Brief Descriptions of Sites Inscribed on the World Heritage List
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July 2002 WHC.2002/15 Brief Descriptions of Sites Inscribed on the World Heritage List UNESCO 1972 CONVENTION CONCERNING THE PROTECTION OF THE WORLD CULTURAL AND NATURAL HERITAGE WORLD HERITAGE CENTRE Additional copies of the Brief Descriptions, and other information concerning World Heritage, in English and French, are available from the Secretariat: UNESCO World Heritage Centre 7, place de Fontenoy 75352 Paris 07 SP France Tel: +33 (0)1 45 68 15 71 Fax: +33(0)1 45 68 55 70 E-mail: [email protected] http://www.unesco.org/whc/ http://www.unesco.org/whc/brief.htm (Brief Descriptions in English) http://www.unesco.org/whc/fr/breves.htm (Brèves descriptions en français) BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE 730 SITES INSCRIBED ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST WORLD HERITAGE CENTRE, UNESCO, July 2002 STATE PARTY the Kbor er Roumia, the great royal mausoleum of Mauritania. Site Name Year of inscription Timgad 1982 [C: cultural; N: natural; N/C: mixed] (C ii, iii, iv) Timgad lies on the northern slopes of the Aurès mountains and was created ex nihilo as a military colony by the Emperor Trajan in A.D. 100. With its square enclosure and orthogonal design based on the cardo and decumanus, the two AFGHANISTAN perpendicular routes running through the city, it is an excellent example of Roman town planning. Minaret and Archaeological Remains of Jam 2002 (C ii, iii, iv) Kasbah of Algiers 1992 The 65m-tall Minaret of Jam is a graceful, soaring structure, dating back to the (C ii, v) 12th century. Covered in elaborate brickwork with a blue tile inscription at the The Kasbah is a unique kind of medina, or Islamic city. It stands in one of the top, it is noteworthy for the quality of its architecture and decoration, which finest coastal sites on the Mediterranean, overlooking the islands where a represent the culmination of an architectural and artistic tradition in this region. Carthaginian trading-post was established in the 4th century B.C. There are the Its impact is heightened by its dramatic setting, a deep river valley between remains of the citadel, old mosques and Ottoman-style palaces as well as the towering mountains in the heart of the Ghur province. remains of a traditional urban structure associated with a deep-rooted sense of community. ALBANIA ARGENTINA Butrint 1992-1999 (C iii) Los Glaciares 1981 Inhabited since prehistoric times, Butrint has been the site of a Greek colony, a (N ii, iii) Roman city and a bishopric. Following a period of prosperity under Byzantine The Los Glaciares National Park is an area of exceptional natural beauty, with administration, then a brief occupation by the Venetians, the city was rugged, towering mountains and numerous glacial lakes, including Lake abandoned in the late Middle Ages after marshes formed in the area. The Argentino, which is 160 km long. At its farthest end, three glaciers meet to dump present archaeological site is a repository of ruins representing each period in their effluvia into the milky grey glacial water, launching massive igloo icebergs the city’s development. into the lake with thunderous splashes. ALGERIA Iguazú National Park 1984 (N iii, iv) Al Qal’a of Beni Hammad 1980 The semicircular waterfall at the heart of this site is some 80 m high and 2,700 (C iii) m in diameter and is situated on a basaltic line spanning the border between In a mountainous site of extraordinary beauty, the ruins of the first capital of the Argentina and Brazil. Made up of many cascades producing vast sprays of Hammadid emirs, founded in 1007 and demolished in 1152, provide an water, it is one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. The surrounding authentic picture of a fortified Muslim city. The mosque, whose prayer room has subtropical rainforest has over 2,000 species of vascular plants and is home to 13 aisles with eight bays, is one of the largest in Algeria. the typical wildlife of the region: tapirs, giant anteaters, howler monkeys, ocelots, jaguars and caymans. Tassili n’Ajjer 1982 (N ii, iii / C i, iii) Cueva de las Manos, Río Pinturas 1999 Located in a strange lunar landscape of great geological interest, this site has (C iii) one of the most important groupings of prehistoric cave art in the world. More The Cueva de las Manos, Río Pinturas, contains an exceptional assemblage of than 15,000 drawings and engravings record the climatic changes, the animal cave art, executed between 13,000 and 9,500 years ago. It takes its name migrations and the evolution of human life on the edge of the Sahara from 6000 (Cave of the Hands) from the stencilled outlines of human hands in the cave, but B.C. to the first centuries of the present era. The geological formations are of there are also many depictions of animals, such as guanacos (Lama guanicoe), outstanding scenic