1334 CN - West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou (2011)

Brief Description

"The West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou, comprising the West Lake and the hills surrounding its three sides, has inspired famous poets, scholars and artists since the 9th century. It comprises numerous temples, pagodas, pavilions, gardens and ornamental trees, as well as causeways and artificial islands. These additions have been made to improve the landscape west of the city of Hangzhou to the south of the Yangtze river.
The West Lake has influenced garden design in the rest of China as well as Japan and Korea over the centuries and bears an exceptional testimony to the cultural tradition of improving landscapes to create a series of vistas reflecting an idealised fusion between humans and nature."

杭州西湖
"自公元9世纪以来，西湖的湖光山色引得无数文人骚客、艺术大师吟咏兴叹、泼墨挥毫。景区内遍布庙宇、亭台、宝塔、园林，其 间点缀着奇花异木、岸堤岛屿，为江南的杭州城增添了无限美景。数百年来，西湖景区对中国其他地区乃至日本和韩国的园林设计都产生了影响，在景观营造的文化 传统中，西湖是对天人合一这一理想境界的最佳阐释。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1334

西湖春色 Spring comes to West Lake

瀛州夏曲 Lesser Yingzhou Isle in summer

平湖秋月 Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake

断桥残雪 Snow melting on Broken Bridge

六合远眺 Distant view of Six Harmonies Pagoda

六合塔 Six Harmonies Pagoda

三潭印月 Three Pools mirroring the Moon

曲院风荷 Lotus in Breeze at Qu Garden

花港观鱼 Viewing Fish at Flower Harbour

云林禅寺(灵隐寺) Lingyin Temple

宝俶流霞 Sunset glow at Baoshu Pagoda

岳庙 Temple of Yue fei

377 TR - Hattusha: the Hittite Capital (1986)

Brief Description

The archaeological site of Hattusha, former capital of the Hittite Empire, is notable for its urban organization, the types of construction that have been preserved (temples, royal residences, fortifications), the rich ornamentation of the Lions' Gate and the Royal Gate, and the ensemble of rock art at Yazilikaya. The city enjoyed considerable influence in Anatolia and northern Syria in the 2nd millennium B.C.
哈图莎：希泰首都

哈图莎是希泰王国以前的首都。它的城市结构，被保留下来的建筑类型（寺庙、皇宫、要塞）、狮子门和皇宫门上华丽的装饰以及亚兹里卡亚的岩石艺术，使它成为杰出的考古遗址。这座城市在公元前2000年时对安纳托利亚及北叙利亚都产生过巨大影响。
Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/377

Courtesy of ctrekoza from postcrossing forum

Courtesy of sezens from postcrossing forum

781 ES - Historic Walled Town of Cuenca (1996)

Brief Description

"Built by the Moors in a defensive position at the heart of the Caliphate of Cordoba, Cuenca is an unusually well-preserved medieval fortified city. Conquered by the Castilians in the 12th century, it became a royal town and bishopric endowed with important buildings, such as Spain's first Gothic cathedral, and the famous casas colgadas (hanging houses), suspended from sheer cliffs overlooking the Huécar river. Taking full advantage of its location, the city towers above the magnificent countryside."

城墙围绕的历史名城昆卡

"昆卡城位于科尔多瓦的哈里发统治区中心的重要防御位置，最初由摩尔人建立，由于得到完好保护，现在该古城成为不可多得的中 世纪要塞城市的样例。公元12世纪，西班牙卡斯蒂利亚王国收复领土后，昆卡作为皇城和主教富人区，建起了很多建筑，例如西班牙第一座哥特式大教堂和著名的 卡萨斯·科尔加达斯（悬空房）。悬空的房子位于峻峭的悬崖之上，俯视瓦拉河。正是由于它所处的优越地理位置，整个城市从周围的乡村中脱颖而出，格外引人注 目。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/781

Courtesy of famalubel from postcrossing forum

966 AR - Ischigualasto / Talampaya Natural Parks (2000)

Brief Description

"These two contiguous parks, extending over 275,300 ha in the desert region on the western border of the Sierra Pampeanas of central Argentina, contain the most complete continental fossil record known from the Triassic Period (245-208 million years ago). Six geological formations in the parks contain fossils of a wide range of ancestors of mammals, dinosaurs and plants revealing the evolution of vertebrates and the nature of palaeo-environments in the Triassic Period."

伊沙瓜拉斯托－塔拉姆佩雅自然公园

"这两个公园相邻，坐落在阿根廷中部彭巴山 (the Sierra Pampeanas) 西麓的沙漠地区，绵延275 300公顷，保存有三叠纪（2.45亿至2.08亿年前）最为完整的大陆化石。公园内的六个地质层含有哺乳动物先祖、恐龙以及各种植物化石，反映了脊椎动 物的进化过程以及三叠纪时期古代自然环境。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/966

Courtesy of sternchen84 from postcrossing forum

Vallée de la Lune, Province de San Juan

1116 AR - Quebrada de Humahuaca (2003)

Brief Description

"Quebrada de Humahuaca follows the line of a major cultural route, the Camino Inca, along the spectacular valley of the Rio Grande, from its source in the cold high desert plateau of the High Andean lands to its confluence with the Rio Leone some 150 km to the south. The valley shows substantial evidence of its use as a major trade route over the past 10,000 years. It features visible traces of prehistoric hunter-gatherer communities, of the Inca Empire (15th to 16th centuries) and of the fight for independence in the 19th and 20th centuries."

