× Information on this section of ECOLEX comes from the InforMEA Portal which compiled information from MEA Secretariats with the support of the European Union. The accuracy of the information displayed is the responsibility of the originating data source. In case of discrepancy the information as displayed on the respective MEA website prevails. Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu (Japan) Document type Decision Reference number X.C.1 Date Nov 27, 2000 SourceUNEP, InforMEA Status Active Subject Wild species & ecosystems Treaty Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (Nov 23, 1972) Meeting 24e session du Comité Website whc.unesco.org Abstract Property: Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu Id. N°: 972 State Party: Japan Criteria: C (ii) (iii) (vi) The Committee decided to inscribe this property on the World Heritage List on the basis of criteria (ii), (iii), and (vi): Criterion (ii): For several centuries the Ryukyu Islands served as a centre of economic and cultural interchange between south-east Asia, China, Korea, and Japan, and this is vividly demonstrated by the surviving monuments. Criterion (iii): The culture of the Ryukyuan Kingdom evolved and flourished in a special political and economic environment, which gave its culture a unique quality. Criterion (vi): The Ryukyu sacred sites constitute an exceptional example of an indigenous form of nature and ancestor worship that has survived intact into the modern age alongside other established world religions.