UNESCO: Protection of Cultural Landscapes
There are many different landscapes across the world that are representative of the different regions of the world. They are combined works created by nature and mankind, they express a long and intimate relationship between people and their environment. Some of the sites show specific techniques of land use that preserve biological diversity. Other landscapes show the communities, their beliefs and artistic and traditional customs. They embody the exceptional spiritual relationship of people and nature.Cultural landscapes have been added to the World Heritage List as they reveal and sustain the great diversity of the interactions between humans and the environment. They have also been added to protect living traditional cultures and to preserve the traces of those which have disappeared.
To date, 88 properties have been included on the World Heritage List as cultural landscapes.
Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routed in the Kii Mountain Range- Japan
Date of inscription: 2004
Set in the dense forests of the Kii Mountains overlooking the Pacific Ocean, three sacred sites linked to the pilgrimage routes to the ancient capital cities of Nara and Kyoto, reflect the fusion of Shinto, rooted in the ancient tradition of nature worship in Japan, and Buddhism, which was introduced from China to the Korean Peninsula. The sites and their surrounding forest landscape reflect a persistent and extraordinarily well-documented tradition of sacred mountains over 1200 years. The area, with its abundance of streams, rivers and waterfalls, is still part of the living culture of Japan and is much visited for ritual purposes and hiking, with up to 15 million visitors annually. Each of the three sites contains shrines, some of which were founded as early as the 9th century.
Reasons for preservation:
The monuments and sites that form the cultural landscape of the Kii Mountains show a unique relationship between Shintoism and Buddhism that shows the interchange and development of religion in East Asia.
The shrines and temples and their associated rituals show the development of Japan's religious culture over more than 1000 years.
They are the setting of unique forms of shrine and temple buildings which have had a major influence on the construction of shrines elsewhere in Japan.
The site reflects a persistent and extremely well documented tradition of sacred mountains over the past 1200 years.
Each property has an adequate buffer zone to ensure the entire properties wholeness and intactness.
How is the site preserved?
The natural environment is well preserved such as contrition of new buildings and tree felling cannot be carried out without prior permission of the national or prefectural government. All building are well preserved through preservation and maintenance activities carried out by relevant religious organisations. The pilgrim routes are preserved and maintained by private owners, local governments and the national government.
Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City
Date of inscription: 2004
Also unscripted on the List of World Heritage in Danger (2012)
Six area in the historic centre and docklands of the maritime mercantile City of Liverpool bear witness to the development of one of the world's major trading centres in the 18th and 19th centuries. Liverpool played an important part in the growth of the British Empire and became the major port for mass movement of people e.g. slaves and emigrants from northern Europe to America. Liverpool was a pioneer in the development of modern dock technology, transport systems and port management. The listed sites feature a great number of significant commercial, civic and public buildings, including St George's Plateau.
The property is in the boundary of Liverpool City Council and is protected through the planning system and the designation of over 380 buildings. The six sections of the property are protected as Conservation Areas under the provisions of the Planning Act 1990.
The properties in the boundary are in mixed ownership and several institutions have management responsibilities relating to them. A full management plan has been prepared for the property. Its implementation is overseen by the Liverpool World Heritage Group, which includes most public bodies involved in the property. At the time of inscription the World Heritage Committee requested that the height of any new construction in the property should not exceed that of structures in the new immediate surroundings; the character of any new construction should represent that qualities of the historic area, and new construction at the Pier Head should not dominate, but complement the historic Pier Head buildings. There is a need for conservation and development to be based on an analysis of townscape characteristics and to be constrained by clear regulations establishing prescribed heights of buildings.
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