UNESCO adds Greece’s Mount Olympus, ancient Japanese capitals to World Heritage List

UNESCO adds Greece’s Mount Olympus, ancient Japanese capitals to World Heritage List 1 of 3 | The morning light shines on Mytikas, Greece’s highest peak, center left, and Stefani, known as the Throne of Zeus, center right, atop Mount Olympus seen from the outskirts of Litochoro in northern Greece, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) 2 of 3 | This shows Fujiwara Palace Ruins, foreground, with Mr. Miminashi, background, in Kashihara, Nara prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 9, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP) 3 of 3 | This shows Asuka Palace Ruins in Asuka village, Nara prefecture, western Japan, on April 20, 2026. (Kyodo News via AP) By KIM TONG-HYUNG Updated 9:45 AM MESZ, July 26, 2026 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The iconic Mount Olympus in Greece and the ancient Japanese capitals of Asuka and Fujiwara were among the sites added to the World Heritage List on Sunday at a U.N. committee meeting in South Korea reviewing dozens of nominations. The UNESCO committee, which meets in Busan through Wednesday, also inscribed South Sudan’s Boma-Badingilo Migratory Landscape, host to one of the world’s largest land mammal migrations and the country’s first addition to the World Heritage List. The World Heritage inscription of Mount Olympus, the mythical home of the 12 Olympian gods, rewarded a 12-year effort by Greece to secure recognition for its tallest mountain as a mixed cultural and natural heritage site. Rising 2,918 meters (9,573 feet) from a base near sea level, the mountain was believed to be the throne of Zeus, king of the gods, while also harboring rich biodiversity. Evangelos Geroliolios, mayor of Dion-Olympus, a municipality at the foot of the mountain, said in a recent interview with The Associated Press that inclusion on the World Heritage List “places greater obligations on our part to protect this environment,” citing the potential impact of increased tourism. “We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to safeguarding Mount Olympus for the benefit of present and future generations,” said Georgios Koumoutsakos, Greece’s delegate to UNESCO. “As Greek mythology wisely reminds us, it is always best to remain on good terms with gods.” Georgia’s Okefenokee Swamp among new additions to join UNESCO’s World Heritage List 1 MIN READ Mount Olympus, home of the ancient Greek gods, vies for World Heritage status 5 MIN READ UNESCO adds West Bank site and Lebanese castles to World Heritage List despite Israeli objections 5 MIN READ The designated Japanese locations in the western prefecture of Nara cover 19 archaeological sites from the 6th- to 8th-century capitals of Asuka and Fujiwara, where Japan established its first centralized state modeled after Chinese systems. The sites preserve the largely buried remains of royal palaces, government offices, Buddhist temples and tombs from capitals that influenced the later capitals of Nara and Kyoto. Japanese Culture Minister Kobayashi Shigeki thanked the committee for inscribing the Asuka-Fujiwara sites and said Japan reaffirms its commitment to “transmitting this valuable property to the future generations.” Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, a Nara native, wrote on X that she hopes the World Heritage designation would boost tourism to the site. Yoshiyuki Aihara, a Nara University archaeology professor, told AP the sites are significant because they show how Japan’s ancient state was formed through influences from China and the Korean Peninsula. “If you dig underneath these rice paddies about 1 meter, you start finding a stretch of ruins in this area, though that’s not easy for ordinary visitors to understand,” said Aihara, who is continuing excavation work at the site. South Sudan’s Boma-Badingilo site encompasses vast wetlands, flood plains and savannas shaped by seasonal rainfall and flood dynamics, with an estimated six million white-eared kob, tiang and Mongalla gazelles moving across the landscape in response to changing environmental conditions. It also provides habitat for elephants, lions, cheetahs and other wildlife while supporting various ethnic communities that have lived by herding, farming and fishing for centuries, according to UNESCO. KIM TONG-HYUNG Kim has been covering the Koreas for the AP since 2014. He has published widely read stories on North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, the dark side of South Korea’s economic rise and international adoptions of Korean children. twitter mailto