202602 Wallpaper Collection

This species missed the domestication memo and kept going on its own terms. Say hello to Przewalski's horse, considered the last truly wild horse on Earth. Once widespread across Central Asia, it disappeared from the wild in the 1960s after decades of hunting, habitat loss and competition with livestock. Its survival depended on an unlikely lifeline: a small number of individuals captured by early 20th‑century collectors, which became the foundation of all modern Przewalski's horses.

Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, marks the beginning of a new year on the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar. This calendar follows the phases of the moon and the rhythms of the seasons. Red lanterns—like the ones shown in today's image—are widely associated with the celebration. The holiday falls on the new moon between 21 January and 20 February and has been observed for more than 2,000 years. In 2024, UNESCO added the Spring Festival to its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list, recognising its cultural and historical importance.

If winter had a battle cry, it would sound like a horn blast echoing across cobbles. Each February, the Jorvik Viking Festival in York turns history into a living, shouting, occasionally bearded event. Run by the team behind the Jorvik Viking Centre, the festival celebrates the city's past as Jórvík—from 16 to 22 February this year—a major Viking settlement from the 9th century.

World Whale Day, observed on the third Sunday of February, began in the 1980s in Hawaii, where communities celebrated the seasonal return of migrating humpback whales. The day gained wider recognition after the International Whaling Commission's 1986 moratorium on commercial whaling, which marked a major milestone in international whale conservation.

Valentine's Day celebrates the heart in all its forms—love that is bold or tender, hopeful or quietly vulnerable. Few symbols capture this emotion as naturally as the bleeding heart flower, pictured here. With its unmistakable heart-shaped blooms, the plant emerges each spring, growing up to 60 centimetres tall and spreading nearly 75 centimetres wide, creating a graceful, almost poetic display.

Before bridges, rivers set the pace of travel. Now, with bridges, people do. That shift explains why cross-border links like the Third Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge connecting Laos and Thailand matter. Bridges come in many forms, each built to meet a specific challenge. Arch bridges manage compression, suspension bridges span long distances and concrete box-girder bridges prioritise stability and load efficiency. This bridge uses the box-girder design, making it a practical choice for crossing the wide, fast-moving Mekong River.

Darwin Day marks more than a birthday—it marks a shift in thinking. Charles Darwin's observations connected variation, the survival of individuals best suited to their environment, and inheritance in ways science still builds on. His legacy rests on years of studying variation—finches, fossils, barnacles—and recognising patterns others had overlooked. When 'On the Origin of Species' was published in 1859, it offered a framework explaining how species evolve through natural selection.

Death Valley National Park challenges first impressions. Spanning more than 3.4 million acres (1.34 million hectares) across California and Nevada in the United States, it is the largest national park in the contiguous United States. Across this vast expanse, salt flats, volcanic hills, sweeping sand dunes and distant snowcapped peaks create a landscape shaped by time and extremes. From the soaring heights of Telescope Peak, which rises over 3,300 metres above the desert floor, to the depths of Badwater Basin, 86 metres below sea level, the park is a study in contrasts.

Just southwest of Ibiza, Spain, lie the uninhabited islets of Es Vedrà and Es Vedranell. Part of a protected nature reserve, these dramatic rock formations are admired for their ecological value and visual impact. Es Vedrà rises around 400 metres straight from the sea, its sheer limestone cliffs resembling a mountain range. Nearby, the jagged outline of Es Vedranell has earned it the nickname 'sleeping dragon,' appearing to guard its larger sibling.

The leopard cat is a small wild cat found across South, Southeast and East Asia. Similar in size to a house cat but longer-legged and slenderer, it generally measures 38–66 centimetres long, with a tail about 17–31 centimetres. Depending on the region, adults weigh roughly 0.55–7 kilograms. Their appearance varies widely: southern individuals tend to have warm golden coats, while those farther north often have pale grey fur that thickens for winter.

The island of Corfu, Greece, meets you at night with a quiet kind of intensity: stone facades catching warm lamplight, fortress walls rising in sharp outline and narrow lanes unfolding like a lived-in labyrinth. The Old Town doesn't just look historic—it feels inhabited, shaped by centuries of shifting cultures and the slow rhythm of island life after dark.

Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia doesn't ease you in—it erupts into view like a horizon made of light. It's the world's largest salt flat, stretching across roughly 4,000 square miles at nearly 3,658 metres above sea level. The landscape dramatically shifts with the seasons: when the rain arrives, the surface floods just enough to become an enormous mirror, so perfectly reflective that sky and ground melt into a single glowing plane.

The 2026 Winter Olympics begin today, and few settings capture their spirit better than the Dolomites. Rising sharply above the Giau Pass, the 2,595-metre Ra Gusela peak delivers the kind of dramatic alpine scenery that defines the Milano-Cortina 2026 Games—a joint edition hosted by Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, blending metropolitan energy with deep alpine heritage.

Xwejni Bay in Gozo, Malta, has a way of making everyday elements look like a quiet choreography between sea, stone and sun. You can't help but pause and look closer, right? Centuries back, families began carving these limestone pans, shaping hundreds of basins that trap seawater with each wave. Once the water settles in, the sun's heat does the rest, slowly evaporating it into natural Mediterranean salt. Gozo became a salt-making hub because its limestone coast is easy to shape, and its warm, dry summers keep the crystallisation process steady. The first crystals form around May, marking the beginning of the harvesting season. Workers rake the salt by hand, sweep it with brooms and brushes, gather it into small piles to dry for another day, then bag it and store it in the caves.

Nestled in the Urseren Valley at 1,437 metres, Andermatt is a charming Swiss village embraced by the majestic Alps. Long a vital crossroads, it's linked by three iconic passes—Gotthard, Furka and Oberalp—each enhancing its allure as a gateway between regions and cultures.

You know a place holds stories when geologists, filmmakers and local folklore all claim it for different reasons. Lake Tahoe, straddling the border between California and Nevada, fits that bill perfectly. Formed during the Ice Age, the lake was shaped by faulting and glacial carving that created its deep basin. It is now one of the deepest freshwater lakes in the United States. For generations, the Washoe people lived around these clear waters, fishing and gathering seasonally. Centuries later, miners arrived, steamboats crossed the water and Tahoe shifted from a resource hub to a year-round retreat.

Every February 2, the world turns its eyes to a furry little forecaster with a penchant for popping out of holes: the groundhog. Legend has it that if this pint-sized predictor sees its shadow, winter drags on for six more weeks. No shadow? Spring is just around the corner. It's a quirky tradition that turns a small rodent into a celebrity meteorologist.

Colour feels at home in Olinda. The house seen in today's image, painted in bold, joyful tones, reflects a city where history and creativity live side by side. Founded in the 16th century in Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil, Olinda grew from a colonial stronghold into a cultural landmark shaped by Portuguese architecture, Afro-Brazilian traditions and centuries of artistic expression. Its hills are lined with pastel facades, baroque churches and narrow cobblestone streets that seem designed for wandering rather than rushing.

Some animals whisper their way through the wild. Zebras don't. They show up in high-contrast stripes, act like it's the most practical outfit ever invented—and somehow, it is. International Zebra Day, celebrated on January 31, gives these black-and-white originals their moment to step out of the herd and into the spotlight.