BRAZIL: Pantanal Conservation Area

Received thanx to Claudinei.


The Pantanal Conservation Complex consists of a cluster of four protected areas with a total area of 187,818 ha. Located in western central Brazil at the south-west corner of the State of Mato Grosso, the site represents 1.3% of Brazil's Pantanal region, one of the world's largest freshwater wetland ecosystems. The headwaters of the region's two major river systems, the Cuiabá and the Paraguay rivers, are located here, and the abundance and diversity of its vegetation and animal life are spectacular.

BRAZIL:

1.Brasilia's Cathedral
2. LBV Temple
3. Conjuncto Nacional Shopping Centre.


Received thanx to Claudinei.

Brasilia, a capital created ex nihilo in the centre of the country in 1956, was a landmark in the history of town planning. The 20th-century principles of urbanism, as expressed by Le Corbusier, have rarely been applied on the scale of capital cities. Only two noteworthy exceptions exist: Chandigarh and Brasilia. Its creators intended that every element, from the layout of the residential and administrative districts (often compared to the shape of a bird in flight) to the symmetry of the buildings themselves, should be in harmony with the city's overall design. The official buildings, in particular, are innovative and imaginative.

The idea of building a capital in the interior of Brazil is an old one, having been proposed on various occasions since the end of the 17th century. When elected president of the Republic of Brazil in 1955, Juscelino Kubitschek made the creation of the capital city a symbol of his policy to upgrade the image of the entire country, to expand industry, and to undertake major construction projects. In 1956 he appointed a commission to determine an exact location for the city and set up an executive body to carry out the construction work. In the same year, Oscar Niemeyer was made Director of the Department of Architecture and Urban Affairs, and Lucio Costa won the competition held for the plan of Brasilia. This choice brought back together the members of a team that had already proved its worth, Le Corbusier having previously been consulted for this project.

BRAZIL: Historic Centre of the Town of Goiás

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The origins of the town of Goiás are closely related with the history of the more or less official expeditions (bandeiras), which left from São Paulo to explore the interior of the Brazilian territory. One expedition, under the command of Fern. Dias Pais, explored the region of Minas (1673-81), and another expedition, under the command of Bartolomeu Bueno da Silva, explored the region of Goiás (1682), finding some gold. However, the discoveries at Minas were far superior and, from 1700, attracted a vast number of people; the population of Brazil went from 80,000 to over one million in a few years. As a result of wars in the coastal regions, attention was again drawn to the interior; in 1718, gold was found in Cuiabá (the current capital of Mato Grosso), and three years later the son of Bartolomeu Bueno discovered gold in Rio Vermelho, where he was nominated the superintendent of the mines of Goiás. One year later he established the settlement of Santana, and a chapel was built there in 1729.

In order to guarantee better control of the mines of Goiás, the Portuguese authorities decide to reinforce the regional government. In 1739, the governor of São Paulo chose Santana, which took the name of Vila Boa de Goiás. The mining village was thus doubled in size by adding to it a small administrative quarter. In 1748, Goiás was chosen as the headquarters of a new sub-district; its first governor was Dom Marcos de Noronha (1749-55), who transformed the modest village into a small capital. Amongst the first constructions was the Casa de Fundição (1750) for the control of gold, the governor's palace (1751), and the military barracks (1751). Under his successors the town continued being improved, including the construction of the Casa de Câmara e Cadeia (1761), improvement of the roads and streets, building of the fountains of Carioca and Chafariz de Cauda, and opening of a theatre (1772-77). The governor Luis da Cunha Meneses (1778-83) planted trees, improved the street alignment, laid out the public square of Chafariz, and opened a slaughterhouse (1778-83). He also had the urban master plan prepared (1782), providing the town with a structure that has survived till the present day.

In 1770 an inevitable decline in gold mining began and Goiás entered a long period of stagnation. It retained its status as a capital, but remained far behind Rio de Janeiro, and so further progress was arrested. In 1935-37 its administrative status was removed but the townscape remained intact. In 1950 IPHAN, the conservation authority of Brazil, listed its principal churches and the barracks, and in 1951 the Casa da Câmara, the palace, and the main areas in the centre. The inauguration in 1960 of the new capital city of Brazil, Brasilia, gave the region a new impetus. Since the 1980s Goiás has been revitalized with some new constructions. Fortunately, the entire centre area was listed by IPHAN for protection in 1978.

BRAZIL: Historic Centre of Salvador de Bahia

Received thanx to Claudinei.

Salvador de Bahia is an eminent example of Renaissance urban town planning adapted to a colonial site by having an upper city of a defensive, administrative and residential nature which overlooks the lower city where commercial activities revolve around the port. The density of monuments makes it, along with Ouro Preto, the colonial city par excellence in the Brazilian Northeast. It is one of the major points of convergence of European, African and American Indian cultures in the 16th-18th centuries.

Salvador was the first historic capital of Brazil, since, as early as 1549, the Governor General, Thome de Souza, on the orders of João II of Portugal, made it the seat of the royal administration. It played a leading economic and political role until 1763, when the seat of administration was transferred to Rio de Janeiro. The upper city, located in the area of Bahia de Todos los Santos, was discovered in 1502 by Amerigo Vespucci, and has been preserved by its historical evolution. It was built upon a ridge parallel to the Atlantic coast, which made possible defence against Spanish (1580) and Dutch (1624) attacks.

To the north and north-east, the lower city and port have not retained their pristine character, whereas on the three other sides population growth, which has been particularly fast since 1966 owing to the industrial development of the region, has resulted in the historic city being enclosed by a very dense urban zone.

The historical centre itself, which revolves around the Pelourinho quarter with its triangular place, is characterized by its fidelity to the 16th-century plan, the density of its monuments, and the homogeneity of its construction on a hilly and picturesque site which embellishes the urban scenery by providing steeply falling and ascending views of incomparable beauty.

