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

Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz

The Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz is an exceptional example of landscape design and planning of the Age of the Enlightenment, the 18th century. Its diverse components - outstanding buildings, landscaped parks and gardens in the English style, and subtly modified expanses of agricultural land - serve aesthetic, educational, and economic purposes in an exemplary manner.

 Germany

State of Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt)

N51 50 33 E12 25 14.988

Date of Inscription: 2000

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 14,500 ha

Ref: 534rev

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

St Mary's Cathedral and St Michael's Church at Hildesheim

St Michael's Church was built between 1010 and 1020 on a symmetrical plan with two apses that was characteristic of Ottonian Romanesque art in Old Saxony. Its interior, in particular the wooden ceiling and painted stucco-work, its famous bronze doors and the Bernward bronze column, are – together with the treasures of St Mary's Cathedral – of exceptional interest as examples of the Romanesque churches of the Holy Roman Empire.

 Germany

District of Hanover, State of Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen)

N52 9 10.008 E9 56 38.004

Date of Inscription: 1985

Minor boundary modification inscribed year: 2008

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iii)

Property : 0.58 ha

Buffer zone: 157.68 ha

Ref: 187bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Fagus Factory in Alfeld

Fagus Factory in Alfeld is a 10-building complex - began around 1910 to the design of Walter Gropius, which is a landmark in the development of modern architecture and industrial design. Serving all stages of manufacture, storage and dispatch of lasts used by the shoe industry, the complex, which is still operational today, is situated in Alfeld an der Leine in Lower Saxony. With its groundbreaking vast expanses of glass panels and functionalist aesthetics, the complex foreshadowed the work of the Bauhaus school and is a landmark in the development of architecture in Europe and North America.

 Germany

N51 59 1 E9 48 40

Date of Inscription: 2011

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 1.88 ha

Buffer zone: 18.89 ha

Ref: 1368

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Speicherstadt and Kontorhaus District with Chilehaus

Speicherstadt and the adjacent Kontorhaus district are two densely built urban areas in the centre of the port city of Hamburg. Speicherstadt, originally developed on a group of narrow islands in the Elbe River between 1885 and 1927, was partly rebuilt from 1949 to 1967. It is one of the largest coherent historic ensembles of port warehouses in the world (300,000 m2). It includes 15 very large warehouse blocks as well as six ancillary buildings and a connecting network of short canals. Adjacent to the modernist Chilehaus office building, the Kontorhaus district is an area of over five hectares featuring six very large office complexes built from the 1920s to the 1940s to house port-related businesses. The complex exemplifies the effects of the rapid growth in international trade in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

 Germany

N53 32 44 E9 59 58

Date of Inscription: 2015

Criteria: (iv)

Property : 26.08 ha

Buffer zone: 56.17 ha

Ref: 1467

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Cologne Cathedral

Brief Description

Begun in 1248, the construction of this Gothic masterpiece took place in several stages and was not completed until 1880. Over seven centuries, successive builders were inspired by the same faith and a spirit of absolute fidelity to the original plans. Apart from its exceptional intrinsic value and the artistic masterpieces it contains, Cologne Cathedral testifies to the enduring strength of European Christianity.

Germany

State of North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen)

N50 56 28 E6 57 26

Date of Inscription: 1996

Minor modification inscribed year: 2008

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iv)

Buffer zone: 258 ha

Ref: 292bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Wartburg Castle

Wartburg Castle blends superbly into its forest surroundings and is in many ways 'the ideal castle'. Although it has retained some original sections from the feudal period, the form it acquired during the 19th-century reconstitution gives a good idea of what this fortress might have been at the height of its military and seigneurial power. It was during his exile at Wartburg Castle that Martin Luther translated the New Testament into German.

 Germany

Eisenach, State of Thuringia (Thüringen)

N50 58 0.4 E10 18 25.2

Date of Inscription: 1999

Criteria: (iii)(vi)

Ref: 897

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Mines of Rammelsberg, Historic Town of Goslar and Upper Harz Water Management System

The Upper Harz mining water management system, which lies south of the Rammelsberg mines and the town of Goslar, has been developed over a period of some 800 years to assist in the process of extracting ore for the production of non-ferrous metals. Its construction was first undertaken in the Middle Ages by Cistercian monks, and it was then developed on a vast scale from the end of the 16th century until the 19th century. It is made up of an extremely complex but perfectly coherent system of artificial ponds, small channels, tunnels and underground drains. It enabled the development of water power for use in mining and metallurgical processes. It is a major site for mining innovation in the western world.

