Selected as Candidate for World Heritage Inscription by the Cultural Heritage Committee
Draft Nomination Dossier to Be Submitted Next Month
The fortress walls constructed to defend Hanyang, the capital of Joseon, have taken a significant step closer to being inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Cultural Heritage Administration announced on August 1 that at the World Heritage Subcommittee meeting of the Cultural Heritage Committee held on July 31, the 'Capital Fortifications of Hanyang' were selected as the candidate for UNESCO World Heritage inscription. Selection as a candidate for inscription is the final step in the domestic process for applying for World Heritage status. To become eligible for review, the site must sequentially pass through the tentative list, the priority inscription list, the preliminary evaluation, and the candidate for inscription stages.
The Capital Fortifications of Hanyang received a positive signal for selection as a candidate for inscription after passing UNESCO's preliminary evaluation in October last year. The preliminary evaluation is a system where UNESCO, in order to increase the likelihood of inscription for each country, conducts prior consultations with advisory bodies from the early stages of application to help prepare a high-quality nomination dossier.
The Capital Fortifications of Hanyang, where different types of valley-style fortresses are organically connected, have drawn attention for being designed to allow the entire population of the capital to evacuate into the fortifications and sustain a prolonged defense in emergencies. Hanyangdoseong served as the administrative center, while Bukhansanseong was a military fortress for defense in times of emergency. Tangchundaeseong functioned as a link for the evacuation of the people and the protection of storage facilities.
An official from the Cultural Heritage Administration stated, "The fortress walls, constructed as a closed curve along the ridges of mountains and hills, demonstrate the tradition and creative succession of valley-style fortress construction in Northeast Asia and represent the pinnacle of the development of capital fortifications on the Korean Peninsula. In this respect, they were evaluated as meeting the criteria for UNESCO inscription."
The Cultural Heritage Administration, together with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Gyeonggi Province, and Goyang City, will submit a draft of the World Heritage nomination dossier to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre next month. The official nomination dossier is planned to be submitted in January next year.
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