Today, April 18, is International Day for Monuments and Sites, also known as World Heritage Day, established (by the UNESCO General Conference) to drive awareness of the importance of cultural heritage to the lives, identities and communities around the world, as well as the vulnerability of cultural heritage and sites and the efforts required to protect them. We here at Global Heritage Fund are honoring this day with a list of the top five little-known cultural sites around the world to educate people about their importance to history, civilization and culture.
Many cultural sites are endangered, especially those in developing world (regions where per capita income is less than $2 per day), and they languish without any international attention. It’s our hope that World Heritage Day and our list will inspire community involvement in preserving the legacy of these sites.
Central Terraces in Ciudad Perdida and surrounding views. Photo by GHF.
1. Ciudad Perdida, Colombia
Colombia’s Ciudad Perdida, once a thriving center of political, social and economic power, remained undiscovered for centuries. Today, archaeologists have located more than two hundred ancient structures, and are only just beginning to understand the complex history and significance of the “Lost City.” Unregulated tourism is the biggest threat to Ciudad Perdida’s sustainability, with numbers that will become unsustainable in coming years. In the face of the impact unregulated tourism will have on indigenous communities, Global Heritage Fund is working with locals to develop a site management plan for low-impact, controlled and sustainable tourism to minimize the natural and man-made damage to the site, conserve the archaeological features, and re-establish the local indigenous and peasant communities as major site stakeholders.
Village of Dali in Guizhou. Photo by Han Li.
2. The Minority Villages of Guizhou, China
The Minority Villages of Guizhou, China are the site of where thousand-year-old cultural traditions, architecture and lifestyles have withstood the test of time. But these once untouched communities, where villagers have coexisted harmoniously with nature for a century, are in danger of disappearing into the history books with the rapidly changing times. To maintain the prized culture of the villages, Global Heritage Fund is promoting community and economic developments as well as sustainable tourism and has worked to preserve landmark structures for future generations while adapting them to the needs of modern life—simultaneously supporting the continuation of traditional arts and artisan industries.
Monolith at Gobekli Tepe in the Southeastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. Photo by Bob Stanton.
3. Göbekli Tepe, Turkey
Göbekli Tepe in Turkey, has been interpreted as the oldest human-made place of worship yet discovered, bumping Stonehenge from #1 on the list of oldest known architectural feats. Built some 11,600 years ago, seven millennia before the Great Pyramid of Giza, it contains the oldest known temple and is the most ancient example of monumental architecture. In order to protect the site, which is threatened by looting, weather exposure and insufficient management of resources, visitors to the site and those who know about it are being asked to join in spreading the word about its importance in order to bring about awareness of its endangerment.
Popol Vuh Sculpture at El Mirador. Photo by Bob Stanton.
4. Mirador, Guatemala
The Maya Biosphere in northern Guatemala, is home to the earliest and largest Preclassic Maya archaeological sites in Mesoamerica, including the largest pyramid in the world – La Danta. Experts describe the Mirador Basin as the Cradle of Maya Civilization, but according to the World Wildlife Fund, the Maya Biosphere has lost 70% of its forests in the last 10 years. Unfortunately drug trafficking profits are fueling a massive ranching industry which requires large areas of jungle to be cleared and has virtually destroyed the Maya Biosphere within the past five years in northern Guatemala. 340 local community members have been employed by the project since 2009, and the Community Forestry Concession agreement, forged by Global Heritage Fund, has protected an additional 80,000 acres – encompassing eight major Mayan cities – from logging.
A view of the main street of a traditional Saxon Village in the heart of Carpathian Romania. Photo by William Blacker.
5. Carpathian Villages, Romania
The Carpathian Villages of Transylvania boast the only truly Medieval landscape left in Europe, and are under threat of being destroyed. Uncontrolled modern development is the greatest threat to the historic architecture of the villages, and as a preventative measure, Global Heritage Fund and its partners in Romania are working with the national and local governments as well as with the village communities to help preserve this highly significant cultural landscape through documentation, public education and outreach, and the revival of traditional and sustainable building crafts.