Rock Art of Hail region registered in the UNESCO s World Heritage List
ATP- Arab tourism portal- World Heritage Committee of the UNESCO, at its thirty-ninth meeting in Bonn, Germany, on 4 July 2015, has decided to inscribe Rock Art of Hail province on the World Heritage List.
This will be the fourth heritage site in the Kingdom to be added to the UNESCO’s World Heritage List following the Madain Saleh in Al Ula, Turaif Neighborhood in Historic Diriyah in Riyadh and Historic Jeddah, an ancient district in the center of Jeddah.
His Royal Highness Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdul Aziz, President of SCTH, considers this announcement as a proof of the Kingdom’s status and its cultural profoundness, asserting that this inclusion will be of benefit to the Kingdom as well as to the entire humanity.
HRH President of SCTH, on this occasion congratulated the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdul Aziz on an international achievement of such high stature. He expressed gratitude to the King for his profound support and persistent care for the national heritage and its preservation. Also, for lunching the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Program for Caring of the Kingdom’s Cultural Heritage as a key source for preserving the history of the Kingdom and highlighting its cultural heritage. In this context, HRH referred to the Saudi State’s concern towards the national heritage and its support to every effort made by SCTH towards highlighting the Kingdom’s treasures and its deep-rooted heritage to the entire world.
The President of SCTH in his statement on this occasion deemed the consensus of UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee members, who represent 22 countries, on the importance of the site and necessity of its registration in the World Heritage List, as a great recognition of Kingdom’s deep-rooted history and heritage.
HRH in his statement praised the efforts of Hail people in the preservation and caring of the national heritage and their cooperation with the efforts of SCTH in this respect for the interest of the current and the coming generations.
The President of SCTH added, “The registration of this site will have a positive impact on the Hail province in particular and the Kingdom in general, as SCTH has established a number of visitor Centers on the site and increased the staff members in those centers.”
Noteworthy, Jubbah site is located about 60 to 80 Kms inside Hail Nofoud. The area is replete with rock inspections and engravings. Al Shwaimys site is located in the south-western part of Hail province about 270 Kms from the Hail city. The rock art include anthromorphs and bovine figures along with other domestic and wild fauna besides geometric representations, dating back to different historical periods of over 10,000 years.
