Gobyoyama Kofun, one of the Mounded Tombs of Ancient Japan (Image: Toshiyuki Yasuda)
Cover Gobyoyama Kofun, one of the Mounded Tombs of Ancient Japan (Image: Toshiyuki Yasuda)

Earlier this July, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee held a meeting at the walled city of Baku in Azerbaijan to select its 2019 additions to its coveted list of heritage sites around the world. Of the 37 nominees, 29 prevailed.

It’s no ordinary feat to be part of the Unesco World Heritage List. Each site undergoes rigorous review, must be deemed as possessing an "outstanding universal value", and should meet at least one of the following criteria—playing significance in human history, a natural phenomena or beauty, a display of human creative genius, and a significant natural habitat for biodiversity, to name a few.

With Asia’s rich culture and colourful history, it’s no surprise that almost half—13 including Australia—of the newly inscribed sites are located in the largest continent in the world. Azerbaijan, for one, had its own historic centre of Sheki with the Khan’s palace as part of the current 1,121 heritage sites.

A long-awaited recognition was handed to Iraq, as the ancient city of Babylon was finally inscribed as a heritage site. This once bustling empire still has majority of its structures unearthed, with only 18 per cent of the 10 sq.km having been excavated, which is why it took more than three decades before the United Nation’s cultural body decided to include this site on the list.

Meanwhile, recognised for their architectural beauty, South Korea’s nine neo-Confucian academies or seowon, Jaipur city in India and Bagan in Myanmar also received a nod from the international body.

Other new entries in Asia, including Australia, are: Dilmun Burial Mounds (Bahrain), Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City (China), Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the Coast of Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf of China, Phase I (China), Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage of Sawahlunto (Indonesia), Hyrcanian Forests (Iran), Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group: Mounded Tombs of Ancient Japan (Japan), Megalithic Jar Sites in Xiengkhuang-Plain of Jars (Laos), Budj Bim Cultural Landscape (Australia).

Scroll through the gallery to see the magnificence of these newly inscribed sites:

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'gallery right' 'gallery right'
Photo 1 of 21 Red-crowned Cranes resting at the Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf of China (Image: Yangcheng Broadcasting Television)
Photo 2 of 21 Eurasian Spoonbills take a quick dip at the Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the coast of Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf of China (Image: Yangcheng Broadcasting Television)
Photo 3 of 21 Ingyo-tenno-ryo Kofun, one of the Mounded Tombs of Ancient Japan (Image: Sakai City Government)
Photo 4 of 21 Gobyoyama Kofun, one of the Mounded Tombs of Ancient Japan (Image: Toshiyuki Yasuda)
Photo 5 of 21 The Ishtar Gate at the ancient archaeological site of Babylon, south of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad (Image: AFP by Hussein Faleh)
Photo 6 of 21 Southern Palace in Babylon, Iraq (Image: Qahtan Al-Abeed)
Photo 7 of 21 Aerial view of the Archeological Ruins of Liangzhu City, China (Image: Administrative District Committee of Liangzhu)
Photo 8 of 21 Kone Taw Gyee of Bagan, Myanmar (Image: Department of Archaeology and National Museum Malaysia)
Photo 9 of 21 Bagan, Myanmar (Image: Department of Archaeology and National Museum (Malaysia)
Photo 10 of 21 Budj Bim National Park, Australia (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
Photo 11 of 21 Lake formed in Budj Bim National Park, Australia (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
Photo 12 of 21 Dilmun Burial Mounds, Bahrain (Image: Think Heritage)
Photo 13 of 21 City Palace Museum in Jaipur city, India (Image: AFP)
Photo 14 of 21 Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage of Sawahlunto, Indonesia (Image: Office of Cultural Affairs, Historical Remains and Museum (Indonesia))
Photo 15 of 21 One of the biggest jars in Site 1 of the Megalithic Jars Sites in Xieng Khuang, Laos (Image: Department of Heritage (Laos))
Photo 16 of 21 Plain of Jars Sites in Xieng Khuang, Laos (Image: Wikimedia Commons (Laos))
Photo 17 of 21 Munseonggong Myo in Sosu Seowon, South Korea (Image: Council for Promotion of the Inscription of Confucian Academies on the World Heritage List)
Photo 18 of 21 Study area in Jeongyodang in Dosan Seowon, South Korea (Image: Council for Promotion of the Inscription of Confucian Academies on the World Heritage List)
Photo 19 of 21 Beech Forest, Mazandaran - Part of the Hyrcanian Forests, Iran (Image: Fariba Babaei)
Photo 20 of 21 Historic Centre of Sheki with the Khan'­s Palace, Azerbaijan (Image: Azerberpa)
Photo 21 of 21 Historic Centre of Sheki with the Khan's Palace, Azerbaijan (Image: Azerberpa)