Comprehensive Preservation and Management Plan for World Heritage Property “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara” Nara City / Nara Prefecture Comprehensive Preservation and Management Plan for the World Heritage Property, “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara” Contents Chapter 1 Basic Matters of the Plan 1 1.1 Purpose of Plan formulation .................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Process of the Plan Formation ............................................................................................... 2 1.3 Composition and Structure of the Plan .................................................................................. 4 1.4 Relationship with Other Plans ............................................................................................... 5 1.5 Implementation and Review of the plan ................................................................................ 6 1.5.1 Implementation Structure ................................................................................................ 6 1.5.2 Operation and Review of the Plan .................................................................................. 9 Chapter 2 Outline of World Heritage “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara” 10 2.1 Statement of Outstanding Universal Value ............................................................................ 10 2.2 Component Parts .................................................................................................................... 14 2.2.1 List of Component Parts ................................................................................................. 14 2.2.2 Outline of component parts ............................................................................................. 19 2.3 Examination of Conservation State by World Heritage Committee ...................................... 25 Chapter 3 Current State of Property and its Surrounding Environments 27 3.1 Outline of Nara City .............................................................................................................. 27 3.2 Current State of Property ....................................................................................................... 31 3.2.1 Precincts and Group of Religious Buildings of Temples and Shrines ............................ 33 3.2.2 Cultural Landscape Associated with Shintoism of Kasuga-Taisha and Kasugayama Primeval Forest .............................................................................................................................. 42 3.2.3 Archaeological Sites of Nara Palace Site ........................................................................ 47 3.3 Current Conditions of Surrounding Environments ................................................................ 52 3.3.1 Vicinity of Kasugayama ................................................................................................ 55 3.3.2 Vicinity of Gangô-ji ........................................................................................................ 56 3.3.3 Vicinity of Nishino-kyô .................................................................................................. 57 3.3.4 Vicinity of Nara Palace Site ............................................................................................ 58 3.3.5 Management Structure .................................................................................................... 59 3.4 Focus of Attention and Policy for Plan Formulation ............................................................. 65 Chapter 4 Visions and Basic Policy for Conservation Management 68 Chapter 5 Preservation Management of Outstanding Universal Value 71 5.1 Definition of Elements Necessary to Express Outstanding Universal Value ......................... 71 5.2 Preservation Management Corresponding to Category of Components ................................ 77 5.3 Addressing to the factors affecting the property in accordance with the Act on Protection of Cultural Properties, Ancient Capitals Preservation Act, Urban Planning Act, Landscape Act, etc. ............................................................................................................................................. 79 5.4 Development and maintenance of human resources who protect Outstanding Universal Value 79 Chapter 6 Comprehensive Preservation with Surrounding Environments 80 6.1 Establishment of Area-Specific Directionality in Preservation in Line with Relationship with Component Parts ................................................................................................................... 80 6.2 Coexistence with the lives of local residents ......................................................................... 82 Chapter 7 Advancement of interpretation/promotion 84 7.1 Interpretation/promotion based on the characteristics of each component part ..................... 84 7.2 Continuance of Researches/Studies and the Transmission of Results ................................... 89 Chapter 8 Monitoring 90 Chapter 9 Enhancing Comprehensive Preservation and Management 93 Appendix Acts and Regulations Chapter 1 Basic Matters of the Plan 1.1 Purpose of Plan formulation The world heritage “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara” was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1998. In line with Paragraph 108 of the “Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention” (hereinafter, “Operational Guidelines”), the state party that owns the properties nominated for inscription was requested to formulate an appropriate management plan explicitly describing the measures to conserve the property's Outstanding Universal Value, or to establish a management structure since 2005. Following this, with regard also to the properties inscribed on the World Heritage List prior to that request, the state party was requested to formulate a management plan for the WHC examination of the state of conservation. Since the nomination for inscription of the “Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range” prescribed in 2004, in addition to the existing preservation management plans, etc. related to individual cultural properties (hereinafter, “individual preservation management plan”), Japan has formulated a comprehensive preservation and management plan targeting all properties that correspond to the management plan above for serial property. As for properties inscribed prior to the WHC request, for “Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu” prescribed in 2000, the Comprehensive Preservation and Management Plans were formulated to ensure the preservation and management of Outstanding Universal Value in 2013, 13 years following the inscription. Although the “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara” have basically been maintained in a good state of conservation following the inscription on the WHL, through the process of the examination of the state of conservation by the World Heritage Committee, the World Heritage Centre and advisory bodies indicated that it is important to establish a permanent adjustment mechanism which harmonises the preservation policies for the entire property. This Comprehensive Preservation and Management Plan has been hereby formulated, taking into consideration the tendency in the current preservation and management of world heritage sites, and the fact that about 15 years have passed since the inscription of the “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara” on the World Heritage List; then, accordingly, it has become necessary to study the preservation and management measures which correspond to the changes in the state of preservation and use, and the surrounding environments of the property. 1 1.2 Process of the Plan Formation The “Advisers Meeting for the Formulation of the World Heritage ‘Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara’ Comprehensive Preservation and Management Plan” (hereinafter, Advisers Meeting) was organised in order to formulate the plan. Meetings were held, and such items were discussed as the current state of the property, summarisation of issues to be addressed, examination of the basic policies for preservation and management, etc., centering around the advisers who are all experts in the protection of the cultural heritage, in the presence of representatives from the Agency of Cultural Affairs, and representatives of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (hereinafter, “MLIT”) as observers, and of relevant departments of the Nara prefectural and municipal governments. Attendances, dates, and agenda items of the Advisers Meeting are listed below. Table 1-1 List of Attendance of the Advisers Meeting (The names of the advisers are listed in Japanese alphabetical order. Honorific prefixes are omitted omitted.) Members Name Speciali sed Field Place of W ork , etc. INABA Nobuko Cultural heritage/ Prof. , Graduate School of University of (Vice chairperson ) Architectural history Tsukuba Vice Director General, Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties Garden history/Historic ONO Kenkichi Nara municipal government, heritage Member of the Council for the Protection of Cultural Properties Architectural history/ SAITO Hidetoshi Cultural properties Prof., Kyoto Women’s University Advisers preservation Specially Appointed Prof ., Nara TANABE Ikuo Prefectural University Archaeology (Chairperson) Chair Person of the Nara City Council for the Protection of Cultural Properties Prof. , Nara Women’s University Conservation and promotion