THE United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) decided to list Phu Phra Bat Historical Park in Udon Thani as a World Heritage Site at the 46th general meeting of its World Heritage Committee in New Delhi, India, today (July 27), Naewna newspaper said.
Culture Minister Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol said Unesco has declared this historical park “Phu Phra Bat, a testimony to the Sīma stone tradition of the Dvaravati period”.
This new addition means Thailand now has eight World Heritage sites, with five being Cultural Heritage Sites, and the second one in Udon Thani with the first being Ban Chiang Archaeological Site.
Of the other seven World Heritage sites three were listed in 1991 with these being Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns, Historic City of Ayutthaya and Thungyai–Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuaries.
Ban Chiang Archaeological Site was listed in 1992 followed by Dong Phayayen–Khao Yai Forest Complex in 2005, Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex in 2021 and the Ancient Town of Si Thep and its Associated Dvaravati Monuments in 2023.
Situated in Ban Phue subdistrict, Phu Phra Bat park is an archeological site featuring a large number of ancient ruins and objects dating from prehistory. They are mostly from the Dvaravati, Lop Buri, and Lan Xang periods. The site is located in a lush forest called Pa Khua Nam. Within are many rocks of peculiar shapes, the result of a slow-moving glacier millions of years ago, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
Many of the ruins and objects found in the area were made from the materials found locally, and were not built entirely by hand – for instance, a rock decorated as a stupa, or chiselled into the shape of a foot. There are also prehistoric cave paintings, sandstone images and idols there.
As of January 2024, there are a total of 1,199 World Heritage Sites located across 168 countries, of which 933 are cultural, 227 are natural, and 39 are mixed properties. The countries have been divided by the World Heritage Committee into five geographical zones: Africa, the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and North America and Latin America and the Caribbean. With 59 selected areas, Italy is the country with the most sites; followed by China with 57, then France and Germany with 52 each, Wikipedia said.
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Phu Phra Bat Historical Park. Top photo: TAT, Front Page photos: Naewna
Insert: This overview lists the 34 countries with 10 or more World Heritage Sites. Credit: Wikipedia
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