The World Monuments Watch is a flagship advocacy program of the New York–based private non-profit organization World Monuments Fund (WMF) and American Express to call to action and challenge government authorities responsible for important cultural resources to identify sites immediately at risk, and to stimulate public awareness of the tremendous need to preserve and create sustainable uses for significant heritage made by man.[1][2]

Selection process

Every two years, the program publishes a select list known as the Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites that is in urgent need of preservation funding and protection. The sites are nominated by public authorities, local preservation groups, and qualified individuals.[2] An independent panel of international experts then select 100 candidates from these entries to be part of the Watch List, based on the significance of the site's overall significance, the urgency of its situation, the viability of action plans to save it, and the ability of a local constituency to sustainably maintain the site in the future with the means to do so.[1] WMF and American Express award grants to sites included on the Watch List. In addition, the leverage from the listing spurs government agencies and local donors to allocate funds and take an active role in protecting the cultural landmark.[2]

1998 Watch List

The 1998 World Monuments Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites was launched on September 8, 1997, by WMF President Bonnie Burnham.[2]

List by country/territory

Irretrievable losses from the political turmoil that followed the collapse of Albania's communist regime in 1992 led to the Butrint archaeological site's inclusion on the 1998 Watch List.
Benin's Royal Palaces of Abomey, a group of earthen structures built by the Fon people, is one of the most famous and historically significant traditional sites in West Africa.
Built in 1894 to produce canned salmon, Gulf of Georgia Cannery has been declared as a National Historic Site of Canada.
Along with Herculaneum, its sister city, Pompeii was destroyed, and completely buried, during a long catastrophic eruption of the Italian volcano Mount Vesuvius spanning two days in AD 79.
Mexico City's Palace of Fine Arts is known for both its extravagant Beaux Arts exterior in imported Italian Carrara white marble and its murals by Diego Rivera[3]
Mnajdra Prehistoric Temples are among the most ancient religious sites on Earth.
The highly ornate wooden structure of Green Palace, built without nails, is a sacred monument for Mongolians and continues to have an active function as a museum of cultural artifacts.
The wooden architecture of Trondheim is at risk of being compromised with inappropriate new materials and additions.
An example of the revival of Gothic architecture in the Philippines, the San Sebastian Basilica is the only all-steel church or basilica in Asia.[4]
The "Ransom Room", in Cajamarca, Peru, is considered by most Peruvian historians to be the place where the Inca Empire came to an end with the capture and eventual execution of the Inca Emperor Atahualpa.[5]
Famous in particular for its massive dome, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and to have "changed the history of architecture."[6]
Number[A] Country/Territory Site[B] Location[C] Period[C]
1 Afghanistan Herat Old City Herat 1100–1899
2 Albania Butrint Archaeological Site Sarande 8th century BC–15th century AD
3 Argentina Ushuaia Prison Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego 1902–1912
4 Belgium Previous Radio and Television Building Brussels 1935
5 Belgium Tour and Taxis Brussels 1897–1907
6 Belgium Wortel Colony Estate Hoogstraten 1822
7 Benin Royal Palaces of Abomey Abomey 1645–1906
8 Bolivia Arani and Callapa Churches Arani, Cochabamba & Callapa, La Paz 1560 and 1745
9 Bolivia Rio Lauca Prehistoric Burial Towers Department of Oruro 1200–1600
10 Bosnia and Herzegovina Village of Pocitelj Pocitelj 1444–Present
11 Bulgaria Madara Horseman Kaspichan 8th–9th century
12 Cambodia Banteay Chhmar Temple of Jayavarman VII Thmar Puok, Oddar Meanchey Province 1100–1199
13 Canada Gulf of Georgia Cannery Richmond, British Columbia 1894–1964
14 Chile Alameda Railroad Station Santiago 1900
15 Chile Tulor Aldea San Pedro de Atacama 5th century BC–2nd century AD
16 China Jufu Hall Xian Nong Tan (The Temple of Agriculture), Beijing 1420
17 China Namseling Manor Drachi, Tibet 14th century
18 China Palpung Tibetan Monastery Babang Village, Sichuan 1725
19 Croatia Ducal Palace Zadar 16th century
20 Croatia Franciscan Monastery Library Dubrovnik 1667
21 Cuba Reina Cemetery Cienfuegos 1839
22 Czech Republic Follies and Conservatory in Lednice Park Lednice and Valtice Villages 1797–1848
23 Czech Republic Prague's Historic Center Prague 9th century BC–Present
24 Czech Republic Heavenly Father Chapel Kutna Hora 14th century
25 Czech Republic Nebilovy Mansion Nebilovy, Plzeň District 1706–1715
