Unesco

Turkeynews

Court ruling converting Turkish museum to mosque could set precedent for Hagia Sophia

Decision that Kariye Museum must become a Muslim house of worship again could imperil its Byzantine art and have repercussions for other early Christian monuments

Venice comment

Venice is in peril: Unesco should come to the aid of Venice as it did after the great flood of 1966

Its official international role, to which Italy signed up, enables it to mobilise world expertise and funds

Iraqnews

As protests rage in Iraq, experts say culture is key to long-term reconstruction

Iraqi culture ministry announces new national museum in Baghdad as Mosul restoration plan is extended to historic churches

Unescocomment

A former Unesco chief denounces its failure to protect Venice at Baku meeting

“Where have the ethics and sense of a global mandate to protect the world’s heritage gone?”, asks Francesco Bandarin

Unesconews

In a first, Unesco gives Frank Lloyd Wright buildings World Heritage status

US architect's distinctive designs are among 29 designees recognised for their “outstanding value to humanity”

Brazilnews

Unesco visit brings new growth to Roberto Burle Marx’s home and garden

Brazil funds major renovation of landscape architect's lush estate, which could become a World Heritage site in 2020

Venice comment

The Turkish shareholders in the port of Venice want to keep cruise ships coming—and the mayor supports them

The World Heritage Committee is meeting in Baku and intends to dodge declaring Venice endangered for the third time

Planned cable car attraction over Belgrade historic fortress ‘should be suspended’

Kalemegdan served as a military site for the Roman Empire and is a candidate for Unesco World Heritage status

French senate says Notre Dame must be restored 'in the same way as before'

Wim Delvoye, one of the artists who submitted a proposal, says he is confident the government will pivot to his solution

Opposition flares as Peru’s government makes way for airport near Machu Picchu

A petition has been launched to prevent the Peruvian government from continuing the project

Italy secures loan of Leonardo da Vinci's Benois Madonna from Russia's Hermitage museum

There has been intense competition to borrow works by the artist during the 500th anniversary of his death this year

Exhibition of Gormley’s figures repopulates a Greek island’s ancient ruins

Life-size "bodyforms" are positioned amid ancient grottoes, agoras and sculptures

Notre Dame should be rebuilt as it was

The cathedral’s 19th-century additions are as much part of its history as its Gothic vaults, says a former director of Unesco’s World Heritage Centre

Weimar—birthplace of Bauhaus—opens new museum dedicated to the influential design school

On the same day, the nearby Neues Museum Weimar will open a new permanent exhibition on early Modernism

Unesconews

Goodbye Venice, goodbye Ravenna, goodbye Ferrara, goodbye Carthage?

Many World Heritage Sites around the Mediterranean are at grave risk from sea-level rise by 2100, report says

Unesconews

UK threat to leave Unesco reignites debate about purpose of UN culture body

The US and Israel announced plans to leave the international organisation last year

Syrian museums seek Russian expertise to restore destroyed Palmyra sculptures

Ancient city occupied by Islamic State was retaken by Syrian army with Russian support in 2017

Unesconews

Mumbai’s Victorian Gothic and Art Deco business district declared a Unesco World Heritage Site

British-era buildings in historic Fort area nominated by “several citizens’ groups”

World Monuments Fund gives $1m for post-quake restoration of Mexican archaeological site

Monte Albán, the ancient capital of the Zapotec people, was damaged by earthquakes in 2017

Scotland Yard joins global crackdown on looted pharaonic antiquities

The initiative, which involves governments and the art world, will set up a public database of objects

In pictures: Bayreuth's Margravial Opera House reopens to the public

The Unesco World Heritage Site had been closed for restoration since 2012

Unesconews

Unesco: the view from Israelis and Palestinians

How disparate approaches to international law play out at the organisation

Cambodiaarchive

Cambodia to host culture and tourism conference

Preservation, cultural routes, urban regeneration through tourism are all set to be discussed

Cambodiaarchive

Light is finally being shed on the issue of restitution of looted art

The restitution of Cambodian statues by major museums and auction houses is an encouraging sign

Newsarchive

Unesco warns of fraud as unsanctioned authentication documents circulate

The warning states that certificates of authentication allowing imports of African cultural heritage are being forged

Newsarchive

Syrian war’s devastating toll on antiquities

Unesco places major national heritage sites on danger list as ground combat, air strikes and looting reduce ancient settlements to rubble

Cambodiaarchive

Demilitarised zone established to protect shelled temple on border between Cambodia and Thailand

Thai army cedes ground but future of Cambodian World Heritage site remains unresolved

Draft Unesco Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage would extend controls 200 miles out from the coast

If the draft is approved by two-thirds of member countries at the General Conference next month it will be sent out for ratification. US and Russian support unlikely.