In August 2004, the 28th Session of UNESCO's World Heritage
Committee (WHC) was held in the famous historical and cultural city
of Suzhou. The convention decided to add to the World Heritage List
the capital cities and tombs of the ancient Koguryo Kingdom, the
Imperial Palace of the Qing Dynasty in Shenyang, and three imperial
mausoleums of Shengjing in Liaoning Province. Dating back some
2,000 years, the ancient Koguryo Kingdom sites are located mainly
in Ji'an city, Jilin Province and Huanren County, Liaoning
Province, including three cities, 12 tombs of Koguryo kings, 26
tombs of the nobility, Haotaiwang Stele and No.1 Grave of the
General's Tomb. The Imperial Palace in Shenyang and the three
imperial mausoleums were included in the list as extensions to the
Imperial Palace and Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
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Koguryo was a regime established by an ancient ethnic group living
in northern China. In 37 BC, the Koguryo Kingdom was founded in
present-day Xinbin County, Liaoning Province. Later its capital was
established in Heshenggu City (in present-day Huanren County,
Liaoning Province). The capital was moved to Guonei City when
Weinayan City (both in Ji'an City of Jilin Province) was set up in
3 BC, and was moved finally to Pyongyang in 427. The Koguryo regime
ended in 668. The Koguryo relics in China reflect the history and
culture of the early and mid-period Koguryo regime; Koguryo's
architectural style where mountain cities and plain cities
coexisted pioneered a new pattern of city construction in the
Middle Ages.
The Historic Center of Macao was inscribed on the World
Heritage List as a cultural property at the 29th session of the
UNESCO's World Heritage Committee held in Durban, South Africa. –
Editor's Note.
Since joining the International Convention Concerning the
Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage in 1985, China
has 31 world heritage sites to date; of these 23 are cultural
heritage sites, four are natural heritage sites, and four are
cultural and natural sites, ranking third in the world. Since 2004,
China has made the first large-scale renovations on six world
cultural heritage sites in Beijing - the Ming Tombs, the Great
Wall, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace,
and the "Peking Man" site at Zhoukoudian, all of which are planned
for completion before 2008. In addition, China has a rich
non-material cultural heritage, one of the world's richest. Kunqu
Opera and the art of playing the guqin, a seven-stringed zither,
are among UNESCO's list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible
Heritage of Humanity. The ancient Naxi Dongba literature
manuscripts have also been inscribed on the World Heritage List. In
2001, Chinese Tibetan epic King Gesar, the longest epic in the
world, was listed by UNESCO in the world millennium
memorials.
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China's World
Cultural and Natural Heritage Sites
1. The Great Wall (Beijing, 1987, World Cultural
Heritage)
2. The Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (World
Cultural Heritage: the Forbidden City, Beijing, 1987; the Imperial
Palace of the Qing Dynasty in Shenyang, Liaoning Province,
2004)
3. "Peking Man" site at Zhoukoudian (Beijing, 1987, World
Cultural Heritage)
4. Mogao Grottoes at Dunhuang (Gansu Province, 1987, World
Cultural Heritage)
5. Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum and the Qin Terracotta Warriors
and Horses (Shaanxi Province, 1987, World Cultural Heritage)
6. Mount Taishan (Shandong Province, 1987, World Cultural and
Natural Heritage)
7. Mount Huangshan (Anhui Province, 1990, World Cultural and
Natural Heritage)
8. Jiuzhaigou Valley (Sichuan Province, 1992, World Natural
Heritage)
9. Huanglongsi Scenic Spot (Sichuan Province, 1992, World
Natural Heritage)
10. Wulingyuan Scenic Spot (Hunan Province, 1992, World
Natural Heritage)
11. Chengde Mountain Summer Resort and Eight Outer Temples
(Hebei Province, 1994, World Cultural Heritage)
12. Potala Palace (Tibet Autonomous Region, 1994, World
Cultural Heritage)
13. Confucius Temple, Confucius Family Mansion and Confucius
Woods at Qufu (Shandong Province, 1994, World Cultural
Heritage)
14. Ancient Buildings on Mount Wudang (Hubei Province, 1994,
World Cultural Heritage)
15. Mount Lushan (Jiangxi Province, 1996, World Cultural
Heritage)
16. Mount Emei and the Leshan Giant Buddha (Sichuan Province,
1996, World Cultural and Natural Heritage)
17. Ancient City of Pingyao (Shanxi Province, 1997, World
Cultural Heritage)
18. Suzhou Classical Gardens (Jiangsu Province, 1997, World
Cultural Heritage)
19. Ancient City of Lijiang (Yunnan Province, 1997, World
Cultural Heritage)
20. The Summer Palace (Beijing, 1998, World Cultural
Heritage)
21. The Temple of Heaven (Beijing, 1998, World Cultural
Heritage)
22. Mount Wuyi (Fujian Province, 1999, World Cultural and
Natural Heritage)
23. Dazu Grottoes (Chongqing, 1999, World Cultural
Heritage)
24. Ming and Qing Imperial Mausoleums (World Cultural
Heritage: Ming Xianling Mausoleums, Hubei Province, 2000; Qing
Dongling Mausolems and Qing Xiling Mausolems, Hebei Province, 2000;
Ming Tombs, Beijing, 2003; Ming Xiaoling Mausoleums, Jiangsu, 2003;
three imperial mausoleums of Shengjing, Liaoning Province,
2004)
25. Longmen Grottoes (Henan Province, 2000, World Cultural
Heritage)
26. Mount Qingcheng and Dujiang Dam (Sichuan Province, 2000,
World Cultural Heritage)
27. Xidi and Hongcun -- Ancient Villages in South Anhui
(Anhui Province, 2000, World Cultural Heritage)
28. Yungang Grottoes (Shanxi Province, 2001, World Cultural
Heritage)
29. Three Parallel Rivers Scene (Yunnan Province, 2003, World
Natural Heritage)
30. The capital cities and tombs of the ancient Koguryo
kingdom (Liaoning and Jilin provinces, 2004, World Natural
Heritage)
31. The Historic Center of Macao (Macao Special Administrative
Region, 2005, World Cultural Heritage).