Megalithic Jar Sites in Xiengkhuang – Plain of Jars

The Plain of Jars, located on a plateau in central Laos, gets its name from more than 2,100 tubular-shaped megalithic stone jars used for funerary practices in the Iron Age. This serial site of 15 components contains large carved stone jars, stone discs, secondary burials, tombstones, quarries and funerary objects dating from 500 BCE to 500 CE. The jars and associated elements are the most prominent evidence of the Iron Age civilization that made and used them until it disappeared, around 500 CE.

 Lao People's Democratic Republic

N19 25 51.8 E103 9 8

Date of Inscription: 2019

Criteria: (iii)

Property : 174.56 ha

Buffer zone: 1,012.94 ha

Ref: 1587

Source: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1587

Bagan

Lying on a bend of the Ayeyarwady River in the central plain of Myanmar, Bagan is a sacred landscape, featuring an exceptional range of Buddhist art and architecture. The site’s eight components include numerous temples, stupas, monasteries and places of pilgrimage, as well as archaeological remains, frescoes and sculptures. The property bears spectacular testimony to the peak of Bagan civilization (11th–13th centuries CE), when the site was the capital of a regional empire. This ensemble of monumental architecture reflects the strength of religious devotion of an early Buddhist empire.

 Myanmar

N21 8 56 E94 53 4

Date of Inscription: 2019

Criteria: (iii)(iv)(vi)

Property : 5,005.49 ha

Buffer zone: 18,146.83 ha

Ref: 1588

Source: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1588

Buddhist Monuments in the Horyu-ji Area

There are around 48 Buddhist monuments in the Horyu-ji area, in Nara Prefecture. Several date from the late 7th or early 8th century, making them some of the oldest surviving wooden buildings in the world. These masterpieces of wooden architecture are important not only for the history of art, since they illustrate the adaptation of Chinese Buddhist architecture and layout to Japanese culture, but also for the history of religion, since their construction coincided with the introduction of Buddhism to Japan from China by way of the Korean peninsula.

 Japan

Nara Prefecture

N34 37 0 E135 43 60

Date of Inscription: 1993

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iv)(vi)

Property : 15.03 ha

Buffer zone: 571 ha

Ref: 660

Source: https://whc.unesco.org

Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara

Nara was the capital of Japan from 710 to 784. During this period the framework of national government was consolidated and Nara enjoyed great prosperity, emerging as the fountainhead of Japanese culture. The city's historic monuments – Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines and the excavated remains of the great Imperial Palace – provide a vivid picture of life in the Japanese capital in the 8th century, a period of profound political and cultural change.

 Japan

Nara Prefecture

N34 40 32 E135 50 22

Date of Inscription: 1998

Criteria: (ii)(iii)(iv)(vi)

Property : 617 ha

Buffer zone: 1,962.5 ha

Ref: 870

Source: https://whc.unesco.org

Kalwaria Zebrzydowska: the Mannerist Architectural and Park Landscape Complex and Pilgrimage Park

Kalwaria Zebrzydowska is a breathtaking cultural landscape of great spiritual significance. Its natural setting – in which a series of symbolic places of worship relating to the Passion of Jesus Christ and the life of the Virgin Mary was laid out at the beginning of the 17th century – has remained virtually unchanged. It is still today a place of pilgrimage.

 Poland

Lesser Poland (Malopolska).Voivodship (formerly Bielsko-Biala)

N49 52 0 E19 40 0

Date of Inscription: 1999

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 380 ha

Buffer zone: 2,600 ha

Ref: 905

Source: https://whc.unesco.org

Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications

Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications

Founded in the 16th century by the Portuguese, Galle reached the height of its development in the 18th century, before the arrival of the British. It is the best example of a fortified city built by Europeans in South and South-East Asia, showing the interaction between European architectural styles and South Asian traditions.

Sri Lanka

City of Galle, Southern Province

N6 1 17 E80 13 7

Date of Inscription: 1988

Criteria: (iv)

Ref: 451

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Singapore Botanic Gardens

The Bandstand

The Bandstand

Burkill Hall

Situated at the heart of the city of Singapore, the site demonstrates the evolution of a British tropical colonial botanic garden that has become a modern world-class scientific institution used for both conservation and education. The cultural landscape includes a rich variety of historic features, plantings and buildings that demonstrate the development of the garden since its creation in 1859. It has been an important centre for science, research and plant conservation, notably in connection with the cultivation of rubber plantations, in Southeast Asia since 1875.

