Three of the most inventive homes we have featured are a manta-ray-shaped mountain mansion in Arizona, a bird-shaped house in the Azores and a floating glass house designed by Dymitr Malcew. Two are built or fully designed. One is still a plan.
| Design | Architect | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Manta ray mansion, Mummy Mountain, Arizona | Tsontakis Architecture | Proposed design; reported budget $30 million |
| House on the Flight of Birds, Azores | Bernardo Rodrigues | Completed 2010 |
| The Floating House | Dymitr Malcew | Concept unveiled 2014 |
What is the manta ray house on Mummy Mountain?
Arizona architect Nick Tsontakis proposed a house straddling Mummy Mountain in Paradise Valley, outside Phoenix. Its winged shape reads like a manta ray from above, though he has said the form was not intentional. It was reported at six bedrooms and eight bathrooms on two storeys, with a budget of $30 million. Local height rules and a sightline limit shaped it. Windows face both the mountain and the city, a spa and guest homes sit behind the main house, and the pool is designed to spill like an infinity edge. We could not confirm that it was built, so treat it as a design.
What is the House on the Flight of Birds?
Architect Bernardo Rodrigues, based in Porto, completed this family home in Rabo de Peixe, on the north coast of the island of Sao Miguel, in 2010. The site gets frequent wind and showers, so he put up a large red wall to block the wind and added patios and covered courtyards that keep people outside even in the rain. The plan is a central double-height living room with two wings and a roof terrace facing the north shore.
What is the floating glass house?
Dymitr Malcew, a Poland-trained designer based in Singapore, drew the Floating House for a French developer of floating structures. Unveiled in 2014, it is mostly glass, with its roof carried by columns separate from the glass walls so the house can move with the water. The version we first described has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room and a kitchen. Sources disagree about whether it was placed in Singapore or Indonesia, so we give no location.
Keep reading
- The most unusual homes in the world: more original house ideas.
FAQ
What is the manta ray house in Arizona?
A proposed house by Tsontakis Architecture on Mummy Mountain in Paradise Valley, reported at about $30 million, six bedrooms and eight bathrooms.
Where is the House on the Flight of Birds?
In Rabo de Peixe on the north coast of Sao Miguel in the Azores. Bernardo Rodrigues completed it in 2010.
Who designed the floating glass house?
Dymitr Malcew, a Poland-trained architect based in Singapore, unveiled it in 2014 as a concept for floating-structure developer H2ORIZON.
Was the manta ray house built?
We could not confirm that, so we describe it as a proposed design.
Why is the Azores house shaped the way it is?
Windy, rainy weather led the architect to add a wind wall and patios and courtyards that give shelter outside.
Last updated: October 2026.
