After the successful operation of safeguarding the monuments of Nubia, in particular the two temples of Abu-Simbel, was completed in 1968, UNESCO decided to establish an international convention for the protection of world-class monuments.
This convention, known as the ‘Convention for the protection of the World’s Cultural and Natural Heritage’, was adopted by the general conference of UNESCO in November 1972.
It was ratified at the beginning by a limited number of member states and, by October 2006, the number had reached 184 countries. The convention, besides defining what is meant by both cultural and natural heritage, has outlined the formation of an independent center within UNESCO called the World Heritage Center (WHC).
One purpose of the WHC is to establish a ‘World Heritage List’ of sites of outstanding universal value. It has also drawn up criteria for assessing what is meant by ‘outstanding universal value’.
To include a site on this list, the concerned country must submit a basic nomination form. If accepted from the form, the site is added to a tentative list. Then the concerned country is asked to prepare a full file for evaluation by the WHC.
The Convention identified six criteria for a site to be included on the list. The site has to meet one or more of these criteria to be considered as having outstanding universal value. These criteria, as stated in the convention, are:
1) Representing a masterpiece of human creative genius
2) Exhibiting an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design
3) Bearing a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared
4) Being an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history
5) Being an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change
6) Being directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance.
