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137 Examples Of Simply Divine Architecture (New Pics)
Most of us don't give much thought to the buildings we pass on our daily commute. But every so often, we come across one that makes us stop, stare, and marvel at its “beautiful impossibility.”
Sometimes it’s the sheer scale or location of a structure that leaves us wondering how on earth it was built and appreciating the craftsmanship behind it. Other times, it’s simply the building’s beauty—its symmetry, color, or decorative details that have long since fallen out of favor.
Whatever the case may be, you don’t need to know your arches from your architraves to appreciate these architectural gems. And, luckily, with online communities like the one that shared the images we’re featuring here today, you also don’t need to travel very far to admire them.
The buildings featured in today's collection inspire a sense of wonder in all kinds of ways. Let's take a closer look at three of these architectural gems to see what makes them so extraordinary.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
The Persian Art Of Aine-Kari (Using Tiny Mirror Shards In Walls And Ceiling To Make Them Shine) In The Tomb Of Shah Cheragh Built In 13th Century
(The golden chandelier was added in 18th century.)
RELATED:
#2
Staircase. Castle Of Queen Margherita Of Savoy - Gressoney-Saint-Jean, Italy - 1899
Grace Sssssss 3 months ago (edited)
What I love here is, beyond the incredible craftsmanship and artistry, is how well the wood has been taken care of. Such happy, happy wood. Protected, oiled, loved. It makes me glad.
#3
The Writers Museum - Edinburgh, Scotland
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
Lady Stair's House: 'built in 1622 for Sir William Gray of Pittendrum and his wife Giles [...] The present name derives from Elizabeth Dalrymple, Dowager Countess of Stair, who acquired the house in 1719.' Links follow.
#4
Strasbourg Art Nouveau
#5
House For Sale In Brussels, Belgium
#6
Winter Garden Room With Stained Glass Windows In The 1908 Art Nouveau Maison Des Médecins, Charleroi, Wallonia, Belgium
#7
Facade Of A Brick Townhouse In Hampstead, London, UK
#8
El Nido De Quetzalcóatl - Naucalpan De Juárez, Mexico
#9
1933 Tudor Revival Building Housing The Historic Coach And Horses Pub In Mayfair, London, UK
#10
I Love Japanese Architecture So Much, It’s Beautiful
#11
Panaghia Soumela Greek Orthodox Monastery - Trabzon, Turkey
#12
Stair Hall Fresco By French Painter Paul Baudouin (1844-1931) In Maison Hannon
A historic 1904 Art Nouveau townhouse designed by Belgian architect Jules Brunfaut (1852-1942) for the industrialist Édouard Hannonin in Brussels, Belgium
PeachPossum 3 months ago
Okay, that little steel shelving unit kinda ruins it for me. Should have been a wood console table.
#13
1900 Art Nouveau Winter Garden Of The Ursulines Institute With A Stained-Glass Ceiling, Town Of Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-Waver Near Mechelen, Belgium
#14
Staircase Tower Inspired By Those At The Château De Chambord, Part Of The Late 19th-Century Neo-Renaissance Waddesdon Manor, A Country House In The Village Of Waddesdon, Buckinghamshire, England
#15
Castle Eltz, Germany. Built In The 12 Century And Inhabited By The Eltz Family For Over 850 Years
#16
The Wedekindhaus In Hildesheim, Germany, Is One Of The Country's Most Elaborate Half-Timbered Houses
#17
Stone Cottages With Slate Roofs And Thatched Roofs, Cotswolds Village Of Broadway, Worcestershire, England
#18
Changi Airport Skytrain Tracks Next To The Rain Vortex In Jewel Changi Airport, Singapore
#19
1774 Pulteney Bridge Over The River Avon Designed By Robert Adam (1728 – 1792) In The Palladian Style With Shops Across Its Full Span, Bath, England
Seán Baron 3 months ago
The River Avon always makes me laugh. Translates to English it is the River River.
