Syracuse and the Rocky Necropolis of Pantalica

Brief Description

The site consists of two separate elements, containing outstanding vestiges dating back to Greek and Roman times: The Necropolis of Pantalica contains over 5,000 tombs cut into the rock near open stone quarries, most of them dating from the 13th to 7th centuries BC. Vestiges of the Byzantine era also remain in the area, notably the foundations of the Anaktoron (Prince’s Palace). The other part of the property, Ancient Syracuse, includes the nucleus of the city’s foundation as Ortygia by Greeks from Corinth in the 8th century BC. The site of the city, which Cicero described as ‘the greatest Greek city and the most beautiful of all’, retains vestiges such as the Temple of Athena (5th century BC, later transformed to serve as a cathedral), a Greek theatre, a Roman amphitheatre, a fort and more. Many remains bear witness to the troubled history of Sicily, from the Byzantines to the Bourbons, interspersed with the Arabo-Muslims, the Normans, Frederick II of the Hohenstaufen dynasty (1197–1250), the Aragons and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Historic Syracuse offers a unique testimony to the development of Mediterranean civilization over three millennia.

Italy

City and Province of Syracuse, Sicily

N37 3 33.984 E15 17 35.016

Date of Inscription: 2005

Criteria: (ii)(iii)(iv)(vi)

Property : 898 ha

Buffer zone: 5,519 ha

Ref: 1200

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

 

Westminster Palace, Westminster Abbey and Saint Margaret's Church

Brief Description

Westminster Palace, rebuilt from the year 1840 on the site of important medieval remains, is a fine example of neo-Gothic architecture. The site – which also comprises the small medieval Church of Saint Margaret, built in Perpendicular Gothic style, and Westminster Abbey, where all the sovereigns since the 11th century have been crowned – is of great historic and symbolic significance.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

City of Westminster, London, England

N51 29 59 E0 7 43

Date of Inscription: 1987

Minor modification inscribed year: 2008

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iv)

Property : 10 ha

Ref: 426bis

Source:  http://whc.unesco.org

Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast

Brief Description

The Giant's Causeway lies at the foot of the basalt cliffs along the sea coast on the edge of the Antrim plateau in Northern Ireland. It is made up of some 40,000 massive black basalt columns sticking out of the sea. The dramatic sight has inspired legends of giants striding over the sea to Scotland. Geological studies of these formations over the last 300 years have greatly contributed to the development of the earth sciences, and show that this striking landscape was caused by volcanic activity during the Tertiary, some 50–60 million years ago.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

County Antrim, Northern Ireland

N55 15 0 W6 29 7

Date of Inscription: 1986

Criteria: (vii)(viii)

Property : 70 ha

Ref: 369

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Fujian Tulou

Fujian Tulou is a property of 46 buildings constructed between the 15th and 20th centuries over 120 km in south-west of Fujian province, inland from the Taiwan Strait. Set amongst rice, tea and tobacco fields the Tulou are earthen houses. Several storeys high, they are built along an inward-looking, circular or square floor plan as housing for up to 800 people each. They were built for defence purposes around a central open courtyard with only one entrance and windows to the outside only above the first floor. Housing a whole clan, the houses functioned as village units and were known as “a little kingdom for the family” or “bustling small city.” They feature tall fortified mud walls capped by tiled roofs with wide over-hanging eaves. The most elaborate structures date back to the 17th and 18th centuries. The buildings were divided vertically between families with each disposing of two or three rooms on each floor. In contrast with their plain exterior, the inside of the tulou were built for comfort and were often highly decorated. They are inscribed as exceptional examples of a building tradition and function exemplifying a particular type of communal living and defensive organization, and, in terms of their harmonious relationship with their environment, an outstanding example of human settlement.

China

N25 1 23 E117 41 9

Date of Inscription: 2008

Criteria: (iii)(iv)(v)

Property : 153 ha

Buffer zone: 935 ha

Ref: 1113

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

 

Phoenix Islands Protected Area

Brief Description

The Phoenix Island Protected Area (PIPA) is a 408,250 sq.km expanse of marine and terrestrial habitats in the Southern Pacific Ocean. The property encompasses the Phoenix Island Group, one of three island groups in Kiribati, and is the largest designated Marine Protected Area in the world. PIPA conserves one of the world's largest intact oceanic coral archipelago ecosystems, together with 14 known underwater sea mounts (presumed to be extinct volcanoes) and other deep-sea habitats. The area contains approximately 800 known species of fauna, including about 200 coral species, 500 fish species, 18 marine mammals and 44 bird species. The structure and functioning of PIPA's ecosystems illustrates its pristine nature and importance as a migration route and reservoir. This is the first site in Kiribati to be inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Kiribati

S3 38 59 W172 51 27

Date of Inscription: 2010

Criteria: (vii)(ix)

Property : 40,825,000 ha

Ref: 1325

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Paris, Banks of the Seine

Brief Description

From the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower, from the Place de la Concorde to the Grand and Petit Palais, the evolution of Paris and its history can be seen from the River Seine. The Cathedral of Notre-Dame and the Sainte Chapelle are architectural masterpieces while Haussmann's wide squares and boulevards influenced late 19th- and 20th-century town planning the world over.

