Ancient structures used to make and preserve ice in the deserts of Persia.

The toilet-shaped house of South Korea's sanitation pioneer is now a museum to the john.

This restored Portuguese cafe may well be the most beautiful place in the world to grab a Big Mac.

Henry VIII's forgotten castle was built by the gunpowder-obsessed king to be defended solely by cannons.

A tiny chapel clings to a precipice above Germany’s gemstone capital.

Stay at this storybook estate, featuring Sir Henry Hudson Kitson's masterpiece "Gingerbread House."

The first skyscraper to include a Ferris wheel built into the facade.

The building's fluid, wavelike walls are a true feat of architectural ingenuity.

The spaceship-like theater, which is still in use, was one of the most popular exhibits at the 1964 New York World's Fair.

This suburban house is made of dirt, and almost sparked a revolution in home construction.

Common all over Japan, kōbans are small community police boxes, and now one is guarding one of L.A.’s megamalls.

Architecture lovers won’t stop touching the National Gallery's 19.5 degree marble prow.

The oddly shaped, steam-spewing building is now an art studio and gallery.

Locals dubbed it the "Owl Building" because of its bird-like appearance.

A deserted hodgepodge of experimental structures designed by nearby university students.

Mirrored floors and arched shelves create the illusion of an infinite tunnel of books.

A little marble compass above George Washington's (empty) tomb in the Capitol marks where D.C.'s four quadrants intersect.

Though technically an illegal structure, this eclectic DIY apartment complex is beloved by its residents.

A giant concrete Brutalist water tower in suburban Johannesburg.

A domed disco abandoned since the '70s now attracts artists and explorers under its unique roof.

A towering monument in Spain has proven to be more labor-intensive than initially planned.

Made from trees and then abandoned, this fence is still growing along a path in Germany.

A German town is growing a building out of trees.

At this unusual park, domes, ladders, chairs, and more are made from trees.