CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand -- The Diaolou ( watchtower house) of Kaiping,
China, was inscribed Thursday World Heritage status by the 31st World Heritage
Committee meeting here.
The Diaolou of Kaiping in South China's Guangdong Province.
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CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand, June 28 (Xinhua) -- The Diaolou ( watchtower
house) of Kaiping, China, was inscribed Thursday World Heritage status by the
31st World Heritage Committee meeting here.
The Diaolou of Kaiping thus became the 35th World heritage site, also the
first of economically prominent South China's Guangdong province.
The Kaiping Diaolou, the unique residential and defensive buildings mainly
seen in Guangdong's Kaiping, "blends Chinese and Western Architectural styles,"
said the World Heritage Committee.
Kaiping Diaolou were first built in
late Ming Dynasty and were booming in early 1920s with
the development of overseas Chinese.
There are a total of 1,833 diaolou in Kaiping, mixing the Chinese and Western
styles and appearing in various forms. They are a unique historical and cultural
scene that reflect the integration and development of multiple cultures in an
area in a certain historical period.
The Karsts in southern China was inscribed on the World Heritage list on
Wednesday.
China has now 35 heritage sites, with 24 cultural sites, six natural sites
and five mixed.
Over 600 international delegates are attending the 31st World Heritage
Committee meeting starting June 23.
The 10-day conference has over the last three days reviewed sites in danger,
site management and protection. Thirty nine nominations for new world heritage
were debated at the meeting.
In 1972, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO) adopted the World Heritage Convention as a way to encourage the
identification, protection and preservation of the world's most outstanding
cultural and natural heritage sites.
With 183 member countries and more than 830 sites, it is one of the most
widely supported United Nations' conventions.