 Singapore

N1 18 55 E103 48 58

Date of Inscription: 2015

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 49 ha

Buffer zone: 137 ha

Ref: 1483

Source: https://whc.unesco.org

Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape

Located on the steep cliffs in the border regions of southwest China, these 38 sites of rock art illustrate the life and rituals of the Luoyue people. They date from the period around the 5th century BCE to the 2nd century CE. In a surrounding landscape of karst, rivers and plateaux, they depict ceremonies that have been interpreted as portraying the bronze drum culture once prevalent across southern China. This cultural landscape is the only remains of this culture today.

 China

N22 15 20 E107 1 23

Date of Inscription: 2016

Criteria: (iii)(vi)

Property : 6,621.6 ha

Buffer zone: 12,149.01 ha

Ref: 1508

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement

On the Lower Left of the Postcard is Maisons de la Weissenhof-Siedlung

Chosen from the work of Le Corbusier, the 17 sites comprising this transnational serial property are spread over seven countries and are a testimonial to the invention of a new architectural language that made a break with the past. They were built over a period of a half-century, in the course of what Le Corbusier described as “patient research”. The Complexe du Capitole in Chandigarh (India), the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo (Japan), the House of Dr Curutchet in La Plata (Argentina) and the Unité d’habitation in Marseille (France) reflect the solutions that the Modern Movement sought to apply during the 20th century to the challenges of inventing new architectural techniques to respond to the needs of society. These masterpieces of creative genius also attest to the internationalization of architectural practice across the planet.

• Maisons La Roche et Jeanneret
• Petite villa au bord du lac Léman fr
• Cité Frugès
• Maison Guiete
• Maisons de la Weissenhof-Siedlung
• Villa Savoye et loge du jardiner
• Immeuble Clarté
• Immeuble locatif à la Porte Molitor
• Unité d’habitation Marseille
• La Manufacture à Saint-Dié fr
• Curutchet House
• Chapelle Notre-Dame-du-Haut de Ronchamp
• Cabanon de Le Corbusier
• Complexe du Capitole
• Couvent Sainte-Marie-de-la-Tourette
• Musée National des Beaux-Arts de l’Occident

 Argentina

 Belgium

 France

 Germany

 India

 Japan

 Switzerland

N46 28 6.29 E6 49 45.61

Date of Inscription: 2016

Criteria: (i)(ii)(vi)

Property : 98.4838 ha

Buffer zone: 1,409.384 ha

Ref: 1321rev

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Roman Theatre and its Surroundings and the "Triumphal Arch" of Orange

Situated in the Rhone valley, the ancient theatre of Orange, with its 103-m-long facade, is one of the best preserved of all the great Roman theatres. Built between A.D. 10 and 25, the Roman arch is one of the most beautiful and interesting surviving examples of a provincial triumphal arch from the reign of Augustus. It is decorated with low reliefs commemorating the establishment of the Pax Romana

 France

Department of Vacluse, Region of Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur

N44 8 8.6 E4 48 30.3

Date of Inscription: 1981

Minor boundary modification inscribed year: 2007

Criteria: (iii)(vi)

Property : 9.45 ha

Buffer zone: 232 ha

Ref: 163bis

Source: 

Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape

The cultural landscape of Tokaj graphically demonstrates the long tradition of wine production in this region of low hills and river valleys. The intricate pattern of vineyards, farms, villages and small towns, with their historic networks of deep wine cellars, illustrates every facet of the production of the famous Tokaj wines, the quality and management of which have been strictly regulated for nearly three centuries.

 Hungary

County of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén

N48 8 60 E21 21 0

Date of Inscription: 2002

Criteria: (iii)(v)

Property : 13,255 ha

Buffer zone: 74,879 ha

Ref: 1063

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Old Town of Cáceres

The city's history of battles between Moors and Christians is reflected in its architecture, which is a blend of Roman, Islamic, Northern Gothic and Italian Renaissance styles. Of the 30 or so towers from the Muslim period, the Torre del Bujaco is the most famous.

 Spain

Province of Cáceres, Autonomous Community of Extremadura

N39 28 27.984 W6 22 12

Date of Inscription: 1986

Minor boundary modification inscribed year: 2016

Criteria: (iii)(iv)

Property : 9 ha

Buffer zone: 60.63 ha

Ref: 384bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Las Médulas

In the 1st century A.D. the Roman Imperial authorities began to exploit the gold deposits of this region in north-west Spain, using a technique based on hydraulic power. After two centuries of working the deposits, the Romans withdrew, leaving a devastated landscape. Since there was no subsequent industrial activity, the dramatic traces of this remarkable ancient technology are visible everywhere as sheer faces in the mountainsides and the vast areas of tailings, now used for agriculture.