26 Egypt Mortuary Temple of King Ahmenhotep III, Gurna, Luxor 14th century BC
27 El Salvador Suchitoto City Suchitoto, Cuscatlán 16th century
28 Ethiopia Mentewab-Qwesqwam Palace Gondar 18th century
29 Fiji Levuka Township Levuka 1830–1925
30 France 'Galerie des Actions de Monsieur le Prince' Chateau of Chantilly, Chantilly 1560–1897
31 Gambia James Island James Island 460–1860
32 Georgia Tbilisi Historic District Tbilisi 6th century–Present
33 Hungary Spa Center Historic Ensemble Balatonfüred 1790–1880
34 India Ahmedabad Walled City Ahmedabad 1411–Present
35 India Jaisalmer Fort Jaisalmer, Rajasthan 12th century
36 Israel Gemeindehaus German Colony, Haifa 1869
37 Israel Ramla White Mosque Ramle Municipality 9th century
38 Italy Ancient Pompeii Naples 1st century BC–AD 79
39 Italy Arch of Trajan Ancona AD 115
40 Italy Botanical Garden of University of Padua Padua 1545
41 Italy Etruscan Painted Tombs of Tarquinia Tarquinia 7th century BC–2nd century BC
42 Italy Limonaia at Boboli Gardens and Gardens of Villa Medici at Castello Florence 1777–1778 and 1577
43 Italy Basilica Neopitagorica Rome 1st century
44 Italy Palazzo Doria Pamphilj Valmontone Mid–17th century
45 Italy Rupestrian churches of Apulia and the City of Matera Apulia and City of Matera 1000–1753
46 Italy Terra del Sole prison cells Castrocaro Terme and Terra del Sole Mid–16th century
47 Jamaica Old Iron Bridge Spanish Town, St. Catherine 1800
48 Jordan Petra Archaeological Site Wadi Mousa 1st–6th century
49 Laos Vat Sisaket Vientiane 1819–25
50 Latvia Abava Valley Cultural Landscape Kurzeme 13th–19th century
51 Lebanon Enfeh Enfeh (near Tripoli) 2nd millennium BC–13th century AD
52 Lithuania Vilnius Town Hall Vilnius 1503–22
53 Malaysia Kampung Cina River Frontage Kuala Terengganu Late 19th–early 20th century
54 Malta Mnajdra Prehistoric Temples Mnajdra 3600 BC–2500 BC
55 Mexico Carolina Hacienda (Main House) Chihuahua 1896
56 Mexico Madera Cave Dwellings Madera, Chihuahua 6th century–7th century AD
57 Mexico Metropolitan Cathedral Mexico City 1573–1813
58 Mexico Monasteries of San Juan Bautista Tetela del Volcan and Tlayacapan Morelos 16th century
59 Mexico Palace of Fine Arts Mexico City 1904–1934
60 Mexico Teotihuacan Archaeological Site San Juan Teotihuacan 100 BC–AD 750
61 Mexico Vega de la Peña Archaeological Site Filo-Bobos, Veracruz Before 1400
62 Mongolia Bogd Khan Palace Museum Ulan Bator Town 1893–1903
63 Nepal Gombas of Upper Mustang Lo Manthang, Mustang 15th century
64 Norway Wooden Architecture of Trondheim Trondheim 1850–1890
65 Pakistan Uch Monument Complex Uch, Bahawalpur District, Punjab Province ca 2nd millennium BC–mid–16th century AD
66 Panama San Lorenzo Castle and San Geronimo Fort Colon and Portobelo 1595–1779 and 1653–1760
67 Peru Apurlec Archaeological Site Motupe, Lambayeque 7th century AD–14th century
68 Peru La Quinta Heeren Lima 1888–1930
69 Peru "Ransom Room" Cajamarca 1430–1460
70 Philippines Kabayan Mummy Caves Kabayan, Benguet 2nd millennium BC–2nd century AD
71 Philippines San Sebastian Basilica Manila 1886–1891
72 Poland Debno Parish Church Nowy Targ 15th century
73 Poland Vistulamouth Fortress Gdańsk 1482–1800
74 Romania Constantin Brâncuși's Endless Column Târgu Jiu 1937–1938
75 Romania Roman Catholic Church Ghelinţa 13th century
76 Russia Agate Pavilion of the Catherine Palace Tsarskoje Selo, St. Petersburg 1780–1787
77 Russia Alexander Palace Tsarskoje Selo, St. Petersburg 1792–1796
78 Russia Irkoutsk Historic Center Irkoutsk 1770–1799
79 Russia Paanajarvi Village Kemi Province 14th century–Present
80 Russia Russakov Club Moscow 1929
81 Russia Yelagin Island Palace and Park Ensemble St. Petersburg 1780–1826
82 Slovakia Hell House Banska Stiavnica 1500–1850
83 Spain Windmills of Mallorca Balearic Islands 1600–1950
84 Turkey Ani Archaeological Site Ocarli Koyu, Kars 3rd–14th century
85 Turkey Hagia Sophia Istanbul AD 532–563
86 Turkey Patara Archaeological Site Kas 3rd millennium BC–AD 1200
87 Uganda Masaka Cathedral Masaka, Kitovu Village 1927
88 Ukraine Ancient Chersonesos Sevastopol, Crimea 5th century BC–15th century AD
89 United Kingdom Hadlow Tower Tonbridge, England 1838–1840
90 United Kingdom Mussenden Temple Castlerock, Northern Ireland 1760–1799
91 United Kingdom St Francis Church and Monastery Manchester, England 1863–1872
92 United Kingdom The St Vincent Street Church Glasgow, Scotland 1857–1859
93 United States of America Bodie State Historic Park California 1859–1896
94 United States of America Fort Apache White Mountain, Apache Tribal Land, Arizona 1870–1922
95 United States of America Lancaster County Pennsylvania 1710–1945
96 United States of America Mesa Verde National Park Colorado 13th century
97 United States of America South Pass Cultural Landscape Wyoming Mid–19th century
98 Venezuela San Francisco Church Coro, Falcon 1720–1887
99 Vietnam My Son Temple District Duy Xuyen District 3rd–12th century
100 Yemen Shibam Historic City Shibam 5th century