#20
The Striking Interior Of The Notre-Dame Basilica In Montreal
#21
The Margravial Opera House In Bayreuth, Germany. It Was Built In 1744
Saint_Zipcodus (oh / no) 3 months ago (edited)
Its founder, margravine Wilhelmine, was a composer herself (among lots of other things). She surrounded herself with art, music and architecture to deal with the fact she was practically sold by her father from Berlin to the rural countryside.
#22
Hamburg Planetarium, One Of The World's Oldest Modern Planetariums
Housed in an Expressionist-style former water tower designed by architect Oskar Menzel(1873-1958) and built between 1912 and 1915. Hamburg Stadtpark, Winterhude, Hamburg, Germany
#23
The Workshop Of Master Glassmaker Clas Grüner Sterner, Also Known As The Victor Marchal House-Workshop
Located at number 6 Rue du Lac in Ixelles, Brussels, is an emblematic example of the Art Nouveau style in Belgium
#24
Living Room With A Glass Roof In The Maison Losseau, An 18th-Century House Renovated In The Early 1900s In The Art Nouveau Style By Paul Saintenoy, Mons, Wallonia, Belgium
#25
Ornate Bridge Connecting Dresden's Palace And Cathedral, Germany
Max Robitzsch 2 months ago
When you want to visit God but can't be bothered getting close to people :-)
#26
The Gros Horloge, A 14th-Century Astronomical Clock Installed In A Renaissance Arch Over A Street In Rouen, Normandy, France
The Renaissance facade represents a golden sun with 24 rays on a starry blue background.
#27
The Floor Of St. John's Co-Cathedral In Malta, A Floor Made Entirely Of Marble Tombstones Housing 400 Knights Hospitallers
#28
West-Facing Posterior Of The Neuschwanstein Castle With A Two-Storey Balcony, Schwangau, Bavaria, Germany
#29
Late Gothic Ribbed Ceiling Of St. Anne's Church In Annaberg-Buchholz, Germany
#30
Palais De L'isle, A 12th-Century Fortified Mansion On An Islet In The River Thiou, Annecy, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Southeastern France
#31
The Town Hall In Markgröningen, Built In 1441, Is One Of The Biggest Half-Timbered Houses In Germany
#32
The 19th-Century Library Decorated With Paintings By Eugène Delacroix In Palais Bourbon, The Meeting Place Of The French National Assembly, 7th Arrondissement Of Paris, France
#33
Chateau De Chenonceau, With Its Gallery Spanning The River Cher, Is The Most Peculiar And Probably Most Beautiful Castle In The Loire, In France
It was rebuilt, furnished, and transformed between 1514 and '76 by women of different temperaments, and is known as the Ladies' Castle
#34
Five Continents House - Antwerp, Belgium
#35
Interior Of The Natural History Museum, London
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
Can anyone explain the details of the photographic technique which produced this picture? It doesn't look like this to the human eye when you're there in person. I mean, yes this is a real photo of the real place, but... 🤷♂️
#36
The Golden Gallery Of Charlottenburg Palace In Berlin, Germany, Was Created In 1746 And Is Considered A Prime Example Of Friderician Rococo
#37
The Marksburg Above The River Rhine In Germany. The Castle Is Over 800 Years Old And Has Never Been Conquered
Upstaged75 3 months ago
Let's not give people any ideas. Someone might take that as a challenge. 😁
#38
Stará Plynárna, A Former 1905 Acetylene Gas Plant Now Converted Into A Restaurant & Inn In The Village Of Hřensko, Ústí Nad Labem Region, Czech Republic
#39
Templo In The Lake. Longxing Temple, Chengdu, China
#40
The Rococo Kaisersaal In Würzburg Residence, Germany. Its Vibrant Frescos Were Painted By The Venetian Painter Tiepolo
Saint_Zipcodus (oh / no) 3 months ago
The grand stairway was so well constructed that it even survived the bombing with phosphorous during WWII which otherwise destroyed the whole town centre. The famous fresco (also by Giambattista Tiepolo) survived with it.
