigrant community.

Chamberlain, South Dakota

Dignity of Earth and Sky

Dignity of Earth and Sky (often shortened to just Dignity) stands high above a section of the Missouri River, where she overlooks a region whose history is mostly celebrated for Lewis and Clark’s explorations. The enormous sculpture is dedicated to a group that’s far too often overlooked: the women of the Lakota and Dakota Nations.

Atlas Obscura Courses

Fairy Tale Writing

In this seminar, writer and author Anca L. Szilágyi will explore elements of the fairy tale genre, reading and discussing contemporary takes from Angela Carter, Sarah Shun-lien Bynum, and others. Class time will include a mix of mini-lectures, discussion, writing, and sharing fresh writing in pairs, small groups, or with the whole group. You’ll leave with a deeper understanding and appreciation of the genre, as well as a draft of your own fairy tale (or three!).

Cougars in Puget Sound

In January 2020, biologists slipped a collar around an adolescent cougar in an evergreen forest outside of Shelton, Washington. Four months later, they watched as the cougar—also known as M161—arrived at the rocky coastline of Puget Sound, likely catching a glimpse of the water that teemed with killer whales. Instead of turning back, however, the cougar kitty-paddled his way through chilly orca territory, raising questions about the animals’ potential range.

Batumi, Georgia

Westerners are all too familiar with the tragic tale of Romeo and Juliet, but how about Ali and Nino, the doomed lovers that inspired the colossal automated statue named after them? At 7pm, the two figures slide towards each other, eventually merging as their segments pass between each other, never truly connecting.

The Atlas Obscura Podcast

Ouija Board 7-Eleven

In this episode of The Atlas Obscura Podcast, we examine the history of the Ouija Board, from a tool for communicating with the dead to a sleepover party game, with a pit stop at the Ouija 7-Eleven.

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Atlas Obscura Video

Venezuela's Everlasting Lightning Storm

Almost 300 nights a year, a lightning storm rages in a small part of Venezuela. Known as Relámpago del Catatumbo, the storm is located where the Catatumbo River flows into Lake Maracaibo. Warm air from the Caribbean meets the cold air from the mountains, creating the perfect conditions for lightning.

Sesshōseki (Killing Stone)

Near the famous Nasu hot springs in Japan, there is a stone that is rumored to kill anyone who comes in contact with it. The stone is said to be the transformed body of the infamous kitsune Tamamo-no-Mae, a mischievous spirit who became the Emperor’s mistress in the mid-12th century. It’s still prohibited to approach the Killing Stone to this day… but not necessarily because of its legendary ability to kill any who approach it.

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