Mount Kumgang Designated as North Korea's Third UNESCO World Heritage Site

"Unique Topography, Scenery, and Buddhist Traditions Combined"

Mount Kumgang, long regarded as one of the most famous mountains of the Korean people, has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site. This comes about four years after North Korea applied for its inscription, bringing the total number of World Heritage sites in North Korea to three.

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee confirmed Mount Kumgang as a World Heritage site at its 47th session, held on the 13th (local time) at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France.

The official name is "Mt. Kumgang - Diamond Mountain from the Sea."

Autumn scenery of Mount Kumgang filmed using a drone by North Korea's Korean Central Television in October 2023. Yonhap News

The committee assessed that Mount Kumgang holds great value as a cultural landscape, citing its unique topography and scenery, its Buddhist history and traditions, and its significance as a site of pilgrimage.

Mount Kumgang was inscribed nearly four years after North Korea submitted its application in 2021. At the time of application, evaluation could not be conducted due to COVID-19 prevention measures, but it was included for consideration this year.

With this inscription, the number of World Heritage sites in North Korea has increased to three. According to UNESCO, North Korea now holds two other World Heritage sites?"Complex of Koguryo Tombs" (2004) and "Historic Monuments and Sites in Kaesong" (2013)?as well as five elements of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.