Unesco World Heritage Site

Putin visits heritage site in Crimea on ninth anniversary of annexation

Tauric Chersonese, a Unesco World Heritage Site, will boast multiple museums—and a humanitarian centre

US supports restoration of Pakistan’s epic walled city

As country is mired in economic and political turmoil, major upgrading project forges ahead with restoration of important sites at the ancient heart of Lahore

Unesco adds Ukrainian city of Odesa to World Heritage List of endangered sites

The decision "recognises the outstanding universal value of the site and the duty of all humanity to protect it", the UN cultural organisation states

'Lost in limbo': Taliban’s application for Unesco protection of historic Kabul garden still unanswered after a year

United Nations culture organisation has not acknowledged the January 2022 request to add Afghanistan's Bagh-e Babur to the World Heritage List

Petranews

Unesco World Heritage site Petra reopens to tourists after flash flooding

Regional authority takes steps to prevent further damage to the ancient desert city

How the war in Ukraine reveals the heightened politics of Unesco

Boycotted Russia resigned as chair of the World Heritage Committee last month

Archaeologists discover mural of Aztec god of alcohol in Mexican convent

Archaeologists believe the pre-Columbian wall drawing of a god wearing a feathered headdress likely depicts Tepoztēcatl, the god of pulque

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky applies for Unesco World Heritage status for Odesa

The strategic Black Sea port city, home to a famous opera house and controversial Catherine the Great statue, has been the target of Russian bombing

Developers circle as unique industrial building in English Unesco World Heritage site faces closure

Strutt’s North Mill Museum in Derbyshire is set to close following the withdrawal of local authority funding

Amazonian cave paintings, pre-Columbian ruins and other world heritage sites identified as critically threatened

The World Monuments Fund has published its biannual report of world heritage sites facing risk due to climate change, political turmoil and other factors

Iraqnews

Sculptures vandalised by Isis return to ancient city of Hatra after restoration

Artefacts had been "smashed into pieces" by Isis militants when they occupied the Unesco World Heritage site as a training camp

Biden administration moves to block oil and gas exploitation near Pueblo cultural sites in New Mexico

Chaco Canyon, a Unesco World Heritage site since 1987, was to be opened to drilling under a Trump administration plan

Sacred rock-hewn churches at risk as rebel forces take control of Ethiopia's Unesco World Heritage Site Lalibela

Historic town, a holy site for millions of Orthodox Christians, caught up in widening Tigray conflict

Ancient rock art complex Hima listed as Saudi Arabia's sixth Unesco World Heritage site

Global heritage body's decision boosts Saudi government's efforts to promote an open image of the country

Liverpool should not be punished for its modern vision

The UK city has been stripped of its World Heritage status. Walter Aubrey Thomas, who designed some of its most famous buildings, would have objected, says his great-grandson

Venice comment

The IPCC’s predictions of sea-level rise are why Italy should beg Unesco to put Venice on its at risk list

It would support the difficult measures the government will have to enact to save Venice from certain death. But Unesco is toothless

Unesco warns that Stonehenge will go on its danger list unless plans to build tunnel beneath it are modified

World Heritage Site status may also be removed from Liverpool's waterfront after excessive development

Venice comment

The damnation of Venice: locals are being systematically driven out by officials who are selling off sites for tourism

Venetians are leaving the city in thousands because rents are unaffordable, while more than 11% of social housing stands empty

Mexican authorities halt illegal development near Teotihuacán

It is unclear who is behind the construction of the ecotourism park, which resulted in the destruction of at least three unexplored archaeological mounds

Acropolis renovation plans spark accusations that it’s ‘just another way to fit in more tourists’

Archaeologists fear the structural changes aimed to improve access to the Unesco site will “dramatically” change its form

Ethiopian heritage under attack as reports of massacre emerge

Eyewitnesses say Eritrean military stormed an Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Axum, killing hundreds

Angkornews

Proposed resort and water park threaten ancient heritage of Angkor Wat in Cambodia

Unesco has expressed alarm that the development will encroach onto the protected zone of the World Heritage site

Stonehenge: could a road tunnel ruin the ancient site?

Plus, French museums revolt against lockdown closures and artist Crystal Fischetti on Karla Black

New heritage body aims to keep Unesco in check by calling on public to report sites in danger

Our World Heritage says it is stepping in to save at-risk locations as “safeguarding has become a secondary concern” for Unesco

Turkish government on collision course with Unesco over turning Hagia Sophia into mosque

President Erdogan’s plans to convert the museum have drawn fire from Greece and the US

Religious sites in Russia and Ukraine hit hard by coronavirus thanks to pilgrims and poor social distancing

Many Unesco World Heritage sites that are also working monasteries have been accused of reacting slowly to the pandemic

Desert X AlUla—the inaugural art biennial in a historic Saudi Arabian valley—announces participants

Wael Shawky, Superflex and eL Seed are among the artists who will base works on the ancient history of the region

The biennial refurbishing a Unesco World Heritage city one building at a time

The third edition of Anozero in Coimbra includes works by Steve McQueen, Anna Boghiguian, and the Portuguese duo João Maria Gusmão & Pedro Paiva

Petra's rich heritage goes on show for all to see in new museum

Nearly a decade after the Arab Spring scared off tourists, the Petra Museum is poised to welcome back visitors—and open up access for locals