In addition to a number of major buildings of the 17th-18th centuries, such as the cathedral and the convents of St Francis, St Dominic, Carmel and St Anthony, Salvador also retains a host of 16th-century open spaces (Municipal Plaza, House of Mercy) and Baroque palaces (Archiepiscopal Palace, Saldanha Palace, Ferrão Palace, etc.).

There are also many streets which are characteristic of the colonial city, lined with bright multicoloured houses, which in some cases are decorated with high-quality stucco.

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INDIA: Taj Mahal

 The Taj Mahal, an immense mausoleum of white marble, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by order of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, is the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage. It no doubt partially owes its renown to the moving circumstances of its construction. Shah Jahan, in order to perpetuate the memory of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1631, had this funerary mosque built. The monument, begun in 1632, was finished in 1648; unverified but nonetheless, tenacious, legends attribute its construction to an international team of several thousands of masons, marble workers, mosaicists and decorators working under the orders of the architect of the emperor, Ustad Ahmad Lahori.

Situated on the right bank of the Yamuna in a vast Mogul garden of some 17 ha, this funerary monument, bounded by four isolated minarets, reigns with its octagonal structure capped by a bulbous dome through the criss-cross of open perspectives offered by alleys or basins of water. The rigour of a perfect elevation of astonishing graphic purity is disguised and almost contradicted by the scintillation of a fairy-like decor where the white marble, the main building material, brings out and scintillates the floral arabesques, the decorative bands, and the calligraphic inscriptions which are incrusted in polychromatic pietra dura. The materials were brought in from all over India and central Asia and white Makrana marble from Jodhpur. Precious stones for the inlay came from Baghdad, Punjab, Egypt, Russia, Golconda, China, Afghanistan, Ceylon, Indian Ocean and Persia. The unique Mughal style combines elements and styles of Persian, Central Asian and Islamic architecture.

The Darwaza, the majestic main gateway, is a large three-storey red sandstone structure, completed in 1648, with an octagonal central chamber with a vaulted roof and with smaller rooms on each side. The gateway consists of lofty central arch with two-storeyed wings on either side. The walls are inscribed with verses from the Qu'ran in Arabic in black calligraphy. The small domed pavilions on top are Hindu in style and signify royalty. The gate was originally lined with silver, now replaced with copper, and decorated with 1,000 nails whose heads were contemporary silver coins.

The Bageecha, the ornamental gardens through which the paths lead, are planned along classical Mughal char bagh style. Two marble canals studded with fountains, lined with cypress trees emanating from the central, raised pool cross in the centre of the garden, dividing it into four equal squares. In each square there are 16 flower beds, making a total of 64 with around 400 plants in each bed. The feature to be noted is that the garden is laid out in such a way as to maintain perfect symmetry. The channels, with a perfect reflection of the Taj, used to be stocked with colourful fish and the gardens with beautiful birds.

The Taj Mahal itself, situated in the north end of the garden, stands on two bases, one of sandstone and above it a square platform worked into a black and white chequerboard design and topped by a huge blue-veined white marble terrace, on each corner there are four minarets. On the east and west sides of the tomb are identical red sandstone buildings. On the west is the masjid (mosque), which sanctifies the area and provides a place of worship. On the other sides is the jawab, which cannot be used for prayer as it faces away from Mecca. The rauza, the central structure or the mausoleum on the platform, is square with bevelled corners. Each corner has small domes while in the centre is the main double dome topped by a brass finial. The main chamber inside is octagonal with a high domed ceiling. This chamber contains false tombs of Mumtaz and Shah Jahan, laid to rest in precise duplicates in a. Both tombs are exquisitely inlaid and decorated with precious stones, the finest in Agra.

The Taj Mahal's pure white marble shimmers silver in the moonlight, glows softly pink at dawn, and at close of day reflects the fiery tints of the setting Sun. From an octagonal tower in the Agra Fort across the River Yamuna, Shah Jahan spent his last days as a prisoner of his son and usurper to the empire, Aurangzeb, gazing at the tomb of his beloved Mumtaz.

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POLAND: Wooden Churches of Southern Little Poland

The wooden churches of Little Poland bear important testimony to medieval church building traditions, as these related to the liturgical and cult functions of the Roman Catholic Church in a relatively closed region in central Europe.
The churches are the most representative examples of surviving Gothic churches built in horizontal log technique, particularly impressive in their artistic and technical execution, and sponsored by noble families and rulers as symbols of social and political prestige.

   The Church of St Philip and St James the Apostles (Sekowa) is an auxiliary church, built around 1520, on the site of an earlier church. The building has a square plan with no aisles; the chancel has a three-sided east end and the building is covered with a high roof.

 
      The Church of the Archangel Michael (Debno) is first mentioned in 1335. The present building, the second on the site, dates from the late 15th century. This church has a unique example of medieval decorations. The ceiling and the interior walls are painted using stencils from the 15th and 16th centuries. The decoration contains more than 77 motifs: architectural recalling Gothic forms, animal, human and religious.

    
  The Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Archangel Michael (Haczow) has original Gothic polychrome decoration from the late 15th century, although the building has been dated to the previous century. At the beginning of the 17th century the church was enclosed by an earthen defensive rampart. The Church of St Peter and St Paul was built in 1789 from a donation. The furniture was designed in Baroque style but was substantially altered in 1836. In 1846 the Stations of the Cross were installed in the external arcade. There were more renovations later, but the form and decorations have been kept. 

  

    The Church of St Leonard (Lipnica Murowana) was built at the end of the 15th century. From this date have survived parts of the polychrome decoration stencilled on the ceiling of the nave. The church was situated outside the defensive wall of the township and had the function of a cemetery church, a function that it still fulfils. It has been renovated many times, but this has not significantly affected its form or spatial arrangement.

  

    

PORTUGAL: Convent of Christ in Tomar

Received thanx to Lidia.

