Method
Clear the significance floor.
Then measure neglect.
Obscurity alone never qualifies an entry. Every subject must first demonstrate exceptional absolute historical consequence or peak attainment. Only achievements above that boundary are compared by the size of their present-day recognition deficit.
Two-stage, significance-first index
The values are transparent curatorial judgements rather than empirical measurements. Historical importance and peak attainment first form an absolute Core Significance score; under-recognition cannot compensate for failing the admission standard.
≥89Core Significance required
The hard admission boundaryCore Significance is the equal-weight average of historical importance and peak attainment. All 100 entries clear 89/100; anything below it is excluded regardless of obscurity.
50%Historical importance inside Core Significance
50%Peak attainment inside Core Significance
89Minimum Core Significance for inclusion
Final priority score75% Core Significance + 25% present-day under-recognition
Significance dominates the ranking. Under-recognition can reorder already exceptional achievements, but a merely obscure or surprising subject cannot enter the list.
1
Absolute merit is the admission criterion.The subject must reach the summit before its recognition deficit is considered.
2
Neglect is a secondary discriminator.It contributes 25% of the final priority score, not the right to qualify.
3
Different kinds of greatness remain comparable.Historical consequence protects major systems; peak attainment protects extraordinary art, craft and knowledge traditions.
4
Recognition still reflects structural bias.Textbook inheritance, colonial categories, perishable media and modern state power shape what becomes globally famous.
Visual atlas
Significance versus neglect
Every point is clickable. The shaded strip to the left of the selected boundary is ineligible; the upper-right contains achievements that are both intrinsically exceptional and unusually under-recognized.
Significance-first fieldX: Core Significance · Y: under-recognition · size: peak attainment
Regional coverage
Why recognition is lost
Central pattern: the canon systematically discounts invisible infrastructure, perishable media, oral knowledge and achievements lacking a powerful modern nation-state advocate.