Holy Sites 151–200

A UNESCO-listed medieval monastery partially carved into a cliff, with remarkable acoustics.

The largest pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico, with massive ceremonial earth mounds.

The reputed last home of the Virgin Mary near the ancient city of Ephesus.

A Baroque abbey complex housing one of the world's oldest and richest monastic libraries.

Site of Iceland's Viking-age parliament and the place where Christianity was officially adopted in 1000 CE.

Runic stones from the 10th century marking Denmark's transition from Norse paganism to Christianity.

The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb's grand mosque in Lahore, one of the most iconic in the Islamic world.

A pre-Inca ceremonial center near Lake Titicaca, spiritual heart of an empire that preceded the Inca.

A 4,000-year-old Sumerian temple platform, one of the best-preserved ziggurats in Mesopotamia.

Built over the grotto where the Angel Gabriel announced to Mary she would bear the Son of God.

UNESCO World Heritage capital of the Kongo Kingdom, one of Africa's first Christian states.

Paraguay's national shrine and the most important pilgrimage site in the country.

The garden where Jesus prayed in agony on the night before his crucifixion.

The lake where Jesus walked on water, calmed storms, and performed many of his miracles.

A Baroque basilica in Zaragoza housing the pillar on which the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared.

The type site of the ancient Nok culture, known for terracotta figures with possible ritual significance.

The ancient world's most famous healing sanctuary, dedicated to the god of medicine.

A masterpiece of Ming dynasty architecture where emperors prayed for good harvests.

A biblical cave near the Dead Sea where Lot is said to have sheltered after fleeing Sodom.

Historic mosques in UNESCO-listed Stone Town, reflecting centuries of Swahili Islamic civilization.

A UNESCO-listed complex of Hindu temples built by the Champa civilization in central Vietnam.

The burial place of St. Francis, founder of the Franciscan order and patron saint of animals and ecology.

The largest Romanesque church in the world, burial place of medieval German emperors.

A group of Orthodox monasteries in Moldavia whose exterior walls are covered in vivid 15th–16th century frescoes.

Ottoman-era mosques in Berat, the UNESCO-listed 'City of a Thousand Windows.'

A chapel within the UNESCO-listed Mir Castle complex in western Belarus.

A complex of Buddhist temples and shrines set in limestone caves, Vietnam's largest annual pilgrimage site.

A historic Swahili coast town whose name means 'lay down your heart,' a center of spiritual reflection.

One of the oldest and largest mosques in the world, containing a shrine to John the Baptist.

Home to the Círio de Nazaré, Brazil's largest religious procession with 2+ million participants.

Korea's 'Temple Without a Buddha,' which enshrines relics of the historical Buddha instead of statues.

The holiest temple in Tibetan Buddhism, located in the heart of Lhasa.

One of the oldest and most revered stupas in the Buddhist world, enshrining relics of the Buddha.

The exact spot where Queen Maya Devi gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama, marked by an ancient marker stone.

A Zen Buddhist temple covered in gold leaf, reflected serenely in its mirror pond.

A UNESCO-listed gorge that sheltered persecuted Maronite Christians for centuries.

An early medieval monastic settlement in a glacial valley in the Wicklow Mountains.

A cliffside Hindu temple perched atop a 525-meter escarpment in the Dangrek Mountains.

Ethiopia's most popular pilgrimage church, drawing hundreds of thousands for the Feast of St. Gabriel.

The UNESCO-recognized site on the Jordan River where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.

The third holiest mosque in Islam, where Prophet Muhammad led all prophets in prayer.

The cliff niches where two colossal Buddha statues stood before their destruction in 2001.

A 9th-century Abbasid mosque famous for its massive spiral minaret, the Malwiya Tower.

A UNESCO-listed artificial cave shrine housing one of the finest Buddha sculptures in East Asia.

The shrine of Sufi saint Ali Hujwiri, the most visited Sufi shrine in South Asia.

The Baroque cathedral where Mozart was baptized, centerpiece of Salzburg's UNESCO-listed old town.

A UNESCO site with 6,000+ ancient rock carvings reflecting prehistoric spiritual beliefs.

Morocco's holiest town, containing the tomb of the founder of the first Moroccan dynasty.

The mausoleum of Rumi, the great Sufi poet, and former lodge of the Whirling Dervishes.

One of Europe's oldest Benedictine monasteries, continuously active for over 1,000 years on a hilltop in western Hungary.