CNN
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A collection of tombs from the ancient Gaya Korean confederation, a Viking fortress in Denmark, an ancient Thai city and 2,000-year-old earthworks in Ohio are among the candidates for listing at the site. UNESCO World Heritage List This year.
After much deliberation, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is expected to soon announce which sites have received the honor of inclusion on its list of World Heritage Sites.
This year, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee is reviewing the 2022 and 2023 nominations, with participants from around the world attending the session in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to review nearly 50 nominations.
“Outstanding universal value”
This year’s meeting comes 45 years after UNESCO designated its very first World Heritage sites, when Yellowstone National Park in the United States and the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador earned a spot on the coveted list.
According to UNESCO, sites must have “outstanding universal value” to be included on the World Heritage List.
To be eligible, a site must meet at least one of the criteria of a specific list, which is “regularly revised by the committee to reflect the evolution of the concept of world heritage itself”.
The nomination process can extend over several years, and if a monument is omitted for a year, it may be re-examined at the next UNESCO convention.
Once a monument is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the country or nation in which it is based can receive financial assistance, as well as advice from UNESCO experts to help preserve the site.
So far, the World Heritage Committee has listed approximately 1,157 sites in 167 different countries on the World Heritage List.
Only countries signatories to the convention the creation of the World Heritage Committee and the list is authorized to nominate sites.
While at the time of submission of applications this figure represented around 40 countries, it has since expanded to 195 nations.
Gaya Tumulus, composed of seven groups of tombs from the ancient Gaya confederation of Korea, is one of several landmark sites among the 50 sites nominated for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List This year.
The cone-shaped burial mounds, which stretch across the Goryeong Hills, would be the 16th site in South Korea to be added to the list if chosen.
Covering an area of 830 square miles, the incredible landscape of Ethiopia Balé Mountains National Park is also a serious competitor.
Located 240 miles southeast of Addis Ababa, the park covers an area of 830 square miles, including the Sanetti Plateau, home to the Ethiopian wolf, the rarest canid in the world.
In the meantime, Gordonthe capital of ancient Phrygia in Turkey, has also been nominated for inscription in the “cultural properties” section.
With an illustrious history dating back to the early Bronze Age in 3000 BCE, Gordion is home to around 90 pyramid-shaped burial mounds, the largest believed to be the tomb of ancient King Midas.
Other treasures on the consideration list include:
Viking Age Ring Fortresses, Denmark: The ruins of ancient fortifications and dwellings date back more than 1,000 years.
Dry forests of Andrefana, Madagascar: Very unusual scenery of flora and fauna, including lemurs, found only in Madagascar.
The ancient city of Si Thep, Thailand: The ruins of an ancient city that once became a powerful local state.
La Maison Carrée in Nîmes, France: The Roman temple “Maison Carrée” is one of the best preserved vestiges of the domination of the Roman Empire over the south of France.
Uruq Bani Ma’arid, Saudi Arabia: The western edge of the Ar-Rub’ al-Khali, or Empty Quarter, is one of the most spectacular sand deserts in the world and home to rare Arabian oryx.
Ceremonial earthworks of Hopewell, Ohio: These gigantic ceremonial structures date back 2,000 years, and some are believed to be used as lunar or astral observatories.
Historical center of Gorokhovets, Russia: This small medieval town in Vladimir Oblast, Russia is home to the Gorokhovets Historical and Architectural Museum.
Jewish and medieval heritage of Erfurt, Germany: The Old Synagogue, home to a Jewish ritual bath known as a mikvah, and the tombstones of the medieval Jewish community are among the many examples of significant Judeo-medieval heritage in the city of Erfurt, Germany.
Koh Ker: Archaeological site of ancient Lingapura or Chok Gargyar, Cambodia: The former capital of the Khmer Empire, this 10th-century temple complex in northern Cambodia features an iconic seven-step pyramid known as the Prang.
Kuldīga, formerly Goldingen, in Courland, Latvia: This charming town in the Courland region of Latvia is known for its pretty old town and red brick bridge.
Modernist Kaunas: architecture of optimism, 1919-1939, Lithuania
Takalik Ab’aj National Archaeological Park, Guatemala
Santiniketan, India
Silk Roads: Zarafshan-Karakum corridor, Tajikistan
Talayotic Menorca, Spain
The Gedeo Cultural Landscape, Ethiopia
The Persian caravanserai, Iran
Tr’ondëk-Klondike, Canada
Žatec and the Saaz hop landscape, Czech Republic
Odzala-Kokoua forest massif, Congo
Volcanoes and forests of Montagne Pelée and the Pitons of Northern Martinique, France
Koutammakou, the land of the Batammariba, Benin
Ha Long Bay – Cat Ba Archipelago, Vietnam
Hyrcanian forests, Iran/Azerbaijan
Ancient Jericho/Tell es-Sultan, Palestinian Territories
Astronomical observatories of Kazan Federal University, Russia
Cultural landscape of the Khinalig people and “Köç Yolu” transhumance route, Azerbaijan
Djerba: cultural landscape, Tunisia
ESMA Museum and Memory Site – Former clandestine center of detention, torture and extermination, Argentina
Funeral and memorial sites of the Western Front of the First World War, Belgium/France
Jodensavanne archaeological site, Suriname
Royal Eise Planetarium Eisinga, Netherlands
Anatolian medieval mosques with wooden posts and upper structure, Türkiye
Genocide memorial sites: Nyamata, Murambi, Gisozi and Bisesero, Rwanda
Sacred groups of the Hoysalas, India
The cosmological axis of Yogyakarta and its historical monuments, Indonesia
The cultural landscape of Masouleh, Iran
Anticosti, Canada
Bale Mountains National Park, Ethiopia
Cold winter deserts of Turan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan
Evaporitic karst and caves of the Northern Apennines, Italy
Nyungwe National Park, Rwanda
Tugay forests of Tigrovaya Balka nature reserve, Tajikistan
Mongolian Altai Highlands, Mongolia
Cultural landscape of Zagori, Greece
Historic center of Guimarães and Couros area, Portugal
CNN’s Francesca Street also contributed to this article.