The Convent of Tomar, originally conceived as a symbolic monument of the Reconquest, became, from the Manueline period, an inverse symbol: that of the opening of Portugal to external civilizations.

During the second half of the 12th century, the Knights Templar were called to Portugal where they were of considerable assistance in the Reconquest. Their first and principal fortress was Tomar. When, in the 14th century, the Order of the Knights Templar was abolished and replaced by the Knights of the Order of Christ, Tomar lost none of its importance. Successive embellishments rendered it one of the most prestigious monuments of Portugal.

The original church, built at the end of the 12th century by the first great Master of the Templars, Gualdim Pais, was based on a polygonal ground plan of 16 bays including an octagonal choir with ambulatory: this is one of the typical 'rotondas' of Templar architecture of which all too few examples are still extant in Europe.

Cloisters were added at different periods: that of the cemetery, constructed to the north-east of the rotunda around 1430 by Infante Don Henrique, employed pointed arches of a sober, elegant Gothic style.

The Manueline influence was, as elsewhere, decisive and compelling: it was under King Manuel that Diego de Arruda was commissioned to create the enormous choir based on a square plan with a tribune raised above the chapter-room. The elevations of these two storeys are marked on the exterior by two renowned bays, a window and an oculus, whose prodigious decor combines with stupefying ease Gothic reminiscences and Moorish influences, offering the most accomplished expression of the Manueline decorative style.

Other cloisters and new monastic buildings were constructed under João III by João de Castilho which, at Tomar as at Belém, were not insensitive to Italian influence. The evolution terminated in the second half of the century in the cloister of the 'Philips', the principal cloister, modified by Diego de Torralva, and finished by F. Terzi: the facades are set into rhythm by a magnificent Palladian ordering of two storeys of Corinthian and Tuscan columns.

PORTUGAL: Historic Centre of Guimarães

Received thanx to Lidia.

The castle of Guimaraes.

    The historic centre is formed by a large number of stone constructions (950-1498). The period from Renaissance to neoclassicism is characterized by noble houses and the development of civic facilities, city squares, etc. The eclectic and industrial periods and modern expansion (1926 until today) include some changes, although the town has maintained its medieval urban layout. The systems and building types have evolved over time. The residential buildings are characterized by the use of two construction techniques, one dating from before the 16th century (taipa de rodízio ), a half-timbered structure, which mixed granite with a structure in timber and a filling of sun-dried brick, using clay mortar. The other (taipa de fasquio ), which came into use in the 19th century and is still practised today, was entirely in timber. From here this technology was exported to other parts of the world.

The monuments include the medieval castle, built on the site of the first fort of the 10th century. The present construction was built from stone, begun at the time of Afonso I and continued with various modifications in the following centuries. The building is an austere crenellated structure with towers, designed for defence. Part of it was demolished in the 18th century and since then it has been subject to restorations. Close to the castle, there is a small Romanesque church, São Miguel do Castelo, ruined in the 19th century and restored in the 1920s. The church of Nossa Senhora da Oliveira was founded in the 12th century on the site where the first monastery had existed some three centuries earlier. It was completely renovated from 1387 to 1413, with three naves and a wooden roof structure, according to the Portuguese Gothic model. The cloister was added in the 16th century and the present sanctuary to the church in the 17th.

The Palace of the Dukes of Bragança is a large complex built from stone down the hill from the castle. The first construction dates from 1420-22, most probably under French influence. The building was conceived as a symbol of the pride of the Bragança family. The building underwent various vicissitudes, serving as a military headquarters in the late 19th century. The Town Hall, in the square in front of the church of Nossa Senhora, dates mainly from the 16th and 17th centuries. The palace, primarily in stone, has one main floor with large doors opening to a balcony along the main facade. The ground floor is characterized by open arcades. In the same square, in front of the church, there is also a 14th-century Gothic arch, a monument commemorating the victory of Dom Afonso IV in the battle of Padrão do Salado.

The bourgeois houses of the 16th century have a ground floor in granite and the upper floors are built using the half-timbered structure of taipa de rodízio . The houses of noble families have often been an modification of a previous structure, and generally have their elevations built from granite as a sign of distinction. The typical houses of the 17th century continued using the same construction technique (granite in the ground floor and half-timbered structure in the upper floors - usually three). Another type of house of the same century was built with a peristyle and arcaded ground floor, and is usually found in public squares.

PORTUGAL: Monastery of the Hieronymites and Tower of Belém in Lisbon

Received thanx to Lidia.

Torre de Belem


Standing at the entrance to Lisbon harbour, the Monastery of the Hieronymites – construction of which began in 1502 – exemplifies Portuguese art at its best. The nearby Tower of Belém, built to commemorate Vasco da Gama's expedition, is a reminder of the great maritime discoveries that laid the foundations of the modern world.

AUSTRIA: Palace and Gardens of Schönbrunn

Received thanx to Edna.

In 1740, Maria Theresia chose Schonbrunn as her permanent residence, and a new phase began in the life of the palace. Urgent repairs were carried out on the dilapidated buildings in 1742-43, followed by major structural changes, which were carried out in three phases: 1743-49, 1753- 63, and 1764-80. Most of the work in the first two phases was carried out to the designs and under the supervision of the architect Nicolaus Pacassi, who was to become, like Fischer von Erlach, the Imperial and Royal Court Architect. The major project of the third phase was the embellishment of the gardens (the Gloriette, the Neptune Fountain, the "Roman Ruins", the Obelisk>, largely the work of Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg.

Maria Theresia's immediate successors Joseph II and Leopold II) Showed little interest in Schonbrunn, but it was to become the summer residence of Franz I (1792-1835), and Franz Joseph (1848-1916) spent much of his life there. The latter was responsible for the restoration of the old ROCOCO decor and certain other modifications. The palace's architectural history came to an end in 1870 and there have been no significant changes since that time.

MALAYSIA: Melaka and George Town, Historic Cities of the Straits of Malacca

    Christ Church in Malacca. 
Received thanx to Muguette(Singapore).

