Vizcaya Bridge

Vizcaya Bridge

Vizcaya Bridge straddles the mouth of the Ibaizabal estuary, west of Bilbao. It was designed by the Basque architect Alberto de Palacio and completed in 1893. The 45-m-high bridge with its span of 160 m, merges 19th-century ironworking traditions with the then new lightweight technology of twisted steel ropes. It was the first bridge in the world to carry people and traffic on a high suspended gondola and was used as a model for many similar bridges in Europe, Africa and the America only a few of which survive. With its innovative use of lightweight twisted steel cables, it is regarded as one of the outstanding architectural iron constructions of the Industrial Revolution.

Spain

Basque Country, Province of Bizjaia,

N43 19 23.43 W3 1 0.6

Date of Inscription: 2006

Criteria: (i)(ii)

Property : 0.86 ha

Buffer zone: 12 ha

Ref: 1217

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries - Wolong, Mt Siguniang and Jiajin Mountains

 Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries - Wolong, Mt Siguniang and Jiajin Mountains

Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries, home to more than 30% of the world's pandas which are classed as highly endangered, covers 924,500 ha with seven nature reserves and nine scenic parks in the Qionglai and Jiajin Mountains. The sanctuaries constitute the largest remaining contiguous habitat of the giant panda, a relict from the paleo-tropic forests of the Tertiary Era. It is also the species' most important site for captive breeding. The sanctuaries are home to other globally endangered animals such as the red panda, the snow leopard and clouded leopard. They are among the botanically richest sites of any region in the world outside the tropical rainforests, with between 5,000 and 6,000 species of flora in over 1,000 genera.

China

Sichuan Province

N30 49 60 E103 0 0

Date of Inscription: 2006

Criteria: (x)

Property : 924,500 ha

Buffer zone: 527,100 ha

Ref: 1213

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape

Much of the landscape of Cornwall and West Devon was transformed in the 18th and early 19th centuries as a result of the rapid growth of pioneering copper and tin mining. Its deep underground mines, engine houses, foundries, new towns, smallholdings, ports and harbours, and their ancillary industries together reflect prolific innovation which, in the early 19th century, enabled the region to produce two-thirds of the world’s supply of copper. The substantial remains are a testimony to the contribution Cornwall and West Devon made to the Industrial Revolution in the rest of Britain and to the fundamental influence the area had on the mining world at large. Cornish technology embodied in engines, engine houses and mining equipment was exported around the world. Cornwall and West Devon were the heartland from which mining technology rapidly spread.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Cornwall and Devon Counties

N50 8 10 W5 23 1

Date of Inscription: 2006

Criteria: (ii)(iii)(iv)

Property : 19,719 ha

Ref: 1215

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Aflaj Irrigation Systems of Oman

 Brief Description

The property includes five aflaj irrigation systems and is representative of some 3,000 such systems still in use in Oman. The origins of this system of irrigation may date back to AD 500, but archaeological evidence suggests that irrigation systems existed in this extremely arid area as early as 2500 BC. Using gravity, water is channelled from underground sources or springs to support agriculture and domestic use. The fair and effective management and sharing of water in villages and towns is still underpinned by mutual dependence and communal values and guided by astronomical observations. Numerous watchtowers built to defend the water systems form part of the site reflecting the historic dependence of communities on the aflaj system. Threatened by falling level of the underground water table, the aflaj represent an exceptionally well-preserved form of land use.

Oman

Dakhiliya, Sharqiya and Batinah Regions

N22 59 56 E57 32 9.8

Date of Inscription: 2006

Criteria: (v)

Property : 1,456 ha

Buffer zone: 16,404 ha

Ref: 1207

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Old town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof

A Postcard from

Sonja Grund Of Germany

:: Thank you Very Much

Brief Description

Located on the Danube River in Bavaria, this medieval town contains many buildings of exceptional quality that testify to its history as a trading centre and to its influence on the region from the 9th century. A notable number of historic structures span some two millennia and include ancient Roman, Romanesque and Gothic buildings. Regensburg’s 11th- to 13th-century architecture – including the market, city hall and cathedral – still defines the character of the town marked by tall buildings, dark and narrow lanes, and strong fortifications. The buildings include medieval patrician houses and towers, a large number of churches and monastic ensembles as well as the 12th-century Old Bridge. The town is also remarkable for the vestiges testifing to its rich history as one of the centres of the Holy Roman Empire that turned to Protestantism.

Germany

Bavaria

N49 1 14 E12 5 57

Date of Inscription: 2006

Criteria: (ii)(iii)(iv)

Property : 183 ha

Buffer zone: 776 ha

Ref: 1155

Source: http://whc.unesco.org