World Heritage Identification Number: 776
World Heritage since: 1996
Category: Cultural Heritage
Transboundary Heritage: No
Endangered Heritage: No
Country: 🇯🇵 Japan
Continent: Asia
UNESCO World Region: Asia and the Pacific
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Itsukushima Shinto Shrine: A Floating Testament to Japanese Scenic Beauty
The Itsukushima Shinto Shrine, nestled on the picturesque island of Itsukushima within the Seto Inland Sea, stands as a testament to the rich history and cultural significance of Shintoism in Japan. This sacred site, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, offers a unique blend of natural beauty and architectural mastery that encapsulates the essence of the Japanese concept of scenic beauty, or wabi-sabi.
More to come…UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site
The island of Itsukushima, in the Seto inland sea, has been a holy place of Shintoism since the earliest times. The first shrine buildings here were probably erected in the 6th century. The present shrine dates from the 12th century and the harmoniously arranged buildings reveal great artistic and technical skill. The shrine plays on the contrasts in colour and form between mountains and sea and illustrates the Japanese concept of scenic beauty, which combines nature and human creativity.
UNESCO Justification of the World Heritage Site
The Committee decided to inscribe the nominated property on the basis of cultural criteria (i), (ii), (iv) and (vi) as the supreme example of this form of religious centre, setting traditional architecture of great artistic and technical merit against a dramatic natural background and thereby creating a work of art of incomparable physical beauty.
Encyclopedia Record: Itsukushima Shrine
Itsukushima Shrine is a Shinto shrine on the island of Itsukushima, best known for its "floating" torii. It is in the city of Hatsukaichi, in Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan, accessible from the mainland by ferry at Miyajimaguchi Station. The shrine complex is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Japanese government has designated several buildings and possessions as National Treasures.Additional Site Details
Area: 431.2 hectares
(ii) — Significant interchange of human values
(iv) — Outstanding example of a type of building or landscape
(vi) — Directly associated with events or living traditions
Coordinates: 34.29441667 , 132.3246389
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© JordyMeow, CC BY-SA 3.0 Resized from original. (This derivative is under the same CC BY-SA license.)