     Through history, the Straits of Malacca have been a highway for maritime traders and contacts between East and West. Powerful kingdoms and cities have arisen and a typical trait has been immigration and strong influences from far and near, contributing to a multicultural identity. In the late 14th century or early 15th century the city and the kingdom of Melaka was founded. The small fishing village rapidly grew to a large port and emporium, overshadowing the older ports in the area. With the support from the Chinese emperor the king managed to stay independent of Siam. Many ethnic groups were present and it is reported that some 80 different languages were spoken. The custom that people from different ethnic communities lived in their own sections of the city started in this period. Islam was introduced; the king assumed the title of Sultan and Melaka became a centre of learning for Islam.

   In 1511 the Portuguese conquered the city of Melaka. A stone fortress surrounding the present St. Paul's Hill was built and within this, palaces for the governor and the bishop, five churches, two hospitals, a college and other public buildings were built. The destruction of mosques and tombs shows a wish to weaken Islam. Melaka was frequently attacked by its Malay neighbours; other Europeans were sailing through the Straits of Malacca and had an interest in the area, and in 1641 the Dutch captured the city. They had conquered Java in 1619 and made Batavia (Jakarta) their capital in the East. Melaka was not to compete but became their main base in the peninsula and again rose to a Southeast Asian entrepot par excellence at the end of the 18th century. The Dutch merely took over the existing infrastructure. Later they built a new fortress on St. John's Hill and in 1650 the former Governor's residence was converted into the Stadthuis. The catholic St. Peter's Church was built in 1710 and the protestant Christ Church in 1753, the oldest protestant church in Malaysia and still in use.

    In 1795-1818, during the Napoleonic wars in Europe, Melaka came into British hands. By then Penang/George Town had been in existence for some time and as its rival, it was initially ordered to level Melaka. The fort was demolished, only the gate is left, but then the destruction was stopped. A few years later, in 1824, Melaka was finally brought under British administration. George Town was founded in 1786 by the British. Unlike the Portuguese and the Dutch they exercised a policy of free trade. People from all over the world were encouraged to settle in the new town and to produce export crops. To administer the island, a Presidency was set up under the jurisdiction of the East India Company in Bengal and in 1826 it became part of the Straits Settlements together with Singapore and Melaka.

In George Town, a policy on conservation areas was introduced in the early 1970s. This was the first time a conservation plan became part of the town plan. The island's rapid urban change in the mid-1980s fostered a public conservation movement and an International Conference on Urban Conservation and Planning helped to raise awareness. In the early 1990s some demolitions and conservation projects attracted attention. The first major building restoration work undertaken by the State Government was the Syed Al-Attas Mansion in 1993.

SPAIN: Old Town of Segovia and its Aqueduct

Segovia is indicative of a complex historical reality. Its neighbourhoods, streets, and houses are laid out in accordance with a social structure in which hierarchy was overshadowed by belonging to one of the different cultural communities. Moors, Christians and Jews coexisted for a long time in the medieval city and worked together during the 16th century manufacturing boom. All the component parts of the built environment, from domestic architecture to the great religious and military structures, can be found in Segovia in a broad range of construction techniques and styles.

The Roman aqueducts of Sevilla, Toledo, and Calahorra in Spain did not survive. The 221 colossal piers bear witness to the magnitude of the Aquae Atilianae in the province of Zaragoza. The impressive monuments that survive in Mérida, Tarragona, and Segovia illustrate the political determination which, following the steps of the victorious armies, greatly increased the number of aqueducts which Frontinus described as 'the most solemn testimony of the Empire.'

The Aqueduct of Segovia, the symbol of the city, is the best known of these civil engineering feats owing to its monumentality, to its excellent state of conservation, and in particular to its location in one of the most beautiful urban sites in the world.

The hydraulic engineers who tapped the waters of the Río Frío in the Sierra de Guadarrama to bring them 18km to Segovia via a canal with an average gradient of 1% ran into no natural obstacle more challenging than the crossing of the valley of the Río Clamores at the end of the course. In order to reach the rocky contrefort on which the city was perched they had to erect an enormous construction of masonry 813 m in length, consisting of four straight segments and two superimposed arcades borne by 128 pillars. At the lowest point of the valley, the aqueduct stands at a height of 28.5 m above ground.

This colossal edifice is undocumented. However, the profile of the arcade and the construction technique used afford typological comparisons with the Aqua Claudia in Rome, a canal built between AD 38 and 52. Moreover, excavation carried out at the foot of the piers appears to corroborate a date of roughly AD 50.

Following its restoration, which took place after 1484 on the initiative of the Catholic Kings (Los Reyes Católicos), the aqueduct was always used and well maintained. The most serious damage which it suffered occurred in the last century: the replacement in 1929-30 of the 16th-century stone conduit with a cement canal, the stone conduit having earlier replaced a wooden one; disintegration of the masonry owing to the effects of vibration caused by traffic of heavy trucks; decay of the stone caused by gas pollutants. This physical-chemical damage results principally from a poorly planned urban development policy which has destroyed the monument's surroundings by the building of parking lots, large thoroughfares and slip roads which detract from the beauty of the aqueduct and hinder its proper conservation.

SPAIN: Poblet Monastery

 

Santa María of Poblet presents a unique blend of architectural forms generally reserved for distinct applications. It has served as one of the largest and most complete of the Cistercian abbeys, as a massive military complex, and as a royal palace, residence and pantheon. It is a unique artistic achievement and one of the most perfect expressions of Cistercian style in the 12th, 13th and 14th centuries. The abbey contains masterpieces from every period such as the great alabaster retablo by Damian Forment (1529).

Poblet presents a unique blend of architectural forms. First and foremost, it is a Cistercian abbey, one of the largest and most complete that exists. North of the church, laid out in the usual way, is a group of monastic buildings that include the great cloister with its fountain, chapter room, monk's dormitory, parlour and its annex, closed cloister, monk's room which is now a library, calefactory, refectory and kitchens.

