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Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley
The Madriu-Perafita-Claror Valley is a glacial valley in the southeast of Andorra. It covers an area of 42.47 km², approximately 9% of the total area of Andorra, and is part of the second largest watershed basin in Andorra. The isolated valley is recognised as a haven for rare or endangered wildlife, and the undeveloped valley has recently been considered to be the "spiritual heart" of Andorra. It became Andorra's first, and to date its only, UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, with a small extension in 2006.
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Cueva de las Manos, Río Pinturas
Cueva de las Manos is a cave and complex of rock art sites in the province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, 163 km (101 mi) south of the town of Perito Moreno. It is named for the hundreds of paintings of hands stenciled, in multiple collages, on the rock walls. The site is considered by some scholars to be the best material evidence of early South American hunter-gatherer groups.
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Antigua Naval Dockyard and Related Archaeological Sites
The Antigua Naval Dockyard and its Related Archaeological Sites consists of a group of Georgian Naval structures, set within a walled enclosure, on a naturally-occurring series of deep narrow bays surrounded by highlands on which defensive fortifications were constructed. The Dockyard and its related facilities were built at a time when European nations were battling for supremacy of the seas to obtain control over the lucrative sugar-producing islands of the Eastern Caribbean. Antigua’s location as a front-line naval dockyard facility gave the British navy a strategic advantage over its rivals at a crucial point in history.
4
Polynesian Cultural Center
The Polynesian Cultural Center is Hawaii's visitor attraction, has 6 island villages representing the unique island cultures of Hawaii, Fiji, Aotearoa (New Zealand), Samoa, Tahiti, and Tonga. Set on 42 acres along Oahu's North Shore, the Polynesian Cultural Center has a lagoon that hosts daily canoe tours. This extensive cultural theme park, nested along the rural North Shore area of Oahu, is frequently ranked as one of the top attractions in Hawaii.
5
Srebarna Nature Reserve
The Srebarna Nature Reserve is a freshwater lake adjacent to the Danube and extending over 600 ha. It is the breeding ground of almost 100 species of birds, many of which are rare or endangered. Some 80 other bird species migrate and seek refuge there every winter. With the effects of global warming becoming a reality, nature reserves serve as a habitat for different species of animals, birds, and plants. Nature reserves also help protect endangered species from poachers and other predators.
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Monastery of Geghard and the Upper Azat Valley
The monastery of Geghard and the Upper Azat Valley contains a number of churches and tombs, most of them cut into the living rock, which illustrate Armenian medieval architecture at its highest point. The complex of medieval buildings is set into a landscape of great natural beauty, at the entrance to the Azat Valley. The monastery was originally founded in the 4th century CE by Gregory the Illuminator at the site of a sacred spring inside a cave, but the main cathedral was not built until 1215 CE, when national culture and architecture began to flourish under medieval Armenian royalty.
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Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is unique as it extends over 14 degrees of latitude, from shallow estuarine areas to deep oceanic waters. Within this vast expanse is a unique range of ecological communities, habitats and species - all of which make the Reef one of the most complex natural ecosystems in the world. The reef is home to so many different species that around 8% of the different species of fish in the entire world are found there. It is called the Great Barrier Reef because of its huge size and the fact it borders a coast (making it a 'barrier' reef).
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Tiwanaku: Spiritual and Political Centre of the Tiwanaku Culture
Tiwanaku society was organized into different social classes in the following hierarchical order: Leaders, priests, administrators, artisans and lastly the large masses of peasants and herders. The buildings of Tiwanaku are exceptional examples of the ceremonial and public architecture and art of one of the most important manifestations of the civilizations of the Andean region. It was once the most important city in the Andes. During its peak towards the end of the 8th century, Tiwanaku was the most significant urban center in the entire Southern Andes, with influence stretching as far as modern-day north Argentina, Chile, and Peru.
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Peranakan Museum
The Peranakans are an ethnic group defined by their genealogical descent from the first waves of Southern Chinese settlers to maritime Southeast Asia, known as Nanyang. The term Peranakan dates to the 15th century A.D., when a legend says that a Chinese princess married the Sultan of Malacca in what is now a port city in Malaysia. Men from her entourage married local women and their children were called peranakans, translated as local born in Malay.
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Macquarie Island
The marine park contains one of the world's largest highly protected marine zones, covering more than 160,000 km². There are no permanent human inhabitants on Macquarie Island although the Australian Antarctic Division station is occupied year round. The only access to the island is by sea. Macquarie Island is a geological wonder. The rocks hidden under its tussocks and peat were formed on or deep below the seabed. This makes the island unique and the main reason for its listing as a site of World Heritage significance.
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Pantanal Conservation Area
The Pantanal is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area, and the world's largest flooded grasslands. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and portions of Bolivia and Paraguay. Various subregional ecosystems exist, each with distinct hydrological, geological and ecological characteristics; up to 12 of them have been defined. Roughly 80% of the Pantanal floodplains are submerged during the rainy seasons, nurturing a biologically diverse collection of aquatic plants and helping to support a dense array of animal species. The Pantanal ecosystem is home to some 463 species of birds, 269 species of fishes, more than 236 species of mammals, 141 species of reptiles and amphibians, and over 9,000 subspecies of invertebrates.
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Ancient Ferrous Metallurgy Sites of Burkina Faso
The Ancient Ferrous Metallurgy Sites of Burkina Faso are a collection of ancient metallurgy sites across five locations in the Nord and Centre-Nord regions of Burkina Faso, used to extract iron from ore. Douroula, which dates back to the 8th century BCE, is the oldest evidence of the development of iron production found in Burkina Faso. The other components of the property - Tiwêga, Yamané, Kindibo and Békuy – illustrate the intensification of iron production during the second millennium CE.
