Mount Fuji likely to get World Heritage status
Source: AFP |
May 2, 2013, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
JAPAN'S Mount Fuji will likely be added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites next month after an influential advisory panel to the UN cultural body made a recommendation, officials said yesterday.
The International Council on Monuments and Sites, a consultative body to UNESCO, told the Japanese government that the almost perfectly conical Fuji is appropriate for registering as a World Heritage site, the agency for cultural affairs said in a statement.
Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan at 3,776 meters, is expected to be formally listed in June when the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO meets in Cambodia.
Following the recommendation, the mayor of Fujinomiya City, Hidetada Sudo expressed hope the expected listing would be a boost to tourism. "I expect many people will visit us. This is a huge step for our city's development," he said.
In its request for registration, the agency for cultural affairs said Mount Fuji covers roughly 70,000 hectares in Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures, including five major lakes and the Shiraito Falls, as well as eight Shinto shrines.
It is being considered as a "cultural" heritage site, rather than a "natural" heritage site.
The mountain "has nurtured Japan's unique art and culture" as it has been depicted in "ukiyoe" woodblock prints and represents the tradition of mountain worship in Japan, the agency said.
Fuji, a volcano that last erupted around 300 years ago, is one of Japan's most instantly recognizable sights. Images of its snow-capped peak adorn tourism literature published at home and abroad.
Other World Heritage cultural sites include the Sydney Opera House, Cambodia's Angkor temples, The Great Wall of China and the pyramid fields in Egypt.
The International Council on Monuments and Sites, a consultative body to UNESCO, told the Japanese government that the almost perfectly conical Fuji is appropriate for registering as a World Heritage site, the agency for cultural affairs said in a statement.
Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan at 3,776 meters, is expected to be formally listed in June when the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO meets in Cambodia.
Following the recommendation, the mayor of Fujinomiya City, Hidetada Sudo expressed hope the expected listing would be a boost to tourism. "I expect many people will visit us. This is a huge step for our city's development," he said.
In its request for registration, the agency for cultural affairs said Mount Fuji covers roughly 70,000 hectares in Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefectures, including five major lakes and the Shiraito Falls, as well as eight Shinto shrines.
It is being considered as a "cultural" heritage site, rather than a "natural" heritage site.
The mountain "has nurtured Japan's unique art and culture" as it has been depicted in "ukiyoe" woodblock prints and represents the tradition of mountain worship in Japan, the agency said.
Fuji, a volcano that last erupted around 300 years ago, is one of Japan's most instantly recognizable sights. Images of its snow-capped peak adorn tourism literature published at home and abroad.
Other World Heritage cultural sites include the Sydney Opera House, Cambodia's Angkor temples, The Great Wall of China and the pyramid fields in Egypt.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