Germany

N51 49 12 E10 20 24

Date of Inscription: 1992

Extension: 2010

Minor modification inscribed year: 2008, 2008

Criteria: (i)(ii)(iii)(iv)

Property : 1,010 ha

Buffer zone: 5,655 ha

Ref: 623ter

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Pilgrimage Church of Wies

Pilgrimage Church of Wies

Miraculously preserved in the beautiful setting of an Alpine valley, the Church of Wies (1745–54), the work of architect Dominikus Zimmermann, is a masterpiece of Bavarian Rococo – exuberant, colourful and joyful.

Germany

Town of Steingaden, District of Weilheim-Schongau, Region of Upper Bavaria, State of Bavaria (Bayern)

N47 40 52.6 E10 54 0.5

Date of Inscription: 1983

Minor modification inscribed year: 2011

Criteria: (i)(iii)

Property : 0.10 ha

Buffer zone: 8.40 ha

Ref: 271bis

Source:  http://whc.unesco.org

Carolingian Westwork and Civitas Corvey

 Carolingian Westwork and Civitas Corvey are located  along the Weser River on the outskirts of Höxter where they were erected between 822 and 885 A.D. in a largely preserved rural setting. The Westwork is the only standing structure that dates back to the Carolingian era, while the original imperial abbey complex is preserved as archaeological remains which are only partially excavated. The Westwork of Corvey uniquely illustrates one of the most important Carolingian architectural expressions. It is a genuine creation of this period, and its architectural articulation and decoration clearly illustrate the role played within the Frankish empire by imperial monasteries in securing territorial control, administration, as well as the propagation of Christianity and of the Carolingian cultural and political order throughout Europe.

Germany

N51 46 41.8 E9 24 36.9

Date of Inscription: 2014

Criteria: (ii)(iii)(iv)

Property : 12 ha

Buffer zone: 69 ha

Ref: 1447

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Monastic Island of Reichenau

Monastic Island of Reichenau

The island of Reichenau on Lake Constance preserves the traces of the Benedictine monastery, founded in 724, which exercised remarkable spiritual, intellectual and artistic influence. The churches of St Mary and Marcus, St Peter and St Paul, and St George, mainly built between the 9th and 11th centuries, provide a panorama of early medieval monastic architecture in central Europe. Their wall paintings bear witness to impressive artistic activity.

 

Germany

District of Freiburg, State of Baden-Württemberg

N47 41 55.4 E9 3 40.7

Date of Inscription: 2000

Criteria: (iii)(iv)(vi)

Ref: 974

 

Source:  http://whc.unesco.org

The Wadden Sea

Postcard from Germany

The Wadden Sea comprises the Dutch Wadden Sea Conservation Area and the German Wadden Sea National Parks of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein. It is a large temperate, relatively flat coastal wetland environment, formed by the intricate interactions between physical and biological factors that have given rise to a multitude of transitional habitats with tidal channels, sandy shoals, sea-grass meadows, mussel beds, sandbars, mudflats, salt marshes, estuaries, beaches and dunes. The inscribed site represents over 66% of the whole Wadden Sea and is home to numerous plant and animal species, including marine mammals such as the harbour seal, grey seal and harbour porpoise. It is also a breeding and wintering area for up to 12 millions birds per annum and it supports more than 10 percent of 29 species. The site is one of the last remaining natural, large-scale, intertidal ecosystems where natural processes continue to function largely undisturbed.

Germany

Netherlands

N53 31 43 E8 33 22

Date of Inscription: 2009

Minor modification inscribed year: 2011

Criteria: (viii)(ix)(x)

Property : 982,004 ha

Ref: 1314bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier

Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier

Trier, which stands on the Moselle River, was a Roman colony from the 1st century AD and then a great trading centre beginning in the next century. It became one of the capitals of the Tetrarchy at the end of the 3rd century, when it was known as the ‘second Rome’. The number and quality of the surviving monuments are an outstanding testimony to Roman civilization.

Germany

State of Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz)

N49 45 0 E6 37 60

Date of Inscription: 1986

Criteria: (i)(iii)(iv)(vi)

Ref: 367

Source:http://whc.unesco.org

Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany

Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany

The Ancient Beech Forests of Germany, represent examples of on-going post-glacial biological and ecological evolution of terrestrial ecosystems and are indispensable to understanding the spread of the beech (Fagus sylvatica) in the Northern Hemisphere across a variety of environments. The new inscription represents the addition of five forests totaling 4,391 hectares that are added to the 29,278 hectares of Slovakian and Ukranian beech forests inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2007. The tri-national property is now to be known as the Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany (Slovakia, Ukraine, Germany).

