A World Heritage Site is a place (such as a building, city, complex, desert, forest, island, lake, monument, or mountain) that is listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as being of special cultural or physical significance. The list is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 UNESCO member states which are elected by the General Assembly.
UNESCO World Heritage sites
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10Shah Mosque
The Shah Mosque, also known as Imam Mosque, renamed after the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, and Jaame' Abbasi Mosque, is a mosque in Isfahan, Iran, standing in south side of Naghsh-e Jahan Square. Built during the Safavid period, ordered by the first Shah Abbas of Persia.
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6Shahr-e Sukhteh
Shahr-e Sukhteh is an archaeological site of a sizable Bronze Age urban settlement, associated with the Jiroft culture. It is located in Sistan and Baluchistan Province, the southeastern part of Iran, on the bank of the Helmand River, near the Zahedan-Zabol road.
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10Shalimar Gardens, Lahore
The Shalimar Gardens, sometimes written as Shalamar Gardens, is a Mughal garden complex located in Lahore, Pakistan.
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10Shangdu
Shangdu, also known as Xanadu, was the capital of Kublai Khan's Yuan dynasty in China, before he decided to move his throne to the Jin dynasty capital of Zhongdu, which he renamed Khanbaliq, present-day Beijing.
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10Shaolin Monastery
The Shaolin Monastery, also known as the Shaolin Temple, is a Chan Buddhist temple in Dengfeng County, Henan Province, China. Dating back 1,500 years, Shaolin Temple is the main temple of the Shaolin school of Buddhism to this day.
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9Sher-Dor Madrasah
In the 17th century the ruler of Samarkand, Yalangtush Bakhodur, ordered the construction of the Sher-Dor and Tillya-Kori madrasahs.
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10Shibam
Shibam is a town in Yemen. With about 7,000 inhabitants, it is the seat of the Shibam District in the Hadhramaut Governorate. It is famous for its mudbrick-made high-rise buildings.
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10Shikina-en
The gardens of Shikina-en are located on a small hill to the south of Shuri Castle in Naha, Okinawa. The gardens were laid out in 1799 to embellish one of the residences of the Sho family, rulers of the Ryukyu Kingdom.
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5Shimla Railway Station, Kalka–Shimla Railway
Shimla Railway Station, Kalka–Shimla Railway. The Kalka–Shimla Railway is a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge railway in North-West India travelling along a mostly mountainous route from Kalka to Shimla.
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10Shitsu Church, Nagasaki
This asset is composed of the Kotabira village, which retains some of the atmosphere of the time of the Anti-Christian Edicts, the Shitsu Church built after the Edicts were repealed, and the former Shitsu Aid Center.
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5Shivta (Ancient City)
Shivta, is an ancient city in the Negev Desert of Israel located 43 kilometers southwest of Beersheba. Shivta was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in June 2005.
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5Shlisselburg
Shlisselburg is a town in Kirovsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the head of the Neva River on Lake Ladoga, 35 km east of St. Petersburg. From 1944 to 1992, it was known as Petrokrepost.
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3Shoghakat Church
The Church of Shoghakat was erected in 1694 by Prince Aghamal Sorotetsi during the reign of Catholicos Nahabed I in the city of Vagharshapat (Etchmiadzin), in Armenia's Armavir Province.
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10Shore Temple, Mahabalipuram
The Shore Temple (built in 700–728 AD) is so named because it overlooks the shore of the Bay of Bengal. It is a structural temple, built with blocks of granite, dating from the 8th century AD
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9Si Satchanalai Historical Park
The Si Satchanalai Historical Park is a historical park in Si Satchanalai district, Sukhothai Province, northern Thailand. The park covers the ruins of Si Satchanalai and Chaliang.
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1Siemensstadt Housing Estate (Großsiedlung Siemensstadt), Berlin
The Siemensstadt Housing Estate is a nonprofit residential community in the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf district of Berlin. It is one of the six Modernist Housing Estates in Berlin recognized in July 2008 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
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10Sigiriya
Sigiriya is an ancient rock fortress located in the central Matale District near the town of Dambulla in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. The name refers to a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock nearly 200 metres (660 ft) high.
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5Silbury Hill
Silbury Hill is a prehistoric artificial chalk mound near Avebury in the English county of Wiltshire. It is part of the Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites UNESCO World Heritage Site, and lies at grid reference SU099685.
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10Silk market
The Llotja de la Seda is a late Valencian Gothic-style civil building in Valencia, Spain. It is a principal tourist attraction in the city.
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10Simatai, Great Wall of China
Simatai, a section of the Great Wall of China located in the north of Miyun County, 120 km northeast of Beijing, holds the access to Gubeikou, a strategic pass in the eastern part of the Great Wall.
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10Sinharaja Forest Reserve
Sinharaja Forest Reserve is a national park and a biodiversity hotspot in Sri Lanka. It is of international significance and has been designated a Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
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4Sint-Amandsberg (Beguinage), Ghent
The Great Beguinage at St. Amandsberg, situated on a domain of 8 hectares, was built between 1872 and 1874 to accommodate the beguines who were driven from the beguinage in Ghent. When it was officially opened in 1874, no less than 700 beguines took their home here!
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10Sintra National Palace
The Sintra National Palace, also called Town Palace is located in the town of Sintra, in the Lisbon District of Portugal. It is a present-day historic house museum.
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10Sintra Old Town
Sintra is known for its many 19th-century Romantic architectural monuments, which has resulted in its classification as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Although its heritage in buildings and nature is the most visible face of the historic individuality of Sintra, a whole literary heritage has made the area a legendary reference in Portuguese culture.
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8Sir Robert Ho Tung Library, Macau
The Sir Robert Ho Tung Library is a public library in Macau, China. It is located in St. Augustine’s Square in the Historic Centre of Macau, a UNESCO world heritage site. The library is housed in a mansion that has good historical, cultural and architectural value.
