2012-12-04 11:25

Seoul Fortress added to UNESCO's tentative list

The Seoul Fortress has been added to UNESCO's tentative list of world cultural heritage sites, officials said Tuesday.

UNESCO recently accepted the Korean government's request submitted last month to include the Seoul Fortress, which has surrounded the capital for 514 years, on its list, the Cultural Heritage Administration said.

The 18.6 kilometer-long fortress was built in 1396, four years after the start of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), along the peaks and ridges of four mountains surrounding Seoul, including Baekak and Inwang. It gives magnificent views of Seoul as a historical and cultural city, officials said.

Adding a property to the tentative list is a necessary first step in the process of nominating a site to the World Heritage List, because a country cannot nominate a property unless it has been on the tentative list for at least a year. Countries are also limited to nominating no more than two sites in any given year.

The new entry brings the number of Korean properties on the tentative list to 15. In total, the list currently has 1,562 properties from 169 UNESCO member countries. (Yonhap)