Product Description

The first book that fully describes every official UNESCO World Heritage site -- the world's most extraordinary places.

In 1959 the government of Egypt decided to build the Aswan High Dam, which would flood a valley containing treasures of ancient civilizations. In response, UNESCO launched an international safeguarding campaign, which ultimately led to the list of World Heritage sites. In clear text that highlights all the fascinating facts, World Heritage Sites details all 878 properties, including the 20 American and 15 Canadian sites.

Covering 141 countries, the World Heritage List has proved to be a valuable tool in the battle to preserve much of the world's cultural and natural heritage. Its strict criteria result in only the world's most spectacular and extraordinary sites making it onto the list, including:

• The Acropolis in Athens
• The Statue of Liberty in New York
• The Rideau Canal in eastern Ontario
• Waterton Glacier International Peace Park, the world's first international peace park, which straddles the US-Canada border
• The ancient Nabataean city of Petra in Jordan
• The remarkable Dazu Rock Carvings in China
• Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site in Missouri, the largest pre- Columbian settlement north of Mexico
• The unique ecosystem of the Serengeti in Tanzania
• And 870 more.

Featuring gorgeous photographs and a location map for every site, World Heritage Sites is uniquely comprehensive.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was founded in 1945 with the ambitious goal to build peace in the minds of men and women through education, social and natural science, culture and communication.

(20091115)

---

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #67400 in Books
• Published on: 2009-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 832 pages

Review
World Heritage Sites is a great reminder that it isn't just land that we need to protect. (Kyle Wagner Denver Post 20091025)

This book will take you around the world to the best natural and manmade features on the planet. (Terry Richard Oregon Live 20091123)

A treasure trove of information.... Readers are sure to be swept away by this all-encompassing testament to world culture. (Kirkus Reviews Reference Supplement )

Pat Carrier, owner of the Globe Corner, says his customers have been very enthusiastic about World Heritage Sites. (Beth J. Harpaz ABC News )

[There's not a] guidebook that comes closer to painting a complete picture about such a large body of tourism haunts. (Ann Tatko-Peterson San Francisco West County Times )

Most places-to-see-before-you-die books are a dime a dozen, but this one comes with the moral authority of the United Nations. (Rob Howatson Westworld )

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Foreword
by Mr Koïchiro Matsuura,
Director-General of UNESCO

Fifty years ago, the construction of the Aswan High Dam resulted in the flooding of an extensive stretch of the Nile Valley, home to numerous ancient Nubian treasures, such as the Abu Simbel temples. Mindful that the threatened temples and artefacts were an urgent priority transcending national interests and pride, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) launched its first international safeguarding campaign. Funds and expertise were mobilized to dismantle and reassemble the monuments in new locations. UNESCO's appeal to save the truly outstanding vestiges of one of the world's richest and oldest civilizations made people all over the planet appreciate the universal dimension of cultural heritage. Thus, in addition to its triumph as a technical feat of unprecedented scale, this hugely successful campaign paved the way for the key notion of the common heritage of humankind that underpins the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, developed by UNESCO and adopted by its Member States in 1972.

Commonly known as the World Heritage Convention, this international treaty has been ratified by 186 countries to date, and the famous World Heritage List now includes 878 sites in 145 countries across the planet. For over thirty-five years, the Convention and List have proved invaluable tools in UNESCO's constant efforts to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. Moreover, they contribute significantly to advancing UNESCO's mission to safeguard the world's precious culture and biodiversity.

Although every year new sites are inscribed by the World Heritage Committee, many sites of outstanding universal value have yet to be included on the List, which strives to ensure a true representation of the full diversity of all types of tangible heritage. The open-ended nature of the List is precisely what makes it such a vibrant and attractive instrument for preservation.

The prestigious List includes some of the most famous places in the world, such as the ancient Nabataean city of Petra in Jordan, the legendary Acropolis in Athens, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and Machu Picchu, the 'Lost City of the Incas,' in Peru. These renowned breathtaking sites are obvious inclusions on the List as they represent extraordinary examples of our cultural and natural heritage. However, many are in need of extensive conservation efforts, partly as a consequence of their immense popularity. Fortunately, inclusion on the World Heritage List and the resulting economic benefits can give a huge boost to these conservation efforts so that future generations can enjoy this irreplaceable heritage.

Along with the well-known sites on the List are a number of lesser-known places. In reading this handsome book, you will gain a wealth of information about our common heritage: that the largest coliseum in North Africa is located in the small village of El Jem in Tunisia; that Ethiopian emperors were crowned at Aksum; that one of the most influential cultural centres of antiquity was Palmyra in present-day Syria; and that the world's largest free-roaming bison herd can be found in Canada's Wood Buffalo National Park. Other more unusual features revealed in these pages include the massive moai (carved heads) found in Rapa Nui National Park in Chile, the monastery-crowned rock pinnacles of Meteora in Greece, and the 'dragon' whose home is at the Komodo National Park in Indonesia. These are just a few of the many highlights to be discovered in this publication.

All currently inscribed UNESCO World Heritage sites are described in this single volume of The World's Heritage, which is illustrated with over 650 stunning full-colour photographs. It is my sincere hope that you will enjoy this unique guide to the planet's outstanding cultural and natural treasures, and that it will contribute to the dissemination of the universal ideals and values that UNESCO endeavours to uphold in its worldwide action.

(20090901)

---

Customer Reviews

WOW -- a perfect gift for the well traveled explorer !
this is a fabulous document!
it's the perfect gift at a bargain price, for the well traveled explorer !
as an architect, i was delighted to receive my own personal copy ...
it certainly has helped me realize how many special places throughout the world .. that I MUST see !
this book includes everything from A to Z ... and i continue to buy more and more copies ... and give them to my friends who love to travel !
i can't think of a better way to excite another about the treasures of this planet !

Fantastic deal for the money
I got interested in World Heritage Sites when I was looking for an assignment topic for my graduate students. I've been hooked every since. This book is basically a recap of the online World Heritage List, [...], without the updates, threats, and the user photos input thanks to a partnership with TripAdvisor. But for those who prefer to settle back and armchair travel with a real book, this one can't be beat.

The book -- all 832 pages -- is organized chronologically, beginning with the very first World Heritage Site (Galapagos Islands, 1978) up to the publication date (Al-Hijr Archaeological Site, 2008). This is not the most logical way that readers would look for information. Nevertheless there are good maps and an index for finding the Sites geographically and alphabetically. Each site has 1/2-1 page description, a map, and an enticing color photo.

I will use this book for my travel daydreams. I can also see it being useful for parents and children to share, for educational purposes and for reference. Though the content doesn't match the website, it surely is a good substitute for browsing, learning, and daydreaming. Would make a great gift!

a nice book
I'm no expert on World Heritage sites but I think this book is pretty good. You get all the basic background to every site and it's a seriously weighty volume for it's compact size. It's not perfect as noted in the other reviews but I like it a lot. Good value for money too.