Myanmar’s temple city Bagan awarded UNESCO World Heritage status
(Photo) FILE: People wait to see the sunset from the top of Shwesandaw Pagoda in the ancient city of Bagan February 13, 2015/REUTERS (Soe Zeya Tun )
YANGON (Reuters) – UNESCO inscribed Myanmar’s ancient capital of Bagan as a World Heritage Site on Saturday, nearly a quarter of a century after the complex of Buddhist temples was first nominated for listing.
The decision recognizes the importance of the central Myanmar site – which includes more than 3,500 stupas, temples, monasteries and other structures built between the 11th and 13th centuries – and will likely be a boon to Myanmar’s tourist industry.
The Myanmar proposal to list the site was approved at a meeting of the U.N.’s cultural body in Baku, Azerbaijan.