#41
Spires Of The 14th-Century Church Of Our Lady Before Týn Towering Over The Skyline Of The Old Town Of Prague In The Morning, Czech Republic
#42
1774 Palladian-Style Pulteney Bridge Reflected In The River Avon, Bath, England
#43
Nordkirchen Palace In Germany
#44
Victorian Building Housing A Corner Bookstore In Buxton, High Peak, Derbyshire, England
#45
Looking Up The Main Stairwell - Art Nouveau Centre Riga Latvia
#46
Mosque In Djerba, A Mediterranean Island Of Tunisia
#47
The Great Karnak Temple At Luxor, Egypt, The Sacred Heart Of Ancient Egypt
#48
Villa Farnese - Caprarola , Italy
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
This one blew my mind. I had to find out more. The Wikipedia link follows.
#49
Rusticated Arched Bridge With A Three Storey Doric Columned Loggia Above On Air Street Near Piccadilly Circus, London, UK
#51
Basilica Of Sacré Cœur De Montmartre In The Snow, Montmartre, 18th Arrondissement Of Paris, France
#52
With A Length Of 69m The Antiquarium In Munich, Germany, Is One Of The Largest Renaissance Halls Ever Created. It Was Built Between 1570 And 1571 To House A Collection Of Antique Sculptures
#53
Art Nouveau In Douai France
#54
The Indoors Of A Castle In The Kasbah, Algiers, Ottoman/Andalusian Style
Multa Nocte (she/her/86 47) 3 months ago
This makes me think of Absolutely Fabulous when Patsy sold off Saffron when they were in Morocco.
#55
Santuario De Nuestra Señora De Los Remedios, Cholula, Mexico
#56
Rare Surviving Tudor Gatehouse, Built In 1595 Atop A 13th-Century Stone Arch That Formed The Original Priory Entrance To The Priory Church Of St Bartholomew The Great, City Of London, UK
#57
One Of My Faves From Gent Be
#59
The Half-Timbered Town Hall Of Alsfeld, Germany. It Was Built Between 1512 And 1516
#60
Colorful San Francisco Victorian
#61
Evangelical Market Church - Wiesbaden, Germany
#62
Schwerin Palace, Germany, A Unesco World Heritage Site Since 2024
Aveline Roisseau 3 months ago
I was there a few years ago; it’s a very beautiful castle. Unfortunately, at least one modern conference room has been installed that doesn't fit the historical style at all.
#64
Chapel Of Santa Catarina, Porto, Portugal - Draped In Azulejos
#65
House With A Corner Turret In Ammergasse 1, University City Of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
#67
Art Deco Wooden Escalators In The St. Anna's Pedestrian Tunnel In Antwerp. Inaugurated In 1933, They Are Among The Oldest And Last Remaining Wooden Escalators Still In Operation In The World
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago (edited)
We had wooden escalators on the London Underground when I was young. They were all replaced after a particularly deadly fire at King's Cross Underground station in 1987. Link follows.
#68
Courtyard Of The Cathedral Of Trier, Germany, With Roman, Romanesque, Gothic And Baroque Architecture Visible In One Image
#69
Casa Josep Fiol, A 1902 Modernisme Building By Architect Manuel Comas I Thos In The Eixample District, Barcelona, Spain
#70
Federal-Style House With An Extensive Porch In Ohio
#71
Justice Palace (Supreme Court), Vienna, Austria. Built 1881
#72
View From The Balcony Of The Jaw-Dropping Concert Hall, Palau De La Música Catalana In Barcelona
#73
One Of The Entrances Of The Grand Egyptian Museum, Inaugurated This Week (Giza, Egypt) As The Largest World Museum Dedicated To One Civilization
#74
Staircase. Hotel Bristol Palace - Genoa, Italy
#75
1910 Art Nouveau Residence By Spanish Modernisme Architect Mario Rotllant Folcarà(1880-1946) In Cárdenas, Cuba
#78
Half-Timbered Buildings Along The Rur River Flowing Through The Resort Town Of Monschau In The Winter, Eifel Region, Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Western Germany
martymcmatrix 3 months ago
Okay, I got it...a half-timbered house would be called a Fachwerkhaus in German(y)...💁🏽
#79
High-School In Timisoara, Romania
OneHappyPuppy 3 months ago
My high school was a prison. No, literally, a woman's prison. They kept the original gate at the entrance...
