In 2009, UNESCO released a series of videos promoting the heritage sites on its World Heritage List – hundreds of locations around the world have been designated UNESCO Heritage Sites, including dozens that date from the Middle Ages. The videos, each about two to three minutes long, provide a short guide to the these cities, castles, cathedrals, churches and other historically important places. Besides detailing these sites, the videos sometimes show how these places are still have an impact on modern culture. The links below are to videos for the various medieval sites along with the text of the narration:
British Isles
Westminster Abbey and Palace
Belgium
A Reflection of a Medieval Town: The Historic Center of Brugge
Medieval Sound of Carillon : The Belfries of Flanders
France
Solemn World of Lights: Chartres Cathedral
A Bible carved in Stone: Amiens Cathedral
Holy Pilgrimage Town: Vézelay, Church and Hill
Pope in Captivity : Historic Centre of Avignon
A Town of Beauty and Passion : Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments
Spain
Multicultural City: The Historic Centre of Cordoba
Religious Destination: Santiago de Compostela
The Glory of Columbus: Seville Cathedral
The Origin of Spain : Monuments of Oviedo and the Kingdom of Asturias
The Water Palace : Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzin, Granada
Italy
Medieval Skyscrapers : The Historic Centre of San Gimignano
The Restoration of the The Last Supper: The Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria Delle Grazie
The Songs of the Gondolas: Venice and its Lagoon
Contrada Life: The Historic Centre of Siena
A Tower on the Gourmet Road : The Cathedral, Torre Civica and Piazza Grande, Modena
The Birth of Pizza Margherita / Historic Centre of Naples
Cliffside Villages : Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and Surrounding Islands
Passion Play on the Sacred Mountain : Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy
Germany
The Mystery of the Octagon: Aachen Cathedral
Castles Along the Rhine: The Upper Middle Rhine Valley
A Thousand Years of Mining: The Mines of Rammelsberg and The Historic Town of Goslar
Harmony Within: The Hanseatic City of Lübeck
The Legend of the Rose/St Marys Cathedral and St. Michaels Church in Hildesheim
Beneath the Wheel : The Maulbronn Monastery Complex
Protecting Timber-Framed Buildings : Collegiate Church, Castle, and the Old Town of Quedlinburg
A German Romanesque Church : Speyer Cathedral
The Monastic Island : The Island of Reichenau
Switzerland
Convent of St. Gall
Scandinavia
Royal Mausoleum: Roskilde Cathedral
The Viking Kingdom : Jelling Mounds, Runic Stones and Church
Eastern Europe
The Pearl of the Adriatic: The Old City of Dubrovnik
Cultural Identity of Bulgaria: Rila Monastery
Holy Paintings in the Caves : The Rock-Hewn Churches of Ivanovo
Pravda vítězí, Truth Prevails: Historic Centre of Prague
Holy Murals of Blue: Churches of Moldavia
The Land Where Hungarian Hearts Belong : Hortobágy, The Puszta
The Soul of Poland : Cracow’s Historic Centre
The Knights Fortress : Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork
Middle East
The Holy Land: The Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls
The Fall of Constantinople : Historic Areas of Istanbul
Pride and Hope: Reviving Bam and its Cultural Landscape
Underground Towns: Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia
Africa
The Maze City: the Fez Medina
Ethiopian Pilgrimage: The Rock Churches of Lalibela
The Most Beautiful Earthen Village : Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou
Asia
Buddhist Towers with Remains of Kings : The Historic City of Ayutthaya and Associated Historic Towns
Angkor, Cambodia
China
The Lying Dragon : The Great Wall of China
The Wall Street of the East : Ancient City of Ping Yao
Japan
The White Fortress: Himeji-jo
Master Artisanship and Architectural Splendour: The Shrines and Temples of Nikko
To-ji: The World of Kukai : Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto
Click here to see more UNESCO Heritage Sites from the Ancient World
Click here to go to the UNESCO website
British Isles
Westminster Abbey and Palace
Belgium
A Reflection of a Medieval Town: The Historic Center of Brugge
Medieval Sound of Carillon : The Belfries of Flanders
France
Solemn World of Lights: Chartres Cathedral
A Bible carved in Stone: Amiens Cathedral
Holy Pilgrimage Town: Vézelay, Church and Hill
Pope in Captivity : Historic Centre of Avignon
A Town of Beauty and Passion : Arles, Roman and Romanesque Monuments
Spain
Multicultural City: The Historic Centre of Cordoba
Religious Destination: Santiago de Compostela
The Glory of Columbus: Seville Cathedral
The Origin of Spain : Monuments of Oviedo and the Kingdom of Asturias
The Water Palace : Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzin, Granada
Italy
Medieval Skyscrapers : The Historic Centre of San Gimignano
The Restoration of the The Last Supper: The Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria Delle Grazie
The Songs of the Gondolas: Venice and its Lagoon
Contrada Life: The Historic Centre of Siena
A Tower on the Gourmet Road : The Cathedral, Torre Civica and Piazza Grande, Modena
The Birth of Pizza Margherita / Historic Centre of Naples
Cliffside Villages : Portovenere, Cinque Terre, and Surrounding Islands
Passion Play on the Sacred Mountain : Sacri Monti of Piedmont and Lombardy
Germany
The Mystery of the Octagon: Aachen Cathedral
Castles Along the Rhine: The Upper Middle Rhine Valley
A Thousand Years of Mining: The Mines of Rammelsberg and The Historic Town of Goslar
Harmony Within: The Hanseatic City of Lübeck
The Legend of the Rose/St Marys Cathedral and St. Michaels Church in Hildesheim
Beneath the Wheel : The Maulbronn Monastery Complex
Protecting Timber-Framed Buildings : Collegiate Church, Castle, and the Old Town of Quedlinburg
A German Romanesque Church : Speyer Cathedral
The Monastic Island : The Island of Reichenau
Switzerland
Convent of St. Gall
Scandinavia
Royal Mausoleum: Roskilde Cathedral
The Viking Kingdom : Jelling Mounds, Runic Stones and Church
Eastern Europe
The Pearl of the Adriatic: The Old City of Dubrovnik
Cultural Identity of Bulgaria: Rila Monastery
Holy Paintings in the Caves : The Rock-Hewn Churches of Ivanovo
Pravda vítězí, Truth Prevails: Historic Centre of Prague
Holy Murals of Blue: Churches of Moldavia
The Land Where Hungarian Hearts Belong : Hortobágy, The Puszta
The Soul of Poland : Cracow’s Historic Centre
The Knights Fortress : Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork
Middle East
The Holy Land: The Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls
The Fall of Constantinople : Historic Areas of Istanbul
Pride and Hope: Reviving Bam and its Cultural Landscape
Underground Towns: Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia
Africa
The Maze City: the Fez Medina
Ethiopian Pilgrimage: The Rock Churches of Lalibela
The Most Beautiful Earthen Village : Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou
Asia
Buddhist Towers with Remains of Kings : The Historic City of Ayutthaya and Associated Historic Towns
Angkor, Cambodia
China
The Lying Dragon : The Great Wall of China
The Wall Street of the East : Ancient City of Ping Yao
Japan
The White Fortress: Himeji-jo
Master Artisanship and Architectural Splendour: The Shrines and Temples of Nikko
To-ji: The World of Kukai : Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto
Click here to see more UNESCO Heritage Sites from the Ancient World
Click here to go to the UNESCO website
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