List of World Heritage Sites in Gambia

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Location of World Heritage Sites in Gambia

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites are places of importance to cultural or natural heritage as described in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, established in 1972.[1] Gambia accepted the convention, making its historical sites eligible for inclusion on the list. As of 2023, there are two World Heritage Sites in Gambia, one of them, Stone Circles of Senegambia it's shared with Senegal .[2]

World Heritage Sites[edit]

UNESCO lists sites under ten criteria; each entry must meet at least one of the criteria. Criteria i through vi are cultural, and vii through x are natural.[3]

  * Transnational site
World Heritage Sites
Site Image Location (division) Year listed UNESCO data Description
Kunta Kinteh Island and Related Sites North Bank Division 2003 Cultural (iii) (vi) James Island and Related Sites present a testimony to the main periods and facets of the encounter between Africa and Europe along the River Gambia, a continuum stretching from pre-colonial and pre-slavery times to independence. The site is particularly significant for its relation to the beginning of the slave trade and its abolition. It also documents early access to the interior of Africa.[4]
Stone Circles of Senegambia* Central River Division 2006 Cultural (i) (iii) The site consists of four large groups of stone circles that represent an extraordinary concentration of over 1,000 monuments in a band 100 km wide along some 350 km of the River Gambia. The four groups, Sine Ngayène, Wanar, Wassu and Kerbatch, cover 93 stone circles and numerous tumuli, burial mounds, some of which have been excavated to reveal material that suggest dates between 3rd century BC and 16th century AD. Together the stone circles of laterite pillars and their associated burial mounds present a vast sacred landscape created over more than 1,500 years. It reflects a prosperous, highly organized and lasting society.[5]

Tentative List[edit]

Site Image Location Criteria Area
ha (acre)
 Year of submission Description
Wassu Stone Circles Quarry Site Central River Division Cultural (i) (iii) 2015 [6]
Historic Georgetown Central River Division Cultural (iii) (vi) 2015 [7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The World Heritage Convention". UNESCO. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  2. ^ "Gambia". UNESCO. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  3. ^ "UNESCO World Heritage Centre – The Criteria for Selection". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Archived from the original on 12 June 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  4. ^ "Kunta Kinteh Island and Related Sites". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 2023-11-20. Text was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO (CC BY 3.0 IGO) license.
  5. ^ "Stone Circles of Senegambia". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 2023-11-20. Text was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO (CC BY 3.0 IGO) license.
  6. ^ "Wassu Stone Circles Quarry Site". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  7. ^ "Historic Georgetown". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
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