UN NEW YORK

This cover from United Nations (New York Office) depicts 4 stamps (2 of eavch type), celebrating 2 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Spain: the Historic Walled Town of Cuenca and the Historic City of Toledo. The Moors built the fortified city of Cuenca in the early 8th century, and it was captured by the Christians in the 12th century. The cathedral is the first Gothic example in Spain. The town is also famous for its casas colgadas, houses that hang over the edge of a cliff. It was declared a World Heritage Site in 1996. Toledo was founded by the Romans, served as the capital of the Visigothic Kingdom, was important in Muslim Spain and during the Reconquista, and briefly served as the capital of Spain. The city combines Christian, Muslim, and Jewish influences. The Historic City of Toledo was inscribed at UNESCO World Heritage list in 1986.

KAZAKHSTAN

A beautiful cover from Kazakhstan, depicting a miniature sheet issued in 2002 celebrating the 2000th anniversary of Taraz. Taraz city was built as a part of trade web of the Great Silk Road; it connected modern China and Turkestan. It was a large trade center with developed crafts and fertile lands. However, archaeological findings prove that it was inhabited much earlier. The city of Taraz is included on the silk road of Chang'an-Tanshan Corridor, inscribed as an UNESCo site since 2009. This property is a 5,000 km section of the extensive Silk Roads network, stretching from Chang’an/Luoyang, the central capital of China in the Han and Tang dynasties, to the Zhetysu region of Central Asia. It took shape between the 2nd century BC and 1st century AD and remained in use until the 16th century, linking multiple civilizations and facilitating far-reaching exchanges of activities in trade, religious beliefs, scientific knowledge, technological innovation, cultural practices and the arts. The thirty-three components included in the routes network include capital cities and palace complexes of various empires and Khan kingdoms, trading settlements, Buddhist cave temples, ancient paths, posthouses, passes, beacon towers, sections of The Great Wall, fortifications, tombs and religious buildings.

GREECE

This cover from Greece depicts 2 stamps, where the 0,40€ on the right corner shows a picture of the World Heritage Site Pythagoreion and Heraion of Samos. The Pythagoreion is the archaeological site of the ancient town of Samos in Samos, Greece. It is located in the area of the modern town of Pythagoreio, from which it has got its modern name. The archaeological site contains ancient Greek and Roman monuments and a famous ancient tunnel, the Tunnel of Eupalinos or Eupalinian aqueduct. Along with the Heraion of Samos, the Pythagoreion was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992.

BELARUS

FRANCE

SERBIA

This cover came from Serbia. The stamp on the right corner was issued in 2021 and celebrates 60 years since the awarding of the Nobel Prize in Literature to Ivo Andric. The stamp shows a picture of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge , in Visegrad, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge, which crosses the Drina river, was completed in 1577 by the Ottoman court architect Mimar Sinan on the orders of the Grand Vizier Mehmed Paša Sokolović. The bridge is 179.5 metres long and has 11 arches. The bridge also has a symbolic significance as the meeting place between Christianity and Islam. UNESCO included the bridge in its 2007 World Heritage List.

GREECE

This cover from Greece depicts a single stamp issued in 2022, celebrating the Archaeological Sites of Mycenae and Tiryns. Mycenae and Tiryns were two of the most important cities of Mycenean Greece, which flourished between the 15th and 12th centuries BCE. The cities were palace economies with monumental architecture, such as the Lion's Gate and Treasury of Atreus. The Linear B tablets are the first testimonies of the Greek language. Both cities are linked to the Homeric epics Iliad and Odyssey, which have influenced the European literature and arts ever since. Tiryns was recognized as a World Heritage Site in 1999.

SPAIN

This cover from Spain depicts a small stamp celebrating the town of Segovia, a city in the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. Segovia is in the Inner Plateau (Meseta central), near the northern slopes of the Sistema Central range and on a bend of the Eresma river. The city is famous for its historic buildings including three main landmarks: its midtown Roman aqueduct, its cathedral (one of the last ones to be built in Europe following a Gothic style), and the medieval castle, which served as one of the templates for Walt Disney's Cinderella Castle. The city center was declared of World Heritage by UNESCO in 1985. The Roman aqueduct was constructed in the 1st century, the medieval Alcázar palace in the 11th century, and the cathedral in the 16th.

BELARUS

UN NEW YORK

This cover from United Nations (New York Office) depicts 4 stamps (2 of eavch type), celebrating 2 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Greece: the Pythagoreion and Heraion of Samos and the Archaeological Site of Delphi. The Pythagoreion is the archaeological site of the ancient town of Samos in Samos, Greece. It is located in the area of the modern town of Pythagoreio, from which it has got its modern name. The archaeological site contains ancient Greek and Roman monuments and a famous ancient tunnel, the Tunnel of Eupalinos or Eupalinian aqueduct. Along with the Heraion of Samos, the Pythagoreion was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992. Delphi, in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle had origins in prehistory and it became international in character and also fostered sentiments of Greek nationality, even though the nation of Greece was centuries away from realization. The ancient Greeks considered the centre of the world to be in Delphi, marked by the stone monument known as the omphalos (navel). The sacred precinct occupies a delineated region on the south-western slope of Mount Parnassus. It is now an extensive archaeological site, and since 1938 a part of Parnassos National Park. Adjacent to the sacred precinct is a small modern town of the same name. The precinct is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site since 1987.

SOUTH KOREA

This cover from South Korea depicts a miniature sheet issued in 1998, celebrating the World Heritage Site Haeinsa Temple Janggyeong Panjeon, the Depositories for the Tripitaka Koreana Woodblocks. Tripitaka Koreana is a collection of over 80 000 wooden printing blocks, engraved in the 13th century. They represent the most complete collection of Buddhist texts, laws, and treaties. The Haeinsa Temple was built in the 15th century with the purpose of storing the woodblocks, with innovative approaches to ensure the conservation. The temple is also an important Buddhist pilgrimage site. The Temple of Haeinsa and the Depositories for the Tripiṭaka Koreana Woodblocks were made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995. The UNESCO committee noted that the buildings housing the Tripiṭaka Koreana are unique because no other historical structure was specifically dedicated to the preservation of artifacts and the techniques used were particularly ingenious.

P. R. CHINA

This cover from China depicts a joint issue China-México issued in 2022, celebrating 2 World Heritage Sites: the Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in the Centre of Heaven and Earth and the Pre-Hispanic City of Cichen-Itza. Dengfeng is a county-level city of Henan Province, South Central China. The city is one of the most renowned spiritual centers of China, and is home to various religious institutions and famous temples such as the Taoist Zhongyue Temple, the Buddhist Shaolin Temple (a renowned center for martial arts), as well as the Confucian Songyang Academy and the Gaocheng Observatory, hence its poetic expression derived from Chinese literature as the spiritual "center of heaven and earth". Parts of the city were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010. The sacred site of Chichen-Itza was one of the greatest Mayan centres of the Yucatán peninsula. Throughout its nearly 1,000-year history, different peoples have left their mark on the city. The Maya and Toltec vision of the world and the universe is revealed in their stone monuments and artistic works. The fusion of Mayan construction techniques with new elements from central Mexico make Chichen-Itza one of the most important examples of the Mayan-Toltec civilization in Yucatán. Several buildings have survived, such as the Warriors’ Temple, El Castillo and the circular observatory known as El Caracol. The site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988.