ARCHITECTURE

Notre-Dame Cathedral two years after the fire on April 15. 2019.

Remaking an Icon: How Paris's Notre-Dame Cathedral Is Being Restored to Its Former Glory

On April 15, 2019, the world watched Notre-Dame burn. Two years after the fire, the famous cathedral in Paris, France, is on its way to reopening to the public.

Retail stores want to give you plenty of overhead space. There's a scientific reason why.

The Reason Retail Stores Have Such High Ceilings

There's a surprising reason stores like consumers to have plenty of space above their heads. According to science, it's giving them room to think.

The Great Sphinx with the Pyramids of Giza in the distance.

Visit the Pyramids of Giza Without Even Leaving Your Couch

The Great Pyramid, the Great Sphinx, and the rest of the Giza Plateau’s many wonders are a few clicks away.

The Graceland mansion in Memphis, Tennessee.

9 Rockin’ Facts About Elvis Presley’s Graceland

Elvis Presley’s Graceland hasn’t changed too much since he lived there—the last record he ever listened to is still in the record player.

Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore.

For Sale: Judy Garland’s Former Malibu Beach House

Judy Garland, spouse Vincente Minnelli, and daughter Liza Minnelli passed several memorable years in this lavish oceanfront abode.

Annie Murphy, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, and Dan Levy pose outside the Rosebud Motel on Schitt's Creek.

Schitt’s Creek’s Rosebud Motel Could Be Yours for About $1.6 Million

All it needs is a massive 'Rosebud Motel' sign and someone shrill to shout 'David!' a few times a day.

Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears, which stopped being a national landmark in 2006.

National Historic Landmarks Can Lose Their Status—Here’s How

The National Park Service can revoke designation if a landmark “ceases to meet criteria.” Here’s what that means.

You Can Sleep in a UFO in the Middle of Joshua Tree National Park

Long before it became a Joshua Tree glamping dream, this UFO-shaped 'Futuro House' lived at the first Playboy Club Hotel.

The 12 Most Googled Questions About the White House, Answered

The White House’s location hasn’t ever changed, but it’s seen a lot of renovations in its 229 years.

5 Precariously Placed Monasteries

Medieval monks picked some very isolated places to build their monasteries.

The Hess triangle, still spreading spite to this day.

New York City’s Legendary Hess 'Spite Triangle' Will Soon Be For Sale

David Hess’s family wanted everyone to know that their tiny sidewalk triangle wasn’t public property—so they wrote that message right on it.

These $1 Italian Houses in Troina, Sicily, Come With Up to $30,000 in Restoration Grants

Italian houses have been sold for $1 before, but these Sicilian ones boast a prehistoric past and views of Mount Etna.

From some angles the bolwoningen appear to be caught in open-mouthed surprise.

Bolwoningen: The Golf Ball-Shaped Homes of Den Bosch, Netherlands

For golf (or ping-pong) enthusiasts, Netherlands’ ‘bolwoningen’ could be the coolest houses of all time.

Noudbijvoet, via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY 3.0

The Shortest Street in the World Is in Scotland, and Has Just One Address

Ebenezer Place in Wick, Scotland, is 6 feet and 9 inches long, and it's home to only one street address.

A portion of the skull wall at Huei Tzompantli.

Archaeologists Uncover a Wall Made of 119 Skulls at Mexico City’s Huei Tzompantli

Aztec peoples considered human sacrifice an integral, life-sustaining ritual, and the sacrificial skulls were prominently displayed.

See 6 of the World’s Most Iconic Structures From Above

The Eiffel Tower, the Colosseum, and the Statue of Liberty are instantly recognizable from the ground, but the aerial views of these structures are less familiar.

China Is Now Home to What May Be the World’s Most Stunning Bookstore

With its high arches and mirrored ceilings, Dujiangyan’s latest bookstore seems like it goes on forever.

Meet Your Home's Microbes in The Great Indoors

Author Emily Anthes explores the thriving communities of bacteria and fungi with which we share our abodes—and what they reveal about us.

The tunnels around Chicago's Green Mill Lounge are rife with Prohibition lore.

The Facts and Fiction of Chicago's Prohibition-Era Bootlegging Tunnels

When people think of 1920s Chicago, stories of bootleggers, speakeasies and Al Capone naturally come to mind. The Uptown tunnels are just part of the roaring ‘20s Chicago story.

A gold-embossed religious text from the 15th century.

Rare 16th-Century Textiles and Manuscripts Pulled Out of Giant Rat Nests in English Manor House

“I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it.” —Ariana Grande and also the avaricious rats of Oxburgh Hall.

Veronique de Viguerie/Stringer/Getty Images

Lead from the 2019 Notre-Dame Cathedral Fire Detected in Paris’s Beehives

Honey from hives downwind from the Notre-Dame fire contained 3.5 times as much lead as Parisian honey collected before April 2019.

This wasn't actually the original spire.

Notre-Dame Cathedral’s New Spire Will Be an Exact Replica of the Old One

Architects had previously suggested replacing Notre-Dame Cathedral's famed spire with a rooftop pool, a greenhouse, or a giant sculpture of golden flames.

The Tallest Cemetery Monument in New Orleans Was Built Out of Spite

Moriarty Monument in New Orleans's Metairie Cemetery is both a heartfelt memorial and a petty demonstration of wealth.

A 1910 postcard depicts the Modern Woodmen of America sanatorium in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The Tiny Tuberculosis Huts of Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs boasts fresh, dry air and abundant sunshine—just what tuberculosis patients of the late 19th century needed.

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