interest, with eroded sandstones forming ‘forests of rock’. which are still common in the region, as well as hunting scenes. The people who were responsible for the paintings may have been the ancestors of the historic M’Zab Valley 1982 hunter-gatherer communities of Patagonia found by European settlers in the (C ii, iii, v) 19th century. A traditional human habitat, created in the 10th century by the Ibadites around their five ksour (fortified cities), has been preserved intact in the M’Zab valley. Península Valdés 1999 Simple, functional and perfectly adapted to the environment, the architecture of (N iv) M’Zab was designed for community living, while respecting the structure of the Península Valdés in Patagonia is a site of global significance for the family. It is a source of inspiration for today’s urban planners. conservation of marine mammals. It is home to an important breeding population of the endangered southern right whale as well as important breeding Djémila 1982 populations of southern elephant seals and southern sea lions. The orcas in this (C iii, iv) area have developed a unique hunting strategy to adapt to local coastal Situated 900 m above sea-level, Djémila, or Cuicul, with its forum, temples, conditions. basilicas, triumphal arches and houses, is an interesting example of Roman town planning adapted to a mountain location. Ischigualasto - Talampaya Natural Parks 2000 (N i) Tipasa 1982 These two contiguous parks, extending over 275,300 ha in the desert region on (C iii, iv) the western border of the Sierra Pampeanas of central Argentina, contain the On the shores of the Mediterranean, Tipasa was an ancient Punic trading-post most complete continental fossil record known from the Triassic Period (245-208 conquered by Rome and turned into a strategic base for the conquest of the million years ago). Six geological formations in the parks contain fossils of a kingdoms of Mauritania. It comprises a unique group of Phoenician, Roman, wide range of ancestors of mammals, dinosaurs and plants revealing the palaeochristian and Byzantine ruins alongside indigenous monuments such as 1 evolution of vertebrates and the nature of palaeo-environments in the Triassic Willandra Lakes Region 1981 Period. (N i / C iii) The fossil remains of a series of lakes and sand formations that date from the Jesuit Block and Estancias of Córdoba 2000 Pleistocene can be found in this region, together with archaeological evidence of (C ii, iv) human occupation dating from 45–60,000 years ago. It is a unique landmark in The Jesuit Block in Córdoba, heart of the former Jesuit Province of Paraguay, the study of human evolution on the Australian continent. Several well-preserved contains the core buildings of the Jesuit system: the university, the church and fossils of giant marsupials have also been found here. residence of the Society of Jesus, and the college. Along with the five estancias, or farming estates, they contain religious and secular buildings, which illustrate Tasmanian Wilderness 1982-1989 the unique religious, social, and economic experiment carried out in the world for (N i, ii, iii, iv / C iii, iv, vi) a period of over 150 years in the 17th and 18th centuries. In a region that has been subjected to severe glaciation, these parks and reserves, with their steep gorges, covering an area of over 1 million ha, ARGENTINA and BRAZIL constitute one of the last expanses of temperate rainforest in the world. Remains found in limestone caves attest to the human occupation of the area for more Jesuit Missions of the Guaranis: San Ignacio Miní, Santa Ana, Nuestra than 20,000 years. Señora de Loreto and Santa María la Mayor (Argentina); Ruins of São Miguel das Missões (Brazil) 1983-1984 Lord Howe Island Group 1982 (C iv) (N iii, iv) The ruins of São Miguel das Missões in Brazil, and those of San Ignacio Miní, A remarkable example of isolated oceanic islands, born of volcanic activity more Santa Ana, Nuestra Señora de Loreto and Santa María la Mayor in Argentina, lie than 2,000 m under the sea, these islands boast a spectacular topography and at the heart of a tropical forest. They are the impressive remains of five Jesuit are home to numerous endemic species, especially birds. missions, built in the land of the Guaranis during the 17th and 18th centuries. Each is characterized by a specific layout and a different state of conservation. Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves (Australia) 1986-1994 (N i, ii, iv) ARMENIA This site, comprising several protected areas, is situated predominantly along the Great Escarpment on Australia’s east coast. The outstanding geological Monasteries of Haghpat and Sanahin 1996-2000 features displayed around shield volcanic craters and the high number of rare (C ii, iv) and threatened rainforest species are of international significance for science These two Byzantine monasteries in the Tumanian region from the period of and conservation.