The
World Monuments
Fund declared Friday that four sites of Chinese ancient
buildings have been inscribed on the 2002 list of world heritage
sites for protection.
The four sites are the Great Wall, an ancient bazaar in southwest
China's
Yunnan Province, a pagoda and a monastery in northwest China's
Shaanxi Province, and a synagogue in Shanghai.
The Great Wall is world-famous for its length and mammoth
construction process. It is now endangered by tourism development,
the fund said.
With intact theaters, inns, temples and gates, the bazaar is the
only well-preserved example of its kind along a famous ancient tea
trade route that connects the region with Tibet and southeast
Asia.
The pagoda and the monastery are located along the original route
of the ancient Silk Road, and the monastery, built in 650, is
believed to be the oldest Christian church that has been found so
far in China.
The synagogue, built between 1917 and 1920, was once a refuge for
over 20,000 Jewish people during the World War II.
The fund said the four sites reflect the diversity of Chinese
architecture as well as the nation's history. Two of the sites
highlight tolerance of Chinese for different religions and the
other two epitomize the pressure facing cultural relics protection
under social changes and economic development.
Set up in 1965, the World Monuments Fund is one of the two major
architectural protection organizations in the world. Every other
year it announces a list of endangered architectural spots
worldwide and offers financial help for their protection.
(China
Daily October 27, 2001)