Statistics by country/territory

The following countries/territories have multiple sites entered on the 1998 Watch List, listed by the number of sites:

Number of sites Country/Territory
9 Italy
7 Mexico
6 Russia
5 United States of America
4 Czech Republic and United Kingdom
3 Belgium, China, Peru and Turkey
2 Bolivia, Chile, Croatia, India, Israel, Philippines, Poland and Romania

Notes

^ A. Numbers list only meant as a guide on this article. No official reference numbers have been designated for the sites on the Watch List.
^ B. Names and spellings used for the sites were based on the official 1998 Watch List as published[permanent dead link].
^ C. The references to the sites' locations were based on the official 1998 Watch List as published[permanent dead link].

References

  1. ^ a b "Palpung named to list of endangered monuments". World Monuments Fund. September 1997. Retrieved 8 September 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d "1998 World Monuments Watch" (PDF). World Monuments Fund. Retrieved 8 September 2009.[dead link]
  3. ^ Klinglesmith, Dan; Patrick Soran (2 October 1994). "Capital city wears legacy of muralist Diego Rivera". Travel. The Denver Post.
  4. ^ "World Heritage: San Sebastian Church". Tentative List for the World Heritage List. UNESCO. Retrieved 20 April 2008.
  5. ^ Ravines, Rogger; El cuarto del rescate de Atahualpa, 1532-1986; Lima : Instituto Nacional de Cultura, 1987. OCLC 21464899
  6. ^ Simons, Marlise (1993-08-22). "Center of Ottoman Power". New York Times. Retrieved 4 June 2009.

External links

World Monuments Watch
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