Poblet is also a fortress, impressive in its massive size. Lying midway between Tarragona and Lérida, at the foot of the Sierra de Montsant, the old Cistercian monastery founded in 1150 by the monks of Fontfroide was transformed into a stronghold by Peter IV the Ceremonious, King of Aragon (1336-87) during the War of Castile. It was he who had the 608 m of interior walls built. These walls are an excellent example of 14th-century military architecture: crenellated battlements with walls 2 m thick and walkways, reinforced with high towers that are either square or polygonal, and its Royal Gate (1379-97) defended by machicolations.

Poblet is, finally, a royal residence, directly associated with the history of the houses of Barcelona, Aragon and Castile. The monastery was founded by Raimond Beranger IV, the saintly Count of Barcelona, to colonize reconquered lands. Later it was considered a symbolic monument of the dynasty. Shortly after 1349 Peter IV decided to do more than fortify Poblet: in the abbey church he had Jaime Cascalls and Jorge de Deu, masters of royal works, build a sumptuous dynasty burial place, using a completely new principle: two enormous sarcophagi reposing on surbased arches, providing for communication between the choir and the deambulatory. The sarcophagi served as sepultures for several kings of the houses of Catalonia and Aragon, identified by their recumbent statues: Alfonso II the Chaste, John I and John II on the southern, epistle side, James I the Conqueror, Peter IV and Ferdinand I on the northern, Gospel side. Several queens are buried alongside their spouses. The royal pantheon extends through the arms of the transept with individual sepultures. Poblet was both the necropolis and the home of kings. In 1397, Martin I commissioned the architect Arnau Bagues to transform the former lay brothers' building into a palace. The project was never completed, but royal chambers, on the east side, later were reserved for royal visitors.

SPAIN: Archaeological Ensemble of Tárraco

   There was possibly a trading settlement here, founded by Ionian Greeks, in the early 1st millennium BC. Recent research has proved that by the end of the 5th century BC the indigenous Iberians had created a settlement, called Kesse. It was seized and fortified by the Roman proconsul Scipio Africanus in 218 BC during the Second Punic War in order to cut off the flow of reinforcements from Carthage to Hannibal, then campaigning in Italy. Roman control over this part of the Iberian peninsula was strengthened when a Carthaginian fleet was destroyed in 217 BC at the mouth of the Ebro.

After serving as one of the bases for the Roman conquest of the entire peninsula, Tárraco(nowadays Tarragona) became the seat of Roman power. It supported Julius Caesar against Pompey and was rewarded with colonia status for its loyalty with the impressive title Colonia Iulia Urbs Triumphalis Tarraco. It later became the capital of the imperial province of Hispania Citerior (Tarraconensis), which covered much of the Iberian peninsula, following the reorganization by Augustus in 27 BC. As such it was suitably endowed with imposing public buildings, as a demonstration of Roman power. It was visited by several Roman emperors, among them Augustus and Hadrian, and was the site of many councils bringing together officials and worthies from all the Iberian provinces.

   Christianity was early in reaching Tárraco (according to legend brought by St Paul himself), and it became the see of a bishop. The prosperous city was ravaged by marauding Franks during the barbarian raids of the 250s, but it quickly recovered. The city came under Visigothic rule in the 5th century and continued in existence until 469, when Euric razed much of it to the ground.

   It became part of the Moorish territories in 714, but its location on the frontier with the Christian world led to Tárraco being the scene of many bloody conflicts in the following centuries. Twice recaptured for short periods, the largely ruinous and depopulated town did not return to the Christian realms until 1148, following the decisive defeat of the Moors at Tortosa by Raymond Berenguer IV. It was resettled by Normans, and became Catalan in 1220 after Alfonso the Warrior drove the Moors permanently out of Catalonia.

CHINA: Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties

Tomb of Ming Dinasty

 The Ming and Qing imperial tombs are outstanding testimony to a cultural and architectural tradition that for over 500 years dominated this part of the world. By reason of their integration into the natural environment, they make up a unique ensemble of cultural landscapes.

From time immemorial, the rulers of China attached great importance to the building of imposing mausolea, reflecting not only the general belief in an afterlife but also an affirmation of authority. When the Ming dynasty came to power (1368), an overall design was adopted. This was characterized by the attempt to achieve great harmony between a natural site meeting certain precise selection criteria and a complex of buildings fulfilling codified functions. The natural site, a plain or broad valley, must offer the perspective of a mountain range to the north, against which the tombs would be built, with a lower elevation to the south. It must be framed on the east and west by chains of hills, and feature at least one waterway. In order to harmonize with the natural setting, a number of buildings are constructed along a main access road several kilometres in length, known as the Way of the Spirits, which may branch off into secondary Ways leading to other mausolea.

An entrance portico with up to five doors marks the beginning of the Way of the Spirits, which subsequently passes through or alongside a number of buildings, in particular a reception pavilion, a pavilion housing the stele of Divine Merits, stone columns and sculptures representing animals, generals and ministers, in pairs. After one or more stone bridges and a Portico of the Dragon and the Phoenix, the sacred way arrives at a complex of buildings that includes a hall of meditation flanked by side pavilions and a Memorial Tower leading to the walled tumulus under which lie the burial chambers. This cultural landscape is imbued with a form of cosmogony that invests it with sacred status.

The Xianling tombs of the Ming dynasty are situated near the town of Zhongxiang, in Hubei Province, over 1,000 km from Beijing. The first work on the mausoleum was carried out by Xing, who planned to be buried there. On genealogical grounds, he was declared Emperor posthumously in 1519. Further work was then undertaken to bring the tomb into harmony with the standards of the Ming dynasty and to create a second tumulus to house the burial chambers of his family, including the empress.

