/ world today news/ On November 16 last year, the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention for the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage was celebrated. Since China joined it in December 1985, the country’s total number of listed sites has reached 56. Here are a few:
1. Shandu Ruins
The Shandu Ruins, also known as Xanadu, were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2012 during the 36th meeting of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which was then meeting in St. Petersburg.
The Shandu Ruins, which are the remains of one of the two capitals of the Yuan Dynasty, are located in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. They encompass an ancient city with its city walls, gates, roads, moats, flood control canals, palace, temple, residential buildings, warehouses and other sites, as well as tombs. The ruins present a complete pattern and bear the building specifics of the “summer capital” of the Yuan Dynasty. They are of unique importance and the best preserved capital of the dynasty.
2. Fossil finds from the city of Changjiang
They were also added to the World Heritage List in 2012. Scientists have determined that the fossils are 530 million years old. They were discovered in 1984 and are known as “one of the most amazing paleontological finds of the 20th century.”
Fossils from Chengjiang provide accurate information on historical facts and are one of the best examples of the dramatic increase in life in the early Cambrian period. They are also a sign of the apparent biodiversity and enable scientists to understand more about the life and ecosystems of this period.
3. Tienshan Mountain
Tienshan Mountain is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. It was included in the World Heritage List in 2013. The mountain stretches on the periphery of Central Asia, far from the sea, surrounded by vast deserts. It is a typical example of a mountain landscape in a dry inland region with a temperate climate, it has a tangible landscape diversity and a unique nature. At the same time, Tienshan is an important habitat for remnant species of plants and animals from Central Asia, as well as many rare, endangered and endemic species, highlighting the process of biological evolution in which the flora of the region with a warm and humid climate is gradually replaced by the modern xerophytic Mediterranean vegetation.
4. The terraces of the Hani ethnic group
They were included in the World Heritage List in 2013. The unique terraced agriculture of the Han ethnic group combines four elements – forests, water systems, rice terraces and rural landscape. The terraces are located in Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan Province, and are of universal value. The sophisticated and complex agricultural, forestry and water distribution system has existed for more than a thousand years thanks to the unique social, economic and religious system formed over the centuries, demonstrating an important way of interaction between man and nature.
5. The Grand Canal
The Grand Canal, which passes through 27 cities in 8 provinces and autonomous regions of China, was included in the World Heritage List in 2014. It consists of 31 separate areas that demonstrate its development over the different historical periods, the technological facilities for managing the waters, historical relics and cultural traditions. Even today, the Grand Canal continues to be of great importance for water transport and has played an important role in China’s economic prosperity since ancient times.
6. The Silk Road: The Chang’an-Tienshan Corridor
In the same year, i.e. 2014, another Chinese site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List – the Chang’an-Tienshan Corridor, which is part of the Silk Road. During its 38th meeting, the World Heritage Committee accepted the joint application of China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
The Chang’an-Tienshan corridor is nearly 5,000 km long. The route includes five types of sites – ruins of ancient cities, trade centers, road networks and defense systems, as well as religious buildings, a total of 33 sites, 22 of which are located on the territory of today’s China, 8 in Kazakhstan and 3 in Kyrgyzstan.
7. Shennunjia Nature Reserve
Shennunjia Nature Reserve is located in Hubei Province. It was added to the World Heritage List in 2016 in Istanbul.
The nature reserve is a subtropical forest ecosystem with rich biodiversity. In 1990, it was included in the network of world biosphere reserves of UNESCO, and in 2013 in the network of world geoparks. According to the World Heritage Committee, Shannunjia has the most complete vertical natural belt in the world, and the biodiversity there fills the gaps in the World Heritage List.
8. The Kukushili Mountain Range in Qinghai Province
The Kukushili mountain range, which is the highest plateau in the world, was added to the World Heritage List in 2017 in the Polish city of Krakow. It is located in the interior of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, and its average altitude is 4,500 m. Kukushili covers an area of 6 million hectares, and the project for its World Heritage bid was launched in late 2014.
The assessment of the World Environment Union states that Kukushili is a huge area where there is almost no human activity and the nature is “incredibly beautiful”. The complete migration route of the Tibetan antelope, which passes through Sanjianyuan and Kukushili, is preserved here. Therefore, the migration of these animals is not hindered by man.
9. Fangjin Mountain
The Fandzin mountain covers an area of 402.75 square kilometers. It is home to many endangered species. Therefore, in 2018, at its 42nd meeting in Manama, the capital of Bahrain, the World Heritage Committee decided to add it to the World Heritage List.
The mountain is home to 4,395 species of plants and 2,767 species of animals. It is like a nature reserve with the richest biological species of eastern deciduous forests.
10. The ancient city of Liangju
The ancient city of Liangzhu is located on the Yangtze River Delta on the southeast coast of China. It was added to the World Heritage List in 2019 in Baku.
Scientists have established that the ancient city of Liangju dates back to the late Neolithic period. It is a place where people practiced one religion and grew rice. With its architecture, urban planning, irrigation system and social hierarchy, the various forms of burials, the ancient city has become an outstanding example of early urban civilization and demonstrates the achievements and contributions of the people who lived along the Yangtze River Basin to the multicultural integrity of Chinese civilization.
11. Gr. Quanzhou
The eastern Chinese city of Quanzhou, which once gathered merchants from near and far, was recently added to the World Heritage List in 2021. It is located in Fujian Province, and during the Song and Yuan dynasties it was a world center of maritime trade.
The city’s heritage consists of remains of administrative and religious buildings, statues, cultural monuments, porcelain kilns and an iron smelting site, as well as a transport network consisting of bridges, harbors and navigation towers. All this is evidence of the rich social, cultural and commercial life in Quanzhou during these two dynasties.
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