Germany

Slovakia

Ukraine

N49 5 10 E22 32 10

Date of Inscription: 2007

Extension: 2011

Criteria: (ix)

Property : 33,670 ha

Buffer zone: 62,403 ha

Ref: 1133bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Messel Pit Fossil Site

Messel Pit Fossil Site

Messel Pit is the richest site in the world for understanding the living environment of the Eocene, between 57 million and 36 million years ago. In particular, it provides unique information about the early stages of the evolution of mammals and includes exceptionally well-preserved mammal fossils, ranging from fully articulated skeletons to the contents of stomachs of animals of this period.

Germany

District of Darmstadt-Dieburg, State of Hesse (Hessen)

N49 55 0.012 E8 45 14.004

Date of Inscription: 1995

Minor modification inscribed year: 2010

Criteria: (viii)

Property : 42 ha

Buffer zone: 23 ha

Ref: 720bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Luther Memorials in Eisleben and Wittenberg

 

Luther Memorials in Eisleben and Wittenberg

These places in Saxony-Anhalt are all associated with the lives of Martin Luther and his fellow-reformer Melanchthon. They include Melanchthon's house in Wittenberg, the houses in Eisleben where Luther was born in 1483 and died in 1546, his room in Wittenberg, the local church and the castle church where, on 31 October 1517, Luther posted his famous '95 Theses', which launched the Reformation and a new era in the religious and political history of the Western world.

Germany

States of Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt) and Thuringia (Thüringen)

N51 51 52.992 E12 39 10.008

Date of Inscription: 1996

Criteria: (iv)(vi)

Ref: 783

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Castles of Augustusburg and Falkenlust at Brühl

Set in an idyllic garden landscape, Augustusburg Castle (the sumptuous residence of the prince-archbishops of Cologne) and the Falkenlust hunting lodge (a small rural folly) are among the earliest examples of Rococo architecture in 18th-century Germany.

Germany

State of North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen)

N50 49 30.1 E6 54 35.2

Date of Inscription: 1984

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 89 ha

Ref: 288

Source: whc.unesco.org

Würzburg Residence with the Court Gardens and Residence Square

This magnificent Baroque palace – one of the largest and most beautiful in Germany and surrounded by wonderful gardens – was created under the patronage of the prince-bishops Lothar Franz and Friedrich Carl von Schönborn. It was built and decorated in the 18th century by an international team of architects, painters (including Tiepolo), sculptors and stucco-workers, led by Balthasar Neumann.

Germany

District of Lower Franconia, State of Bavaria (Bayern)

N49 47 34.008 E9 56 20.004

Date of Inscription: 1981

Minor modification inscribed year: 2010

Criteria: (i)(iv)

Property : 15 ha

Buffer zone: 25 ha

Ref: 169bis

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Historic Centres of Stralsund and Wismar

Brief Description

The medieval towns of Wismar and Stralsund, on the Baltic coast of northern Germany, were major trading centres of the Hanseatic League in the 14th and 15th centuries. In the 17th and 18th centuries they became Swedish administrative and defensive centres for the German territories. They contributed to the development of the characteristic building types and techniques of Brick Gothic in the Baltic region, as exemplified in several important brick cathedrals, the Town Hall of Stralsund, and the series of houses for residential, commercial and crafts use, representing its evolution over several centuries.

Germany

State of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern)

N54 18 9 E13 5 7

Date of Inscription: 2002

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 168 ha

Buffer zone: 448 ha

Ref: 1067

Source: http://whc.unesco.org

Museumsinsel (Museum Island), Berlin

Brief Description

The museum as a social phenomenon owes its origins to the Age of Enlightenment in the 18th century. The five museums on the Museumsinsel in Berlin, built between 1824 and 1930, are the realization of a visionary project and show the evolution of approaches to museum design over the course of the 20th century. Each museum was designed so as to establish an organic connection with the art it houses. The importance of the museum's collections – which trace the development of civilizations throughout the ages – is enhanced by the urban and architectural quality of the buildings.

Germany

Berlin (city-state)

N52 31 11 E13 23 55

Date of Inscription: 1999

Criteria: (ii)(iv)

Property : 8.60 ha

Buffer zone: 23 ha

Ref: 896

Source: http://whc.unesco.org