The western Qing tomb contains fourteen imperial tombs and two building complexes: the Yongfu Tibetan Buddhist temple and the temporary palace where the imperial family resided when it came to honour its ancestors. The natural setting is extremely beautiful, in large part owing to the forest of elegant centuries-old pines.

The site of eastern Qing tombs contains 15 mausolea in which 161 bodies were buried - emperors, empresses, concubines and princesses. Among them are the emperors Kangxi and Qianlong, remembered as great sovereigns who actively promoted the development of China, and the Dowager Empress Cixi, who ruled the empire through intermediaries throughout the second half of the 19th century.

BRAZIL: Iguaçu National Park

The park shares with Iguazu National Park in Argentina one of the world's largest and most impressive waterfalls. It is home to many rare and endangered species of flora and fauna, among them the giant otter and the giant anteater. The clouds of spray produced by the waterfall maintain a lush growth of vegetation.

The Iguaçu Falls span the border between Argentina and Brazil. Some 80 m high and 3 km wide, the falls are made up of many cascades and rapids that generate vast sprays of water and produce one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world.

The lower park is subtropical rainforest rich in tree ferns, lianas and epiphytes. The upper part is mainly humid subtropical deciduous forest with stands of the Brazilian pine with two palms, the Assai palm and wild coconut palm, and the imbuya. These stands are limited to a small section in the north-east of the park. Subtropical rainforest occupies in total about 90% of the park.

Fauna recorded within the park include giant otter, La Plata otter, ocelot, jaguar, puma, margay, brocket deer, American tapir, collared peccary, white-lipped peccary, great dusky swift, solitary tinamou, ornate hawk eagle, red-breasted toucan and harpy eagle. Giant anteater has been recorded as well as pampas deer, black howler monkey, capybara, puma, black eagle, chimango caracara, crested cayman and urutu viper. Noteworthy birds include solitary tinamou, harpy eagle, black-fronted piping guan, glaucous macaw, vinaceous-breasted and red-spectacled parrots and white-tailed trogon.

MACEDONIA(THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF): Natural and Cultural Heritage of the Ohrid region

   Received thanx to Ana.

   Writing, education and Slavonic culture - all spread out from Ohrid in the 7th to 19th centuries. It is a cultural centre of great importance for the history not only of this part of the Balkan Peninsula, but also for all nations of the Slavonic tongue and for world history and literature, with precious manuscripts and other rarities. This city and its historic-cultural region are located in a natural setting of exceptional beauty, while its architecture represents the best preserved and most complete ensemble of ancient urban architecture of the Slavic lands.
    Ohrid is one of the most ancient human settlements in Europe, containing as it does Neolithic archaeological sites and others from the Bronze Age and the Hellenistic period. With its numerous prehistoric sites and its traces of the material culture of more than 5,000 years ago, Ohrid is indeed an archaeological treasury and the surroundings of the lake can be styled a magical land of archaeology. More than 250 archaeological sites with material remains dating from between the Neolithic period and the late Middle Ages have been excavated.
Within the very heart of the present city of Ohrid lies the antique city of Lichnid, significant and rich, as is its successor. The metamorphosis of ancient Lichnid into medieval Ohrid took from the 6th to the 9th century, creating one of the most significant medieval cities in the Balkans. The Ohrid saga reveals memories of the birth of Slavic literacy and culture in the works of St Clement and St Naum; St Clement is worshipped as a patron of the city: his three decades of work in the city (886-916) initiated the foundation of the Clement Slavic University.
In the old part of the town lying on the hillside below the double ridge of Lake Ohrid, which came into existence in a remote geological period as a result of tectonic shifts, are to be found remains of ancient temples and basilicas as well as numerous churches and chapels, built from the 9th to the 14th centuries.

    The ancient Slavonic St Clement's Monastery of St Panteleimon at Plaosnik was resanctified on 11 August 2002 when, after many years, the remains of St Clement of Ohrid, the first Slavic Bishop (893) and founder of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, were returned to this temple.

    Archaeological excavations of the cathedral church of St Sophia, which is situated at the foot of the hilly part of Ohrid and close to the lake, show that it was built on the foundations of an early Christian basilica and was reconstructed at the time of Archbishop Leo (1037-56). The name of Theoranius, one of the most important painters of the 14th century, has been discovered on the archangel's sword in the 'Repentance of David' fresco on the first floor in the Church of St Sophia and on painted frescoes and icons for the other churches of Ohrid. The frescoes of St Clement's Church of the Holy Mother of God are primarily distinguished by the artists' obvious tendency towards individual characterization of the portraits and a marked effort to move away from iconographic stereotypes.

  
     On the pillars in the narthex of St Naum two inscriptions are to be found: made by priests, they are valuable documentary evidence of the development of the Glagolitic and Cyrillic scripts in the Ohrid region. The monumental Early Christian Episcopal Church lies in the hilly part of Ohrid. The Church of St John the Evangelist (or Theologian) at Kaneo, built and decorated towards the end of the 13th century, is of great relevance to a study of Ohrid's medieval monuments as it is a highly successful combination of Byzantine and Armenian elements. The other monuments of Ohrid are Samuel's Fortress, with its enceinte of medieval ramparts, and the classical theatre built about 2,000 years ago, either in the late Hellenistic period or shortly after the Roman occupation. The town's architecture represents, with its old typical streets and houses and its particular atmosphere around old squares, the best preserved and most complete ensemble of ancient urban architecture of this part of Europe.

MONTENEGRO: Durmitor National Park

Received thanx to Ana.


The Black Lake(Crno Jezero)

Durmitor National Park comprises Mount Durmitor plateau and the valley formed by the canyon of the River Tara, incorporating three major geomorphologic features: canyons, mountains and plateaux. Because of its geographical location and range in altitude, the park is under the influence of both Mediterranean and alpine microclimates, which has resulted in an exceptional range of species.

