Going through my travel notes and photos, and checking up on some facts, I realised that I have visited a few places over the years that are not World Heritage Sites yet, but are on the so-called tentative lists.
State Parties, i. e. member states of the Word Heritage Convention, may add sites of cultural interest to a tentative list.
“A Tentative List is an inventory of those properties which each State Party intends to consider for nomination.”
From: https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/
Sometimes, sites remain on the list for what seems like ages, sometimes they are dropped off the list again. Only sites that are on such a tentative list, however, can become nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Even after nomination, it is by no means guaranteed that a site will be awarded World Heritage status, as there is a thorough selection process and specific criteria must be fulfilled.
To me, the tentative list – or rather the lists, as member states each have their own – are akin to something of an incubator, helping places or regions of exceptional cultural and natural importance grow into being awarded the gold status: The selection as World Heritage.
Considering I have visited some such tentative sites over the years and also have some on my doorstep (more or less), I thought this calls for a new category on the World Heritage Blog.
My first report on a place that is on the tentative list will follow within the next few days.
If you cannot wait, you may want to read my report Detour: The Palaces of King Ludwig II.
Those palaces are on the tentative list for Germany under the following title: “Dreams in Stone – the palaces of King Ludwig II of Bavaria: Neuschwanstein, Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee”. I had not realised this at the time of publishing and will add the new category to this post, so it can be found in both categories from now on.
Do you know any heritage sites that are tentative only so far and which you think I should visit?
Let me know in the comments!