#80
Gothic Church In Hamburg, Germany
#81
Azerbaijan Carpet Museum (West Baku)
#82
19th-Century Gothic Revival Marienburg Castle, The Former Summer Residence Of The House Of Welf In Lower Saxony, Germany
#83
1923 Belle Époque And Eclectic Hotel Atlántico On Gran Via, Madrid, Spain
#84
Tyntesfield, A Victorian Gothic Revival Country House In An Estate Near Wraxall, North Somerset, England
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago (edited)
A bit of background... The Tynte baronets had owned the land from about 1500. In 1863, this replaced the previous residence. Wikipedia: 'Bought by William Gibbs in 1843, who made his fortune in the family business which from 1847 had an effective monopoly in the import and marketing to Europe and North America of guano from Peru as a fertilizer, mined by indentured Chinese labour on the Chincha Islands in conditions which the Peruvian government acknowledged in 1856 had degenerated "into a kind of Negro sl@ve trade". The profits were such that William Gibbs became the richest non-noble man in England.' A very pretty house. A very ugly backstory... Link follows.
#85
Hotel And Shops In The Historic Spa Town Of Karlovy Vary In The Winter, Karlovy Vary Region, Czech Republic
#88
Illuminated Château Frontenac On A Rainy October Night, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
#90
Moritzburg Castle, A Baroque Palace On A Symmetrical Artificial Island In Moritzburg Near Dresden, Saxony, Germany
#91
1919 Gothic Revival St Colman's Cathedral Seen Beyond The Colorful Row Houses In The Seaport Town Of Cobh, County Cork, Ireland
#92
1888 Residential Building On Korkeavuorenkatu 21 Designed By Swedish Architect Axel Högberg, Helsinki, Finland
#93
The Late Gothic Choir Of St. Lorenz In Nuremberg, Germany
#97
A-Frame Cabin On An Islet In The Middle Of Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire
#98
The Domed And Circular Staircase Of Bruchsaal Palace, Germany
Teresa Aguirre 2 months ago
Why we don't create such majestic, stunning architecture now, with all of our "advances"
#99
Ornate Bay Window Of A Brownstone In Park Slope, South Brooklyn, New York City
#100
Roman Pool In Hearst Castle, San Simeon, California
#101
Granada, Spain
KitchenToto 3 months ago
Been there whilst visiting the Alambra palace which is an absolutely stunning example of muslim architecture
#102
13th-Century Saigerturm(Saiger Tower) With A 19th-Century Upper Replacement Seen From A Cobblestone Street In The Town Of Stolberg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
martymcmatrix 3 months ago
It regularly serves as a backdrop for film shoots and is (logically) called »Stollywood«...🎬
#104
2101 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA
#105
Church Of The Gesù, Palermo, Italy
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
Hmm. Somehow, all that fancy stonework needs to be kept clean - dusted, at the very least. That's a job I would *not* want - worrying all the time about making a mistake and damaging something.
