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The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites are places of importance to cultural or natural heritage as described in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, established in 1972.[1] Guatemala accepted the convention on January 16, 1979, making its historical sites eligible for inclusion on the list. As of 2023, Guatemala has four World Heritage Sites, Takalik Abaj, the most recent was inscribed in 2023. [2]
Name | Image | Location | Criteria | Year | Description |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tikal National Park | Petén Department | Mixed (i) (iii) (iv) (ix) (x) | 1979 | In the heart of the jungle, surrounded by lush vegetation, lies one of the major sites of Mayan civilization, inhabited from the 6th century B.C. to the 10th century A.D. The ceremonial centre contains superb temples and palaces, and public squares accessed by means of ramps. Remains of dwellings are scattered throughout the surrounding countryside.[3] | |
Antigua Guatemala | Sacatepéquez Department | Cultural (ii) (iii) (iv) | 1979 | Antigua, the capital of the Captaincy-General of Guatemala, was founded in the early 16th century. Built 1,500 m above sea-level, in an earthquake-prone region, it was largely destroyed by an earthquake in 1773 but its principal monuments are still preserved as ruins. In the space of under three centuries the city, which was built on a grid pattern inspired by the Italian Renaissance, acquired a number of superb monuments.[4] | |
Archaeological Park and Ruins of Quirigua | Izabal Department | Cultural (i) (ii) (iv) | 1981 | Inhabited since the 2nd century A.D., Quirigua had become during the reign of Cauac Sky (723–84) the capital of an autonomous and prosperous state. The ruins of Quirigua contain some outstanding 8th-century monuments and an impressive series of carved stelae and sculpted calendars that constitute an essential source for the study of Mayan civilization.[5] | |
National Archaeological Park Tak’alik Ab’aj | Retalhuleu Department | Cultural (ii) (iii) | 2023 | Tak’alik Ab’aj is an archaeological site located on the Pacific Coast of Guatemala. Its 1,700-year history spans a period that saw the transition from the Olmec civilization to the emergence of Early Mayan culture. Tak’alik Ab’aj had a primary role in this transition, in part because it was vital to the long-distance trade route that connected the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in today's Mexico to present-day El Salvador. Ideas and customs were shared extensively along this route. Sacred spaces and buildings were laid out according to cosmological principles, and innovative water management systems, ceramics, and lapidary art can be found. Today, Indigenous groups of different affiliations still consider the site a sacred place and visit it to perform rituals.[6] |
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