Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto — 17 World Heritage Sites

Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (古都京都の文化財) is the UNESCO World Heritage listing that groups 17 temples, shrines and a castle scattered across Kyoto City and Uji City in Kyoto Prefecture and Otsu City in Shiga Prefecture. The ensemble was inscribed in 1994 and was Japan’s fifth World Heritage property.

Stewardship and local stakeholders

Local governments of the three named cities feature in the formal listing; the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the Japan Federation of UNESCO Associations use the full official name that includes the three cities. Since inscription, civic groups and municipal authorities have been active in conservation and in pursuing extensions to the property.

A citizens’ organisation formed on 4 September 1996 (the “World Heritage Additional Registration Citizens Network”) petitioned the Agency for Cultural Affairs and Kyoto City to seek additional inscriptions such as the Gozan bonfires, Nanzen-ji, the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Katsura Detached Palace and Shugakuin Detached Palace. From November 1998 a “Three-city Citizens Forum” of citizen groups from Kyoto, Nara and Kamakura has organised symposia pressing for additional registrations and historic‑landscape protection.

Religious institutions and temple complexes are central stakeholders: several temples have coordinated extension planning (from July 2006, Chion-in, Daitoku-ji and Zenrin-ji held meetings towards an additional application). A private group established on 16 September 2007 has promoted the Hozu Gorge (Hozukyo) for World Heritage nomination. In August 2008 the mayor of Kyoto met the UNESCO Director‑General and stated a policy to target roughly ten additional sites, naming temples such as Myoshin‑ji and Nanzen‑ji and major properties including Katsura.

Properties tied to the Imperial Household Agency (for example the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Katsura Detached Palace and Shugakuin Detached Palace and imperial mausolea at Sennyu‑ji) are managed by that agency and involve legal and procedural complexities should they be considered for addition.

What the inscription covers

The World Heritage property comprises 17 component sites. The current selection is limited to component properties that either contain designated National Treasure buildings (★) or whose gardens have been designated Special Places of Scenic Beauty (◎); a few component parts carry Special Historic Site status (■). Two notable exceptions to that selection principle cited in the listing are Jishu Shrine (designated as an Important Cultural Property as part of Kiyomizu‑dera) and Mount Hiei (part of Enryaku‑ji, designated as a Historic Site with some areas a Natural Monument).

Legend: ★ = contains National Treasure buildings; ◎ = garden designated Special Place of Scenic Beauty; ■ = Special Historic Site.

• Kamo‑wake‑ikazuchi Shrine (Kamigamo Shrine) (★)
• Kamo‑mioya Shrine (Shimogamo Shrine) (★)
• Kyo‑o Gokoku‑ji (To‑ji) (★)
• Kiyomizu‑dera (includes Jishu Shrine, currently administratively separate) (★)
• Enryaku‑ji (includes the full Mount Hiei precincts) (★)
• Daigo‑ji (includes the sub‑temple Sanbō‑in — ★・◎・■) (★)
• Ninna‑ji (also known as Omuro Gosho) (★)
• Byodoin (Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture) (★)
• Ujigami Shrine (Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture) (★)
• Kozan‑ji (★)
• Saiho‑ji (Kokedera; ◎)
• Tenryu‑ji (◎)
• Rokuon‑ji (a Shokoku‑ji subtemple, also called Kinkaku‑ji) (◎・■)
• Jisho‑ji (a Shokoku‑ji subtemple, also called Ginkaku‑ji) (★・◎・■)
• Ryoan‑ji (a Myoshin‑ji subtemple; its rock garden is world‑famous) (◎)
• Nishi Hongan‑ji (Hongan‑ji) (★・◎)
• Nijo Castle (official name: Former Imperial Palace Nijo Castle) (★・◎)

Highlights within the 17 components

Several component parts are singled out in the listing for particular designations. Sanbō‑in within Daigo‑ji carries the triple designations ★・◎・■. Jisho‑ji (commonly Ginkaku‑ji) and Rokuon‑ji (Kinkaku‑ji) also carry multiple national designations.

Enryaku‑ji’s inscription explicitly includes the extensive temple precincts on Mount Hiei. Kiyomizu‑dera’s component explicitly includes Jishu Shrine even though that shrine is currently administratively separated and is designated as an Important Cultural Property as part of Kiyomizu‑dera. Ryoan‑ji is noted in the source for its rock garden — described in the listing text as globally famous.

Nishi Hongan‑ji and Nijo Castle are among the components that combine high‑level cultural designations: both are shown with National Treasure and Special Place of Scenic Beauty marks in the listing. These combined designations underpin the selection criteria used for the set of 17 components.

UNESCO criteria: why it was inscribed

The property was inscribed under criteria (2) and (4). The listing text explains these criteria as follows:

• Criterion (2): Kyoto was a major centre from the 8th to the 17th centuries for the evolution of religious and secular architecture and garden design. Kyoto played a decisive role in creating Japan’s cultural traditions and, especially in the case of gardens, exerted significant influence outside Japan from the 19th century onwards.

• Criterion (4): The surviving ensemble of architecture and garden design in Kyoto represents the finest expression of pre‑modern Japanese material culture in these fields.

Those two criteria together frame the 17 selected sites as an accumulated, representative expression of architectural and garden design development across many centuries.

Preservation, pressures and expansion plans

Following inscription in 1994, the surrounding landscape and environment around parts of the property suffered degradation attributed in the listing commentary to condominium construction and pressures from large numbers of visitors. In response, Kyoto City and stakeholders have advanced plans for additional registrations and for landscape protection measures.

Measures and planning mentioned in the post‑inscription activity include changes to urban planning, enactment and revision of ordinances, removal of overhead wiring (pole removal / undergrounding) and forest maintenance. Kyoto City has sought to expand coverage to areas such as Sagano‑Arashiyama, the Higashiyama area, suburban districts including Ohara and Yase, and the Kurama–Kibune area. Industrial‑heritage proposals noted in the conservation discussion include the Biwako Canal, and the Hozu Gorge has been put forward by a private association established on 16 September 2007.

Civic and religious institutions continue to promote extensions: the 1996 citizens’ network, the 1998 Three‑city Citizens Forum, temple meetings since 2006, and the August 30, 2008 meeting between Kyoto’s mayor and the UNESCO Director‑General all appear in the public record cited with respect to additional registration efforts. The source material also notes that properties under the Imperial Household Agency present particular legal challenges for any addition to the inscription.

FAQ

How many component properties are included?

The inscription comprises 17 component sites spread across Kyoto City, Uji City (Kyoto Prefecture) and Otsu City (Shiga Prefecture).

When was it inscribed as a World Heritage Site?

It was inscribed in 1994 and was Japan’s fifth World Heritage property.

Under which UNESCO criteria was it inscribed?

It was inscribed under criteria (2) and (4), for Kyoto’s role in the evolution of architecture and garden design and for the ensemble’s expression of pre‑modern Japanese material culture.

Are there plans to add more sites?

Yes; Kyoto City and multiple citizen and religious organisations have pursued plans and proposals for additional registrations, and specific candidate sites and initiatives are listed in the post‑inscription planning.