#107
Grosvenor And Lansdowne Crescent Gardens Surrounded By Late 19th-Century Georgian And Regency-Style Town Houses And The 1879 Victorian Gothic Revival St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral, West End Of Edinburgh, Scotland
#108
Gloucester Cathedral Cloister, Constructed Between 1351 And 1412. Perpendicular Gothic
#109
French Renaissance-Style Alwyn Court Completed In 1909, An Apartment Building At 180 West 58th Street, Midtown Manhattan, New York City
#110
Inside The Courtyard Of Burg Eltz
#112
16th-Century Gothic Church Of Saint Bavo Located On The Grote Markt In The City Of Haarlem, The Netherlands
#113
St Barbara's Church, Kutná Hora, Czechia
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
The crazy thing about this building is that the flying buttresses which enabled the whole thing to be constructed with relatively lightweight (and therefore affordable, amongst other things) walls were invented by masons/architects/builders who didn't have the maths to do anything remotely like modern stress analysis. And yet somehow all over Europe hundreds of incredible structures like this are still standing...
#115
1911 Kurmittelhaus(Spa Treatment Center) With Curved Gables And Roofs By The Freiburg Architect Robert Mühlbach With The Collaboration Of Alexander Ackermann In The Spa Town Of Bad Kreuznach, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Peter Bear 3 months ago
I feel like this is what Hobbits would build if they didn't prefer to live in holes. It just looks so cozy!
#116
Details Of The Flamboyant Gothic-Style West Facade Of Orléans Cathedral Featuring Ornate Tracery And Crocketed Gables, Orléans, France
#117
19th-Century Neo-Gothic Mariahissen
Once housing a now-defunct lift, and the 19th-century Dutch Renaissance Laurinska huset residential building on the edge of Södermalm Island, seen across the bay from a street in Gamla Stan, the historic old town of Stockholm, Sweden
#119
Federal-Style House With A Sunroom Addition In Forest Hills Gardens, Queens, New York City
#120
Guwahati Airport, India
#121
Frauenkirche Seen From The Neumarkt Square On A Frosty Winter Evening After The Snow, Dresden, Saxony, Germany
KitchenToto 3 months ago
Visited it while I was in Dresden just after the Berlin Wall was opened.
#122
1765 Baroque-Style Sanctuary Of The Madonna Of San Luca Atop The Snowy Colle Della Guardia Hill Overlooking The Cityscape Of Bologna, Northern Italy
#123
Grand Staircase In The Late 19th-Century Neo-Renaissance Justizpalast(Palace Of Justice), The Seat Of The Supreme Court In Vienna, Austria
#124
Marble Staircase In The Eclectic And Neoclassical Palace Of Justice Inaugurated On 1883, Brussels, Belgium
#125
1918 Hampshire House, The Towering Wing Of The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel On The Shores Of Lake Gloriette, Which Closed In 2011. Dixville, Coös County, New Hampshire
#126
Philadelphia City Hall In The Snow, City Of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
#127
Late 19th-Century Châteauesque-Style Château Frontenac Overlooking The Saint Lawrence River, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
#129
19th-Century Bethesda Terrace In Central Park, Manhattan, New York City
#130
Peleș Castle, Sinaia, Romania
#131
1891 Richardsonian Romanesque And Renaissance Revival-Style Delmonico's Building On 56 Beaver Street, Financial District, Lower Manhattan, New York City
#132
The 3rd Floor Of The Seattle Central Library
Kelly Scott 3 months ago
Can't believe I've been in the PNW for over 25 years now, worked in Seattle for 5 of those years and never visited here.
#133
Art Nouveau Meets Modern Glass, Portugal
#135
Connecting Bridge Between The Dürkopp Werke Factories, Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
#136
Domino Sugar Building, Brooklyn, New York
#137
Boston City Hall
Elladine DesIsles 3 months ago
No. I don't love every one of the images here (though, honestly, most are stunning) but this is the only one I hate.
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Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
Utterly fabulous. Not just the architecture, but also the photography. Stunning. Thank you.
Forrest Hobbs 3 months ago
Utterly fabulous. Not just the architecture, but also the photography. Stunning. Thank you.
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