塔夫拉达•德乌玛瓦卡

"塔夫拉达•德乌玛瓦卡遗产地沿一条主要的文化路线——卡米诺印加分布。其源头起自安蒂恩高原(the High Andean lands)上寒冷的荒原，沿格兰德河谷 (the Rio Grande) 延伸，直到南部150公里与莱昂河(the Rio Leone) 汇合处。山谷里的遗迹向世人展示了过去一万年间，它被作为主要的商业通道的历史。有多出明显的遗迹表明，这里曾先后是史前的狩猎军体聚集地，还是印加帝国 时代（公元15-16世纪）和19至20世纪人们为独立而斗争的战场。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1116

Courtesy of sternchen84 from postcrossing forum

Purmamarca Jujuy Province

309 BR - Historic Centre of Salvador de Bahia (1985)

Brief Description

"As the first capital of Brazil, from 1549 to 1763, Salvador de Bahia witnessed the blending of European, African and Amerindian cultures. It was also, from 1558, the first slave market in the New World, with slaves arriving to work on the sugar plantations. The city has managed to preserve many outstanding Renaissance buildings. A special feature of the old town are the brightly coloured houses, often decorated with fine stucco-work."

巴伊亚州的萨尔瓦多历史中心

"萨尔瓦多是巴西第一个首都，在1549至1763年期间见证了欧洲文化、非洲文化和美洲文化在这里的融合。从1558年开 始，殖民者将非洲奴隶贩卖到这里的甘蔗园地劳动，使得萨尔瓦多成为了新大陆(New World)第一个奴隶市场。城市保留了很多著名的文艺复兴时期典型建筑。老城的一个独特之处就是色彩鲜亮的房屋，通常都采用了上好的涂墙泥灰来装饰。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/309

Courtesy of Tine from picasa

Courtesy of kazinhabueno from postcrossing forum

170 MA - Medina of Fez (1981)

Brief Description

"Founded in the 9th century and home to the oldest university in the world, Fez reached its height in the 13th–14th centuries under the Marinids, when it replaced Marrakesh as the capital of the kingdom. The urban fabric and the principal monuments in the medina – madrasas, fondouks, palaces, residences, mosques and fountains - date from this period. Although the political capital of Morocco was transferred to Rabat in 1912, Fez has retained its status as the country's cultural and spiritual centre."

非斯的阿拉伯人聚居区

"非斯城建于公元9世纪，那里有世界上最早建立的大学。在公元13世纪至14世纪时，非斯代替马拉柯什成为马里尼德王国的首 都，从而到达了它的鼎盛时期。聚居区中的城市建筑和主要遗迹都可以追溯到那个时期，其中包括伊斯兰学校、集市、宫殿、民居、清真寺、喷泉等等。尽管国家的 政治首都于1912年迁到了拉巴特，但非斯仍然是最主要的文化中心和宗教中心。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/170

Courtesy of Tine from picasa

930 ES - Palmeral of Elche (2000)

Brief Description

"The Palmeral of Elche, a landscape of groves of date palms, was formally laid out, with elaborate irrigation systems, at the time the Muslim city of Elche was erected, towards the end of the tenth century A.C., when much of the Iberian peninsula was Arab. The Palmeral is an oasis, a system for agrarian production in arid areas. It is also a unique example of Arab agricultural practices on the European continent. Cultivation of date palms in Elche is known at least since the Iberian times, dating around the fifth century B.C."

埃尔切的帕梅拉尔

"埃尔切的帕梅拉尔和穆斯林城市埃尔切于公元10世纪末期同时开始修建，当时伊比利亚半岛主要由阿拉伯人统治着。帕梅拉尔就 如同沙漠中的一个绿洲，在当地贫瘠的土地上创造了进行农业生产的奇迹。这里同时也是欧洲大陆上阿拉伯人农业生产独一无二的范例。埃尔切种植枣椰树的历史已 经相当久远，至少在公元前5世纪的伊比利亚时代就开始了。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/930

Courtesy of Bessie from postcrossing forum

Courtesy of famalubel from postcrossing forum

CZ1052 Tugendhat Villa in Brno available for swap

CZ1052-1 Tugendhat Villa in Brno (2 available)

114 IR - Persepolis (1979)

Brief Description

"Founded by Darius I in 518 B.C., Persepolis was the capital of the Achaemenid Empire. It was built on an immense half-artificial, half-natural terrace, where the king of kings created an impressive palace complex inspired by Mesopotamian models. The importance and quality of the monumental ruins make it a unique archaeological site."

