matthewtaub's User Profile - Atlas Obscura

matthewtaub

Contributing Writer, formerly Editorial Fellow. Still aspiring Jolly Good Fellow. Say hi: matthewtaubwrites@gmail.com @mjtaub1 (Twitter/Instagram)

https://twitter.com/mjtaub1

2018
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The Ambitious Plan to Digitize 100,000 Historic Texts in Belgium

Two major Antwerp institutions are putting some of their voluminous holdings in the cloud.

Is Saint Corona a Guardian Against Epidemics?

Well, she might be now, at least.

For Sale: The Wooden Stage From The Beatles' First Concert

Including its old Victorian-era nails.

Sold: An Ornate Piano Found on a World War II Battlefield

It traveled three continents, survived desert warfare, and accidentally ended up with a man who'd been looking for it all along.

Found: A Greasy Leftover Snack Inside a Rare Book

Whether a cookie or a fruit bun, the "offending object" has been discarded.

Has the Case of the Missing Princess-Saint Been Solved?

Scientific evidence suggests that her bones had been hidden behind a church wall for a millennium.

The Intrepid Mother and Son Who Unraveled a Geographic Hoax

Atlas Obscura had a page for something called Moose Boulder, until fan Roger Dickey called us on it.

Found: A Message in a Bottle That Went Clear Around the World and Back

But without a return address.

disappearing world

These Scots Still Fish Like the Vikings

But it's not clear whether future generations will keep the tradition alive.

February 11, 2020

Ancient Hot Pots Helped Hunters Survive the Siberian Ice Age

16,000 years later, they still contain traces of cooked meat and fish.

February 3, 2020

America's First Banned Book Really Ticked Off the Plymouth Puritans

The author, known as the "Lord of Misrule," had the audacity to erect a maypole in Massachusetts.

November 1, 2019

The Not-So-Mysterious Missing Grave of Blues Legend Robert Johnson

The supernatural has surrounded the guitar virtuoso for decades.

October 23, 2019

industrial revolution

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

The "flash" language reflected the makeup of the British penal colony at the time.

October 7, 2019

See the Winning Cakes From Melbourne's Architectural Baking Contest

The city's iconic buildings inspired some monumental desserts.

September 4, 2019

Found in a Record Store: Kurt Cobain's Royalty Check

He never even cashed it.

September 3, 2019

Found: 2,500 Medieval Coins, and Evidence of Tax Evasion

Making heads or tails of a discovery in southwestern England.

August 28, 2019

For Sale: A Signed Copy of King Edward VIII's Abdication Speech

Fort Belvedere, where he gave up the throne, has seen both historic romance and political crisis.

August 26, 2019

Sold: A Set of 54 Whisky Bottles, One for Every Playing Card

Only four such sets are known to exist.

August 22, 2019

The Bones at India's Mysterious 'Skeleton Lake' Came From All Over

New research reveals that the hundreds of anonymous dead spanned both continents and centuries.

August 21, 2019

When a Volcano in El Salvador Cooled Down the Entire World

It may have even helped bring on the bubonic plague.

August 19, 2019

Found: Hidden Sketches Underneath a da Vinci Painting

Glimpses of a master revising, changing, and editing.

August 15, 2019

For Sale: A 1699 Treatise on the Best Ways to Make Salad

Though John Evelyn wasn't a vegetarian, he did appear to be ahead of his time.

August 12, 2019

For Sale: Elvis Presley's Dusty Old Lincoln Limo

The King kind of had a thing for cars.

Found in a Cemetery: A New Species of Beetle