13
Palace and Gardens of Schönbrunn
During the reign of Maria Theresa, as an imperial summer residence, Schönbrunn Palace became the glittering focus of court life. From this time on, it played host to the leading statesmen of Europe. Schönbrunn means beautiful spring. The palace is named after the natural spring or the artesian well that once flowed through the area and provided the water stream to the court. The castle was built on a former hunting lodge site that the Habsburgs had used for centuries.
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National Museum of African American History and Culture
The National Museum of African American History and Culture is a place where all Americans can learn about the richness and diversity of the African American experience, what it means to their lives, and how it helped us shape this nation. The museum has about 3,000 objects on display from its collection of more than 37,000. The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture. It was established by an Act of Congress in 2003, following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans.
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Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape
Gobustan Rock Art represents flora and fauna, hunting, lifestyles, and culture of pre-historic and medieval periods of time. The carvings on the rocks illustrates primitive men, ritual dances, men with lances in their hands, animals, bull fights, camel caravans, and pictures of the sun and stars. Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape covers three areas of a plateau of rocky boulders rising out of the semi-desert of central Azerbaijan, with an outstanding collection of more than 6,000 rock engravings bearing testimony to 40,000 years of rock art. The site also features the remains of inhabited caves, settlements and burials, all reflecting an intensive human use by the inhabitants of the area during the wet period that followed the last Ice Age, from the Upper Paleolithic to the Middle Ages. The site, which covers an area of 537 ha, is part of the larger protected Gobustan Reservation.
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Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur
Vihara, early type of Buddhist monastery consisting of an open court surrounded by open cells accessible through an entrance porch. The viharas in India were originally constructed to shelter the monks during the rainy season, when it became difficult for them to lead the wanderer's life. Today, Paharpur is the most spectacular and magnificent monument in Bangladesh and the second largest single Buddhist monastery on south of the Himalayas. This monastery-city represents a unique artistic achievement.
17
Major Mining Sites of Wallonia
The Major Mining Sites of Wallonia is a UNESCO World Heritage Site comprising four sites in Wallonia in southern Belgium associated with the Belgian coal mining industry of the 19th and 20th centuries. The four sites of the grouping, situated in the French-speaking Hainaut Province and Liège Province, comprise Grand-Hornu, the Bois-du-Luc, the Bois du Cazier and Blegny-Mine. It features early examples of the utopian architecture from the early periods of the industrial era in Europe within a highly integrated, industrial and urban ensemble, notably the Grand-Hornu colliery and workers’ city designed by Bruno Renard in the first half of the 19th century. During the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century, mining and the heavy industry that relied on coal formed a major part of Belgium's economy.
18
Norbulingka Institute
Norbulingka Institute, founded in 1995 by Kelsang and Kim Yeshi at Sidhpur, near Dharamshala, India, is dedicated to the preservation of the Tibetan culture in its literary and artistic forms. The institute is named after Norbulingka, the traditional summer residence of the Dalai Lamas, in Lhasa, Tibet. The ground plan is based on the proportions of Avalokitesvara, the thousand-armed god of compassion, with the temple as the head. Norbulingka is dedicated to handing down tradition and restoring standards by providing training, education and employment for Tibetans. It supports an environment in which Tibetan community and family values can flourish.
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Historic City of Sucre
The Historic City of Sucre, located in the foothills of the Sica Sica and Churuquella in central-south of Bolivia, is an excellent, intact and well-preserved illustration of the architectural blending achieved in Latin America through the assimilation of local traditions and styles imported from Europe. Sucre, the first capital of Bolivia, was founded by the Spanish in the first half of the 16th century. Its many well-preserved 16th-century religious buildings, such as San Lázaro, San Francisco and Santo Domingo, illustrate the blending of local architectural traditions with styles imported from Europe.
20
Old Bridge Area of the Old City of Mostar
The famous single-arch stone bridge over the Neretva River in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, was built in 1557-1566 by the order of Ottoman Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent. When it was completed in 1566/67, the bridge had the widest arch in the world and was a masterpiece of Ottoman architecture. So much so, that the city of Mostar is actually named after the bridge and is derived from the Slavic word - mostari - for 'bridge keepers'. During the conflict that tore apart the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, the beautiful Old Bridge in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, was completely destroyed.
21
Okavango Delta
The Okavango Delta is a vast inland river delta in northern Botswana. It's known for its sprawling grassy plains, which flood seasonally, becoming a lush animal habitat. It is one of the largest freshwater wetlands in southern Africa and is home to over 1,000 species of plants, more than 480 species of birds, 130 species of mammals, and numerous species of reptiles and fish. The best time to visit the Okavango Delta is between June and August and from September to October - however, a winning combination of permanent wetlands and abundant resident wildlife means the Okavango Delta is a year-round safari destination.
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Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Congonhas
The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos is an 18th century Roman Catholic basilica in Congonhas, Minas Gerais, Brazil. It was designed in the Baroque style with an Italian-inspired Rococo interior. The basilica is noted for its grand outdoor stairway with statues of Old Testament prophets. The interior has seven side chapels which illustrate the Stations of the Cross; each has a polychrome sculpture made by the artist Aleijadinho and his assistants. They are considered masterpieces of an original, moving, and expressive form of Baroque art. The basilica was listed as a historic structure by the National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage in 1939, and designated at It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985.
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Boyana Church
The Boyana Church owes its world fame above all to the frescoes from 1259, which demonstrate the exceptional achievements of medieval Bulgarian culture. The majority of the more than 240 figures depicted here display individuality, remarkable psychological insight and vitality. Located on the outskirts of Sofia, Boyana Church consists of three buildings. The eastern church was built in the 10th century, then enlarged at the beginning of the 13th century by Sebastocrator Kaloyan, who ordered a second two storey building to be erected next to it.
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