Geologically, Durmitor and Tara canyons are made up of rocky massifs of the Mesozoic era (from the Lower Triassic to the Upper Cretaceous), Tertiary and Quaternary periods. The dominant features are the limestone formations of the Middle and Upper Triassic, the Upper Jurassic and the Upper Cretaceous, especially the so-called Durmitorean flysch. The River Tara, one of the last wild rivers in Europe, has pure, clear waters, a gorge 1,300 m deep and notable floristic and faunistic diversity. The 16 glacial lakes of the Durmitor and the canyons of the Tara, Susica and Draga rivers were formed during the Quaternary period, following the sudden thaw of the snow and the formation of glaciers on the Durmitor and neighbouring mountains. The waters of the largest lake, Black Lake, feed two separate river basins: the River Tara, and underground through the Durmitor Massif, the River Komarnica or Piva. There are numerous examples of weathering processes, rock shapes and land features characteristic of karstic erosion, fluvial erosion and glacial erosion.

Vegetation zones include deciduous forest, coniferous forest and subalpine zones. The dominant species include Scots pine, Norway pine, silver fir, beech, occasional birch, mugo pine and juniper. The park supports a rich karstic flora with many rare and endemic species. There are 37 taxa endemic to the area and six specific to Durmitor. The park contains one of the last virgin black pine forests in Europe, on soils that would usually develop beech woodland.

The Tara and its tributaries, as well as the lakes, contain a large number of salmonidae. Forest fauna includes brown bear, wolf, wild boar, wild cat, chamois, various species of eagle, capercaillie, black grouse and rock partridge.

MONTENEGRO: Natural and Culturo-Historical Region of Kotor

Received thanx to Ana from Macedonia.
Kotor Starigrad.

The culturo-historical region of Kotor has exerted considerable influence, over a span of time and within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture and human settlement. Kotor and its neighbours were main bridgeheads of Venice on the southern Adriatic coast. Its art, goldsmithing and architecture schools had a profound and durable influence on the arts of the coast. It is among the most characteristic examples of a type of structure representing important cultural, social and artistic values. It is considered to possess outstanding universal value by the quality of its architecture, the successful integration of its cities to the Gulf of Kotor and by its unique testimony to the exceptionally important role that it played in the diffusion of Mediterranean culture in the Balkan lands.

Founded by the Romans on the Adriatic coast in Montenegro, Kotor developed in the Middle Ages into an important commercial and artistic centre with its own famous schools of masonry and iconography. Throughout the centuries, many empires battled for control of the city. In the 10th century, it was an autonomous city of the Byzantine Empire. From 1186 to 1371, it was a free city of medieval Serbia. It was under Venetian and Hungarian control for brief periods, an independent republic from 1395 to 1420, and then returned to Venetian control once again. French occupation from 1807 to 1914 was followed by Austrian rule until 1918, when Kotor finally became part of Yugoslavia. Throughout its turbulent history, a variety of buildings have been erected. The largest and most impressive of these is the St Tryphon Cathedral. The original church was constructed in the 8th century, according to the annals of the Byzantine Emperor. A new church, built in 1166, was subsequently damaged during the 1667 earthquake and then restored.

The limits of the World Heritage site coincide approximately with the crests of the natural sinkhole formation. At both ends, the site is bordered by the national parks of Orten and Lovcen, making a vast protected natural area. The Gulf of Tivat (formerly part of the approaches to Kotor) is omitted because of the authenticity of its settlements, which has been downgraded by recent industrialization (shipyards, harbour equipment).

Most of Kotor's palaces and houses, many Romanesque churches, all of Dobrota's palaces, and Perast's main buildings have all suffered from earthquakes, and some have been partly destroyed. The city was evacuated by all its inhabitants after the most recent, on 15 April 1979. An intensive restoration and reconstruction programme has now been completed and the city is flourishing again.

BELARUS: Mir Castle Complex

Received thanx to Nadea.

The region in which Mir Castle stands has a long history of political and cultural confrontation and coalescence, which is graphically represented in the form and appearance of the ensemble. This is a fertile region in the geographical centre of Europe, at the crossroads of the most important trade routes, and at the same time at the epicentre of crucial European and global military conflicts between neighbouring powers with different religious and cultural traditions. The short period of history starting in the late 15th century was marked by a combination of unprecedented changes in the religious, humanitarian and economic spheres. The Mir Castle complex in its setting vividly symbolizes the history of Belarus and, as such, it is one of the major national symbols of the country.

Construction of the castle by the Ilyinichi family began at the end of the 15th century, in Gothic style; it was subsequently extended and reconstructed. The initial work consisted of building the walls and towers in Gothic style, but work came to an end for some unknown reason. Building had been completed by the beginning of the 17th century with the addition of palatial accommodation, with some Renaissance features, after it had passed to the Radzivill family. Following sieges in 1655 and 1706 reconstruction work involved the addition of some Baroque features. After being abandoned for almost a century and suffering severe damage during the Napoleonic period, the castle was restored at the end of the 19th century, with the addition of a number of other elements and the landscaping of the surrounding area as a park. Its present form is graphic testimony to an often turbulent history. The old castle survived as a romantic ruin.

The Mir Castle complex is situated on the bank of a small lake at the confluence of the Miryanka river and a small tributary. The fortified walls of the castle form an irregular quadrilateral; there are four exterior corner towers with hipped roofs rising to five storeys and a six-storey external gate tower on the western side. The facades are in brick, with recessed painted plasterwork, and the window and door frames and the balconies are sandstone. The roofs are tiled, some of the tiling being glazed.

Near the castle is the Chapel-Crypt of the Dukes of Svyatopolk-Mirsky. Its facade is decorated with a mosaic panel depicting the image of Christ, made from multicoloured tesserae. Other features are the watchman's house, close to the north of chapel crypt; the palace annex built in the late 19th century, which is located in the landscape park area with stuccoed and decorated facades. The ruins of the main palace building are situated at the eastern outskirts of the complex and are not currently in use. The 19th-century chapel is a tiny stone stuccoed building. The memorial on the site of the massacre of the Mir ghetto prisoners lies in the northern part of the complex, to the east of the former Italian garden.