France

Ile de France

N48 51 30 E2 17 39

Date of Inscription: 1991

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iv)

Property : 365 ha

Ref: 600

 Source:  http://whc.unesco.org

Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain

Brief Description

Seventeen decorated caves of the Paleolithic age were inscribed as an extension to the Altamira Cave, inscribed in 1985. The property will now appear on the List as Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain. The property represents the apogee of Paleolithic cave art that developed across Europe, from the Urals to the Iberian Peninusula, from 35,000 to 11,000 BC. Because of their deep galleries, isolated from external climatic influences, these caves are particularly well preserved. The caves are inscribed as masterpieces of creative genius and as the humanity’s earliest accomplished art. They are also inscribed as exceptional testimonies to a cultural tradition and as outstanding illustrations of a significant stage in human history.

 

Spain

Santillana del Mar, Province and Autonomous Community of Cantabria

N43 22 57.1 W4 6 58.2

Date of Inscription: 1985

Extension: 2008

Criteria: (i)(iii)

Buffer zone: 2,235 ha

Ref: 310bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Kinabalu Park

Brief Description

Kinabalu Park, in the State of Sabah on the northern end of the island of Borneo, is dominated by Mount Kinabalu (4,095 m), the highest mountain between the Himalayas and New Guinea. It has a very wide range of habitats, from rich tropical lowland and hill rainforest to tropical mountain forest, sub-alpine forest and scrub on the higher elevations. It has been designated as a Centre of Plant Diversity for Southeast Asia and is exceptionally rich in species with examples of flora from the Himalayas, China, Australia, Malaysia, as well as pan-tropical flora.

  Malaysia

State of Sabah

N6 15 0 E116 30 0

Date of Inscription: 2000

Criteria: (ix)(x)

Property : 75,370 ha

Ref: 1012

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Gunung Mulu National Park

Important both for its high biodiversity and for its karst features, Gunung Mulu National Park, on the island of Borneo in the State of Sarawak, is the most studied tropical karst area in the world. The 52,864-ha park contains seventeen vegetation zones, exhibiting some 3,500 species of vascular plants. Its palm species are exceptionally rich, with 109 species in twenty genera noted. The park is dominated by Gunung Mulu, a 2,377 m-high sandstone pinnacle. At least 295 km of explored caves provide a spectacular sight and are home to millions of cave swiftlets and bats. The Sarawak Chamber, 600 m by 415 m and 80 m high, is the largest known cave chamber in the world.

Malaysia

northern Sarawak, island of Borneo

N4 7 59.988 E114 55 0.012

Date of Inscription: 2000

Criteria: (vii)(viii)(ix)(x)

Property : 52,864 ha

Ref: 1013

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Old City of Dubrovnik

Brief Description

The 'Pearl of the Adriatic', situated on the Dalmatian coast, became an important Mediterranean sea power from the 13th century onwards. Although severely damaged by an earthquake in 1667, Dubrovnik managed to preserve its beautiful Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque churches, monasteries, palaces and fountains. Damaged again in the 1990s by armed conflict, it is now the focus of a major restoration programme co-ordinated by UNESCO.

Croatia

County of Dubrovnik-Neretva, Adriatic Coast

N42 39 2.016 E18 5 29.004

Date of Inscription: 1979

Extension: 1994

Criteria: (i)(iii)(iv)

Property : 97 ha

Buffer zone: 54 ha

Ref: 95bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments

The 'Venice of the North', with its numerous canals and more than 400 bridges, is the result of a vast urban project begun in 1703 under Peter the Great. Later known as Leningrad (in the former USSR), the city is closely associated with the October Revolution. Its architectural heritage reconciles the very different Baroque and pure neoclassical styles, as can be seen in the Admiralty, the Winter Palace, the Marble Palace and the Hermitage.

Russian Federation

St. Petersburg region

N59 57 0 E30 19 5.988

Date of Inscription: 1990

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iv)(vi)

Ref: 540

Source:  http://whc.unesco.org

Prambanan Temple Compounds

Brief Description

Built in the 10th century, this is the largest temple compound dedicated to Shiva in Indonesia. Rising above the centre of the last of these concentric squares are three temples decorated with reliefs illustrating the epic of the Ramayana, dedicated to the three great Hindu divinities (Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma) and three temples dedicated to the animals who serve them.

  Indonesia

Province of Central Java

S7 45 7.992 E110 29 30.012

Date of Inscription: 1991

Criteria: (i)(iv)

Ref: 642

Source:  http://whc.unesco.org

Vilnius Historic Centre

Brief Description

Political centre of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 13th to the end of the 18th century, Vilnius has had a profound influence on the cultural and architectural development of much of eastern Europe. Despite invasions and partial destruction, it has preserved an impressive complex of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and classical buildings as well as its medieval layout and natural setting.

Lithuania

City of Vilnius

N54 41 12.012 E25 17 35.016

Date of Inscription: 1994

Minor modification inscribed year: 2012

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 352 ha

Buffer zone: 1,912 ha

Ref: 541bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org