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The "flying man."
Villa de Zaachila, Mexico

Zaachila Ruins

You can explore the halls of tombs in the abandoned former capital of the Zapotecs.
Wall with political graffitti.
Tonalea, Arizona

Cow Springs Trading Post

The graffiti-covered ruins of an abandoned trading post in the middle of the Navajo Nation.
Entrance to the museum.
Jalpan de Serra, Mexico

Museo Histórico de la Sierra Gorda (Historical Museum of the Sierra Gorda)

The building that houses this museum is as historic as its collection.
The spectral ship has a curious, centuries-old history.
ships

The World's Most Famous Ghost Ship Is an Enduring Symbol of Empire

The Flying Dutchman's long afterlife began with a British power trip.
Isaac Schultz October 24, 2019
What could go wrong?
maps

The 19th-Century French Frenzy for Species Swapping, in a Single Chart

Quaggas, ibises, and tapirs, oh my!
Jessica Leigh Hester October 17, 2019
A close-up of the coffee berry borer, guaranteed to haunt your dreams.
science

Solved: The Mysterious Origins of Your Coffee's Worst Nightmare

Researchers inspected 18,667 plant specimens to track down a caffeine-eating beetle.
Reina Gattuso October 14, 2019
Primate specimens at London's Grant Museum of Zoology.
natural history museums

In London, Natural History Museums Confront Their Colonial Histories

It's not as easy as returning stolen statues.
Sabrina Imbler October 14, 2019
A group of convicts "bush'd" in Tasmania.
prisons

Australia's First Published Dictionary Was Dedicated to 'Convict Slang'

The "flash" language reflected the makeup of the British penal colony at the time.
Matthew Taub October 7, 2019
"The Men of Ness," after a completed hunt in 1972.
islands

The Gaelic World’s Last Great Bird Hunt

Just 10 men are permitted to hunt and pickle 2,000 young seabirds on a desolate island each year.
Luke Fater September 27, 2019
The abandoned Moravian Mission site at Hebron, evacuated in 1959.
Newfoundland and Labrador

Abandoned Hebron Mission

This remote Moravian mission brought Christianity—as well as devastation—to the Inuit people.
The statue.
Yanga, Mexico

'El Yanga'

A statue of the formerly enslaved person considered "the first liberator of the Americas" stands in the town named after him.
The original Dominican facade was rebuilt.
Tlaxiaco, Mexico

Temple of San Nicolás Tolentino

After a partial collapse in the 1950s, this small church's historic facade lives on.
Campeche, Mexico

Fort of San José el Alto

Half-hidden by grassy slopes, this striking Spanish colonial fort is now a museum of underwater archaeology.
Roofless basilica.
Cuilapam de Guerrero, Mexico

Ex-Monastery of Santiago Apóstol

This exquisite example of early colonial architecture remains unfinished almost 500 years after construction began.
Toconao Bell Tower.
Toconao, Chile

Toconao Bell Tower

This 18th-century tower is locally iconic.
In this detail from a map of Tetliztaca, made in 1581, traditional and newer visual styles live right to one another.
maps

How a 16th-Century Spanish Questionnaire Inspired Indigenous Mapmakers of Mexico

Bureaucratic paperwork led to pretty maps that highlight power structures and visual identity.
Jessica Leigh Hester August 15, 2019
Charles La Trobe Statue at La Trobe University Bundoora
Bundoora, Australia

Upside-Down Charles La Trobe Statue

This strange portrayal of the state's first lieutenant-governor literally stands on its head.
The golden brick.
Mexico City, Mexico

Moctezuma's Treasure

It's believed this golden brick is part of the legendary lost Aztec treasure.