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CHINA
- World Heritage Sites
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The
Great Wall
Inscribed:
1987
Location: Beijing
Brief description: In about 220 B.C.,
under Qin Shi Huang, sections of fortifications which
had been built earlier were joined together to form a
united defence system against invasions from the north.
Construction continued up to the Ming dynasty
(1368-1644), when the Great Wall became the world's
largest military structure. Its historic and strategic
importance is matched only by its architectural value.
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Mount Taishan
Inscribed
:1987
Location: Shandong Province
Brief description: The sacred Mount Taishan has been
the object of an imperial pilgrimage for nearly
two thousand years, and the artistic masterpieces
contained within it are in perfect harmony with
the natural landscape. It has always been a source
of inspiration to Chinese artists and scholars and
symbolizes ancient Chinese civilizations and
beliefs.
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Imperial
Palace
of the Ming and Qing Dynasties
Inscribed : 1987
Location: Beijing
Brief description: Seat of supreme power for over five
centuries, the Forbidden City, with its landscaped
gardens and many buildings whose 9,000 rooms contain
furniture and works of art, constitutes a priceless
testimony to Chinese civilization during the Ming and
Qing Dynasties.
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Mogao
Caves
Inscribed : 1987
Location: Gansu Province
Brief description: Situated at a strategic point along
the Silk Road, at the crossroads of trade as well as of
religious, cultural and intellectual influences, the 492
cells and cave sanctuaries in Mogao are famous for their
statues and wall paintings, spanning a thousand years of
Buddhist art.
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Mausoleum
of the First Qin Emperor
(Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses)
Inscribed : 1987
Location: Xi'an, Shaanxi Province
Brief description: No doubt thousands of statues still
remain to be unearthed on this archaeological site, not
discovered until 1974. Qin, the first unifier of China,
who died in 210 B.C., is buried, surrounded by the
famous terracotta warriors, at the center of a complex
designed to mirror the urban plan of the capital, Xi'an.
The small figures, all different, with their horses,
chariots and weapons, are masterpieces of realism and
also hold great historical interest. |
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Peking
Man Site at Zhoukoudian
Inscribed :1987
Location: Beijing
Brief description: Scientific work at the site, which
lies 42 km south-west of Beijing, is still underway. So
far, it has led to the discovery of the remains of
Sinanthropus pekinensis, who lived in the Middle
Pleistocene, along with various objects, and remains of
Homo sapiens dating as far back as 18,000- 11,000 B.C.
The site is not only an exceptional reminder of the
pre-historical human societies of the Asian continent,
but also illustrates the process of evolution.
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Mount
Huangshan
Inscribed :1990
Location: Anhui Province
Brief description: Huangshan, known as "the
loveliest mountain of China", was acclaimed through
art and literature during a good part of Chinese history
(the mountain and water - Chinese painting style of
the mid-16th century). Today it holds the same
fascination for visitors, poets, painters and
photographers who come in pilgrimage to this enchanting
site, renowned for its magnificent scenery made up of
many granite peaks and rocks emerging out of a sea of
clouds.
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Jiuzhaigou
Valley Scenic and Historic
Interest Area
Inscribed : 1992
Location: Sichuan Province
Brief description: Stretching
over 72,000 hectares in the northern part of Sichuan
Province, the jagged Jiuzhaigou Valley reaches a height
of more than 4,800 meters, therefore comprising a series
of diverse forest ecosystems. Its superb landscapes are
especially interesting for their series of narrow conic
karst landforms and spectacular waterfalls. Some 140 bird
species also inhabit in the valley, as well as a number of
endangered plant and animal species, including the giant
panda and the Sichuan Takin. |
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Huanglong
Scenic and Historic Interest Area
Inscribed : 1992
Location: Sichuan Province
Brief description: Situated in the northwest part of
Sichuan province, the Huanglong Valley is made up of
snow-capped
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glaciers. In addition to its mountain landscape, diverse
forest ecosystems can be found, as well as spectacular
limestone formations, waterfalls and hot springs. The
area also has a population of endangered animals,
including the giant panda and the Sichuan golden
snub-nosed monkeys. |
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Wulingyuan
Scenic and Historic Interest Area
Inscribed : 1992
Location: Hunan Province
Brief description: A spectacular area stretching over
more than 26,000 hectares in China's Hunan Province, the
site is
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sandstone pillars and peaks, many over 200 meters high.
Between the peaks lie ravines and gorges with streams,
pools and waterfalls, some 40 caves, as well as two
large natural bridges. In addition to the striking
beauty of its landscape, the region is also noted for
the fact that it shelters a number of endangered plant
and animal species.
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The
Mountain Resort and its Outlying Temples in Chengde
Inscribed : 1994
Location: Hebei Province
Brief description: The Mountain Resort, the Qing
dynasty's
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| summer palace, in Hebei Province, was built
between 1703 and 1792. It is a vast complex of palaces
and administrative and ceremonial buildings. Temples of
various architectural styles and Imperial gardens subtly
blend into a landscape of lakes, pastureland and
forests. In addition to its aesthetic interest, the
Mountain Resort is a rare historic vestige of the final
development of feudal society in China.
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Temple
and Cemetery of Confucius
and the Kong Family
Mansion in Qufu
Inscribed : 1994
Location: Qufu, Shandong Province
Brief description: The
Temple, Cemetery and Family mansion of Confucius, the
great philosopher, politician and educator of the
6th-5th century B.C., is located at Qufu, in Shandong
Province. The Temple built in his commemoration in 478
B.C., destroyed and reconstructed over the centuries,
today comprises more than 100 buildings. The Cemetery
contains Confucius' tomb, and the remains of more than
100,000 of his descendants. The small house of the Kong
Family has become a gigantic aristocratic residence, of
which 152 buildings remain. This complex of monuments at
Qufu has maintained its outstanding artistic and
historic character due to the devotion of successive
Chinese emperors over more than 2,000 years.
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Ancient
Building Complex
in the Wudang Mountains
Inscribed : 1994
Location: Hubei Province
Brief description: The Complex consists of palaces and |
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temples forming the nucleus of secular and religious
buildings exemplifying the architectural and artistic
achievements of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties of
China. Situated in the scenic valleys and on the slopes
of the Wudang mountains in Hubei Province, the site,
built as an organized complex during the Ming dynasty
(14th-17th century), contains Taoist buildings from as
early as the 7th century, and represents the highest
standards of Chinese art and architecture over a period
of nearly one thousand years. |
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The
Potala Palace and the Jokhang
Temple Monastery, Lhasa
Inscribed: 1994,
2000
Location: Lhasa City, Tibet Autonomous Region
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Brief description: Construction of the Jokhang Temple
Monastery and the Potala Palace began in the reign of
Srong-brtsan-sgam-po in the 7th century CE. They remain
to the present day one of the most typical areas of the
country in terms of their ancient buildings and their
role as the political, economic, cultural, and religious
center of Tibet. Since the time of the 5th Dalai Lama
both the Palace and the Temple Monastery have been
within the Outside Path for Circumambulation (Lingkhor).
The Potala Palace, an administrative, religious and
political complex, is built on the Red Mountain in the
center of the Lhasa valley, at an altitude of 3700
meters. The complex comprises the White Palace and the
Red Palace, with their ancillary buildings. The Jokhang
Temple Monastery is an exceptional Buddhist religious
complex, founded in the 7th century. Its buildings and
decoration reflect the high quality of Tibetan art in
the 7th century and again in the 15th-16th centuries,
and also demonstrate cultural interchange between Tibet
and its neighboring countries.
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