SpottingHistory.com is an independent site to provide reliable traveling tips to historic sites and sights all around the world. The site is made by individuals interested in history and historic places all around the world. The purpose is to provide an easy-use, map-based service to help people find interesting places to visit on their journeys.
The The main page displays you the top 200 most interesting (based on views and user rating) sites in the current map area. When you browse or zoom the map, sites will be updated dynamically.
When you zoom in, you will always see more and more complete list of all historic sites in map area.
On the right hand (below the map on mobile devices) you will see list of topmost interesting sites in the present map area. If you click any site link you will see the overview window. You can take a look at photos of selected attraction by clicking them. If you want to see more information about selected site, just click the Read More link at the bottom of info window. It will open a complete description of the selected site. Show on Map button correspondingly zooms and centers map to the selected site.
On the description page you will see all information of the selected attraction. You can also comment the site to help other people to decide where to visit or not.
Top Sights page shows the editor's picks of interesting historic sights for example in a city of region.
Tags page helps you to find all sites tagged with a specific tag, like Top Historic Sites in Helsinki.
Historical Periods gives you information of specific historical period in a selected country and lists the most interesting sites from that period.
City Guides comprise the all historic sites in a specific city.
SpottingHistory.com uses photo material loaded from Flickr or Wikimedia Commons. In every case we respect copyrights and all photos are always showed with adequate copyright information. If you want SpottingHistory.com not to use your photos in previously mentioned web services, please contact us using the form below and we will remove links. No photos or thumbnails are copied or stored into SpottingHistory.com servers, only imagelinks via service provider API's. If you upload new site, the photos you can select to be shown on the site page are automatically allowed for commercial use.
All map icons are downloaded from the Map Icons Collection. We thank Nicolas Mollet for this great service helping us to develop SpottingHistory.com.
If you have any questions, new ideas or you just wish to tell what rocks/sucks, please do not hesitate to contact us using the form below. We would be also very thankful if you notify us about any problems you encounter when using this site.
Castel del Monte, located in the municipality of Andria, rises on a rocky hill dominating the surrounding countryside of the Murgia region. A unique piece of medieval architecture, it was completed in 1240. The castle’s location, its perfect octagonal shape, as well as the mathematical and astronomical precision of its layout all reflect the broad education and cultural vision of its founder, Emperor Frederick II.
As a leader of modern humanism, the Germanic Emperor brought scholars together in his court from throughout the Mediterranean, combining Eastern and Western traditions. The castle’s unique design, an octagonal plan with octagonal towers at each angle, represents a search for perfection. Interior features reflect Eastern influences, such as the innovative hydraulic installation used by Frederick II for bathing in accord to the typical Arabic customs.
The site is of outstanding universal value in its formal perfection and its harmonious blending of cultural elements from northern Europe, the Muslim world and classical antiquity. Castel del Monte is a unique masterpiece of medieval architecture, reflecting the humanist ideas of its founder, Frederick II of Hohenstaufen.