 Spain

Province of Léon, Autonomous Community of Castile-Leon

N42 28 9.804 W6 46 14.7

Date of Inscription: 1997

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iii)(iv)

Property : 2,208.2 ha

Ref: 803

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe

The monastery is an outstanding repository of four centuries of Spanish religious architecture. It symbolizes two significant events in world history that occurred in 1492: the Reconquest of the Iberian peninsula by the Catholic Kings and Christopher Columbus' arrival in the Americas. Its famous statue of the Virgin became a powerful symbol of the Christianization of much of the New World.

 Spain

Province of Cáceres, Autonomous Community of Extremadura

N39 27 10.26 W5 19 39

Date of Inscription: 1993

Criteria: (iv)(vi)

Property : 1.1 ha

Buffer zone: 43.65 ha

Ref: 665

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Old Town of Segovia and its Aqueduct

The Roman aqueduct of Segovia, probably built c. A.D. 50, is remarkably well preserved. This impressive construction, with its two tiers of arches, forms part of the setting of the magnificent historic city of Segovia. Other important monuments include the Alcázar, begun around the 11th century, and the 16th-century Gothic cathedral.

 Spain

Province of Segovia, Autonomous Community of Castile-Leon

N40 56 54.5 W4 7 0.3

Date of Inscription: 1985

Minor boundary modification inscribed year: 2015

Criteria: (i)(iii)(iv)

Property : 134.28 ha

Buffer zone: 401.44 ha

Ref: 311bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

The Trulli of Alberobello

The trulli , limestone dwellings found in the southern region of Puglia, are remarkable examples of drywall (mortarless) construction, a prehistoric building technique still in use in this region. The trulli are made of roughly worked limestone boulders collected from neighbouring fields. Characteristically, they feature pyramidal, domed or conical roofs built up of corbelled limestone slabs.

 Italy

Province of Bari, Puglia Region

N40 46 57 E17 14 12.984

Date of Inscription: 1996

Criteria: (iii)(iv)(v)

Property : 10.52 ha

Ref: 787

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Hortobágy National Park - the Puszta

The cultural landscape of the Hortobágy Puszta consists of a vast area of plains and wetlands in eastern Hungary. Traditional forms of land use, such as the grazing of domestic animals, have been present in this pastoral society for more than two millennia.

 Hungary

Counties of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, Heves, Hajdú-Bihar and Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok

N47 35 40.488 E21 9 24.408

Date of Inscription: 1999

Criteria: (iv)(v)

Property : 74,820 ha

Buffer zone: 199,380 ha

Ref: 474rev

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

The Sassi and the Park of the Rupestrian Churches of Matera

This is the most outstanding, intact example of a troglodyte settlement in the Mediterranean region, perfectly adapted to its terrain and ecosystem. The first inhabited zone dates from the Palaeolithic, while later settlements illustrate a number of significant stages in human history. Matera is in the southern region of Basilicata.

 Italy

City and Province of Matera, Region of Basilicata

N40 39 59 E16 36 37

Date of Inscription: 1993

Criteria: (iii)(iv)(v)

Property : 1,016 ha

Buffer zone: 4,365 ha

Ref: 670

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Studenica Monastery

The Studenica Monastery was established in the late 12th century by Stevan Nemanja, founder of the medieval Serb state, shortly after his abdication. It is the largest and richest of Serbia’s Orthodox monasteries. Its two principal monuments, the Church of the Virgin and the Church of the King, both built of white marble, enshrine priceless collections of 13th- and 14th-century Byzantine painting.

 Serbia

Village of Studenica, Commune of Kraljevo, Raška District, Republic of Serbia

N43 29 9.996 E20 32 12.012

Date of Inscription: 1986

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iv)(vi)

Property : 1.16 ha

Buffer zone: 269.34 ha

Ref: 389

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Rock-Hewn Churches, Lalibela

The 11 medieval monolithic cave churches of this 13th-century 'New Jerusalem' are situated in a mountainous region in the heart of Ethiopia near a traditional village with circular-shaped dwellings. Lalibela is a high place of Ethiopian Christianity, still today a place of pilmigrage and devotion.

 Ethiopia

Amhara Region

N12 1 45.66 E39 2 25.512

Date of Inscription: 1978

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iii)

Ref: 18

Source: http://whc.unesco.org