World Heritage in Slovakia

The UNESCO World Heritage List may include an original outstanding work of universal value, unique in its architecture, construction technology, urban or landscape character, which represents faith, cultural tradition or the interaction of man and nature. The objects proposed for inscription are assessed by experts (ICOMOS), who compare the proposal with objects inscribed, proposed or unproposed objects of a similar nature and when selecting, also take into account the possible threat and the ability to protect the object in the future.

The Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage was adopted on 16 November 1972 in Paris and entered into force on 17 December 1975; for Czechoslovakia on 15 February 1991 (Notification of the Ministry of Culture No. 159/1991 Coll.). The Slovak Republic acceded to the Convention on 31 March 1993 by succession as the 134th state.

By 2008, 185 states had acceded to the Convention, committing themselves to protect a total of 878 sites - 679 World Cultural Heritage sites, 174 World Natural Heritage sites and 25 World Mixed Heritage sites, located in 145 states.

So far, the World Heritage List has been inscribed 8 sites from the Slovak Republic on the World Heritage List:

5 cultural sites:

• Banská Štiavnica with technical monuments of the surrounding area (Colombia-Cartagena, 1993)
• Levoča, Spiš Castle and cultural monuments of the surrounding area (Colombia-Cartagena, 1993, extension 2009)
• Monument reservation of folk architecture Vlkolínec (Colombia-Cartagena, 1993)
• Historic core of the city of Bardejov (Australia-Cairns, 2000)
• Wooden churches in the Slovak part of the Carpathian arc (Canada-Quebec, 2008)
• Borders of the Roman Empire – Danube Limes (western segment)

2 natural sites:

• Caves of the Slovak Kras and Aggtelecký Kras (together with Hungary in Berlin, 1995) with the extension of Dobšinská Ice Cave and Stratenská Cave (Australia-Cairns, 2000) according to part of the nomination project Gorges of the Slovak Paradise, submitted on 26. 6. 1997
• Carpathian Beech Forests (together with Ukraine and Poland in New Zealand, 2007)

Other sites that may be inscribed on the World Heritage List in the future:

• Cultural and natural heritage sites nominated for inscription on the World Heritage List (Tentative List)