GERMANY: Cologne Cathedral

Cologne Cathedral, constructed over more than six centuries, has an exceptional intrinsic value and contains artistic masterpieces. It is a powerful testimony to the strength and persistence of Christian belief in medieval and modern Europe.

Christians met for worship in a private house in Roman Cologne near the city wall. Following the Edict of Milan in 313, when Constantine proclaimed religious freedom, this building was enlarged as a church. Alongside it were an atrium, a baptistry and a dwelling-house, possibly for the bishop. This modest ensemble was extended and enlarged in the following centuries. This immense building, known by the 13th century as 'the mother and master of all churches in Germany', was consecrated in September 70.

Post-Second World War excavations, as well as contemporary documents, provide evidence of its form and decoration - a basilica, with a central nave flanked by two aisles and a large atrium in front of its western facade. A two-storeyed Chapel of the Palatinate, in the style of Charlemagne's chapel in Aachen, was added to the south transept at the beginning of the 11th century, and later that century it was connected by two lofty arcades at the east end with the Collegiate Church of St Mary ad Gradus.

Despite its generous dimensions, this cathedral was found to be too small to accommodate the throngs of pilgrims who visited it after the relics of the Magi were brought there from Milan in 1164. The ambition of Engelbert to make his archiepiscopal cathedral into one of the most important in the Holy Roman Empire led him to urge the construction of an entirely new building, but the start of the work was delayed by his murder in 1225, and it was not until 1248 that work began. In 1560 much of the nave and the four side-aisles had been completed, along with the main structure of the lofty south tower of the west end. Despite numerous efforts, the cathedral remained in an uncompleted state for the following centuries.

When the French seized Cologne in 1794 the Archbishop and Chapter moved to Aachen, and the building was used first for storage of grain and fodder and then as a parish church. Work was to begin again after Cologne passed to Prussia in 1815. Karl Friedrich Schinkel visited the cathedral in 1816 and sent his talented pupil Ernst Friedrich Zwirner there as cathedral architect. The work did not begin, however, until 1840. By 1880 the building was complete, after 632 years and two months.

Cologne Cathedral is a High Gothic five-aisled basilica, with a projecting transept and a two-tower facade. The construction is totally unified. The western section, begun in 1330, changes in style, but this is not perceptible in the overall building. The 19th-century work followed the medieval forms and techniques faithfully. The original liturgical appointments of the choir are still extant to a considerable degree. These include the high altar on an enormous monolithic slab of black marble, the carved-oak choir stalls (1308-11), the painted choir screens (1332-40), the 14 statues on the pillars in the choir (1270-90), and the stained-glass windows, the largest extant cycle of 14th-century windows in Europe. There is an outstanding series of tombs of 12 archbishops between 976 and 1612.

SWEDEN: Church Village of Gammelstad, Luleå

 Received thanx to Ari.

      Luleå Gammelstad is a remarkable example of the traditional church town of northern Scandinavia, and illustrates the adaptation of conventional urban design to the special geographical and climatic conditions of a hostile natural environment. It is a type of milieu that has been shaped by people's religious and social needs rather than economic and geographical forces, being intended for use only during weekends and church festivals.

     The settlement became the meeting place for three groups - merchants from the coastal regions of the Gulf of Bothnia, local farmers, and the Saamis (Lappons) of the hinterland. Of these, the farmers were the largest group by the mid-16th century. A social framework evolved around the parish church, influenced strongly by two factors - trade and church visits from outlying villages and farms, whose inhabitants were unable to attend church services and return home in a single day. The site of the church and its market place developed into a church town, i.e. a cluster of wooden cottages and stables to provide sleeping accommodation for churchgoers at weekends and festivals. The new settlement resulting from the relocation of the old harbour and of the trading centre closer to the sea took the name of Luleå, and was also known as Nystad (New Town). The earlier church site, renamed Gammelstad (Old Town), continued as the parish centre, although the parish itself had diminished in size as population growth led to the creation of new parishes. Because of the need to ensure that farm animals were continuously supervised, it was not possible for a family to take part in religious observances at the same time. As a result the tradition of 'church holidays' for older parishioners two or three times a year developed, along with an annual two weeks at midsummer for the younger people to meet, to prepare themselves for confirmation.

    Gammelstad was untouched by the industrialization of the region in the later 19th century, made possible by the introduction of the railway from the south, which mitigated the isolation during winter, when the sea froze over. The advent of the car saw the gradual disappearance of most of the stables in the church town. Despite the relocation of the settlement to Luleå, the church village retained its town plan simply because there was no pressure for it to be changed during a period of stagnation. The houses built in the 20th century as part of the dormitory area of Luleå all lie outside the early settlement, and Gammelstad has retained its historical integrity.

      The church town consists of 424 buildings, divided into 555 separate rooms. All are built from wood, painted red and with doors and window frames picked out in white. The doors, which face the street, are very varied in design, as are the window shutters, essential where buildings are not occupied continuously. Most of the doors bear a pyramid device, a motif from pagan antiquity reinterpreted as a Christian symbol depicting an altar with a sacrificial fire. The roofs were originally of wood, but with the advent of metal sheeting this became the favoured roofing material, to reduce fire risk and water leakage during thaws. A specific form of rolled steel sheeting has become accepted as the traditional roofing material.

      The church is the largest of its type in northern Scandinavia. It was decorated by artists from Stockholm and is crowned with the coat of arms of the archbishop. The bell tower (1852) is detached from the church, an unusual feature in this region. Notable buildings within the area are the Chapel of Bethel on the church square; the Cottage of the Separatists: the Parish House, built in 1754; the imposing Tithe Barn (1790); and a number of private houses, notably the Mayor's Residence, the Captain's Residence, and the Guest House, mostly dating from the foundation of the 17th century town.