波斯波利斯

"波斯波利斯是古代阿契美尼德帝国的首都，兴建于公元前518年。在美索不达米亚诸都城的启发下，大流士一世在一块儿无垠的半人工半天然台地上修建了一座拥有众多宫殿的建筑群。波斯波利斯古城遗址提供了许多关于古代波斯文明的珍贵资料，具有重要的考古价值。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/114

Courtesy of elbe from postcrossing forum

1192 BH - Qal’at al-Bahrain – Ancient Harbour and Capital of Dilmun (2005)

Brief Description

"Qal’at al-Bahrain is a typical tell – an artificial mound created by many successive layers of human occupation. The strata of the 300 × 600 m tell testify to continuous human presence from about 2300 BC to the 16th century AD. About 25% of the site has been excavated, revealing structures of different types: residential, public, commercial, religious and military. They testify to the importance of the site, a trading port, over the centuries. On the top of the 12 m mound there is the impressive Portuguese fort, which gave the whole site its name, qal’a (fort). The site was the capital of the Dilmun, one of the most important ancient civilizations of the region. It contains the richest remains inventoried of this civilization, which was hitherto only known from written Sumerian references."
巴林贸易港考古遗址

"位于巴林岛的卡拉特考古遗址是一个典型的台形土墩遗址，由连续许多层人类居住遗迹堆建而成的人工土墩。300×600米的 土堆见证了从大约公元前2300年至公元16世纪人类一直在此居住的历史。遗址中已被挖掘的部分约占25%, 展示了不同类型的房屋结构： 包括住宅、公共设施、商业、宗教和军事设施。这些足以证明数世纪来这里作为通商口岸的重要性。在12米高的土墩之上是雄伟的葡萄牙堡垒，整个遗迹因此而得 名“卡拉特”(qal'a)，意即堡垒。该遗址是这一地区最重要的古代文明之一——迪尔蒙(Dilmun)文明的首都。这一文化至今只见于苏美尔文献记载 中，但这一遗址却保存了其最丰富的遗迹。"
Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1192

Courtesy of elbe from postcrossing forum

1023 RU - Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve (2004)

Brief Description

"Located well above the Arctic Circle, the site includes the mountainous Wrangel Island (7,608 km2), Herald Island (11 km²) and surrounding waters. Wrangel was not glaciated during the Quaternary Ice Age, resulting in exceptionally high levels of biodiversity for this region. The island boasts the world’s largest population of Pacific walrus and the highest density of ancestral polar bear dens. It is a major feeding ground for the grey whale migrating from Mexico and the northernmost nesting ground for 100 migratory bird species, many endangered. Currently, 417 species and subspecies of vascular plants have been identified on the island, double that of any other Arctic tundra territory of comparable size and more than any other Arctic island. Some species are derivative of widespread continental forms, others are the result of recent hybridization, and 23 are endemic."

弗兰格尔岛自然保护区

"弗兰格尔岛自然保护区位于北极圈内，包括弗兰格尔岛（7,608平方公里）、赫洛德岛（11平方公里）的山地及其附近水 域。该区在第四纪冰河时期没有受到冰河的作用，所以有丰富的生物多样性。这里有世界上最大的太平洋海象群，最高密度的古代北极熊牙齿，是从墨西哥海湾迁徙 来的灰鲸的主要觅食地和100种候鸟的最北端筑巢地。在这些鸟类中，许多已经处于濒危状态。目前，已经确认岛上有417种类的维管植物，是北极圈内其他岛 上植物种类的两倍，多于其他任何一个北极的岛屿。有些物种源于广泛分布的大陆性植物，另外一些是近年来植物杂交的产物，23种为地方特有。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1023

Courtesy of Galina from Russia

Courtesy of Emerich from Czech

CZ1561 - The Forstress of Terezín (2001)

Courtesy of Emerich from Czech

CZ5378 - The West Bohemian Spa Triangle (2008)

Courtesy of Emerich from Czech

Karlovy Vary: N50 13 20.39 – E12 53 06.44

Františkovy Lázně: N50 07 11.34 – E12 21 06.08
Mariánské Lázně: N49 58 40.21 – E12 42 12.80

CZ1509 - Fishpond Network in the Trebon Basin (2001)

Courtesy of Emerich from Czech

Courtesy of Emerich from Czech

PH5024 - Chocolate Hills Natural Monument (2006)

1052 CZ - Tugendhat Villa in Brno (2001)

Brief Description

"The Tugendhat Villa in Brno, designed by the architect Mies van der Rohe, is an outstanding example of the international style in the modern movement in architecture as it developed in Europe in the 1920s. Its particular value lies in the application of innovative spatial and aesthetic concepts that aim to satisfy new lifestyle needs by taking advantage of the opportunities afforded by modern industrial production."

布尔诺的图根哈特别墅

"布尔诺的图根德哈特别墅是建筑师密斯·范·德·罗厄(Mies van der Rohe)设计的，是20世纪20年代欧洲兴起的建筑近代运动国际风格的杰出典范，其独特的价值体现在创新空间和美学理念的应用上，这些理念旨在利用现代 工业生产带来的机会，以满足新生活方式的需要。"

Source UNESCO WH website http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1052