Choirokoitia

Choirokoitia UNESCO World Heritage Site, Cyprus

From the World Heritage inscription: Located in the District of Larnaka, about 6 km from the southern coast of Cyprus, the Neolithic settlement of Choirokoitia lies on the slopes of a hill partly enclosed in a loop of the Maroni River. Occupied from the 7th to the 5th millennium B.C., the village covers an area …

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Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape

Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape  UNESCO World Heritage Site

From the World Heritage inscription: The landscapes of Cornwall and west Devon were radically reshaped during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by deep mining for predominantly copper and tin. The remains of mines, engines houses, smallholdings, ports, harbors, canals, railways, tramroads, and industries allied to mining, along with new towns and villages reflect an extended …

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Archaeological Site of Delphi

Archaeological Site of Delphi - UNESCO World Heritage Site

From the World Heritage inscription for the Archaeological Site of Delphi: The layout of Delphi is a unique artistic achievement. Mount Parnassus is a masterpiece where a series of monuments were built whose modular elements – terraces, temples, treasuries, etc. – combine to form a strong expression of the physical and moral values of a …

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The Colonial City of Santo Domingo

Colonial City of Santo Domingo UNESCO World Heritage Site

From the World Heritage inscription: After the arrival of Christopher Columbus on the island of Hispaniola in 1492, Santo Domingo became the site of the first cathedral, hospital, customs house and university in the Americas. This colonial town was laid out on the grid pattern that became the model for almost all town planners in …

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Red Fort Complex

Red Fort Complex UNESCO World Heritage Site, India

From the World Heritage Inscription: The Red Fort Complex was built as the palace fort of Shahjahanabad – the new capital of the fifth Mughal Emperor of India, Shah Jahan. Named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone, it is adjacent to an older fort, the Salimgarh, built by Islam Shah Suri in 1546, …

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Agra Fort

Agra Fort UNESCO World Heritage Site, India

From the World Heritage inscription: Near the gardens of the Taj Mahal stands the important 16th-century Mughal monument known as the Red Fort of Agra. This powerful fortress of red sandstone encompasses, within its 2.5-km-long enclosure walls, the imperial city of the Mughal rulers. It comprises many fairy-tale palaces, such as the Jahangir Palace and …

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Humayun’s Tomb

Humayun's Tomb UNESCO World Heritage Site, India

From the World Heritage inscription: This tomb, built in 1570, is of particular cultural significance as it was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent. It inspired several major architectural innovations, culminating in the construction of the Taj Mahal. Humayun’s Tomb is the burial site of the second Mughal Emperor, Humayun. It was commissioned by …

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Mistaken Point

Mistaken Point UNESCO World Heritage Site, Canada

From the World Heritage inscription: This fossil site is located at the south-eastern tip of the island of Newfoundland, in eastern Canada. It consists of a narrow, 17 km-long strip of rugged coastal cliffs. Of deep marine origin, these cliffs date to the Ediacaran Period (580-560 million years ago), representing the oldest known assemblages of …

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Flemish Beguinages

Flemish Beguinages UNESCO World Heritage Site, Belgium

From the World Heritage inscription for the Flemish Beguinages: The Flemish béguinages are a series of 13 sites in the Flanders Region of Belgium. They bear extraordinary witness to the cultural tradition of the Beguines that developed in north-western Europe in the Middle Ages. These Beguines were either unmarried or widowed women who entered into …

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