Incheon retries adding Ganghwa remains to UNESCO cultural heritage

The city of Incheon said on Wednesday that it plans to add some of the heritages in Ganghwa Island on the list of the UNESCO World Heritage. Ganghwa has many remains and relics from prehistoric to modern times including the dolmen of the Bronze Age, royal tombs and palace sites of the Goryeo Dynasty, and castles and high grounds of the Joseon Dynasty, which were built to prevent the invasion of outsiders.

The city will select remains and relics that are worth preservation and consult with the Cultural Heritage Administration to add them to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage list. It decided to start the project after collecting the residents’ opinions.

To promote tourism in the Ganghwa region, the city has also decided to develop a tourist program in which tourists take a cruise ship off the Incheon quay and look around the castle and high grounds of Ganghwa region where Koreans fought against invaders.

The city established Ganghwa & Goryeo History Foundation last year and held symposiums twice. Although the city started a project to register the remains including royal tombs of the Goryeo Dynasty to the UNESCO list, it delayed the project due to conflicting views over the value of the remains for preservation among different groups of people. In addition, residents opposed it due to the concern about their property rights.

Bae Guk-hwan, deputy mayor for political affairs of Incheon, said, “Ganghwa has many valuable remains and relics including royal tombs made during the Goryeo Dynasty, the palace sites of the Goryeo Dynasty, the Chamseongdan alter, and fortresses. We will add them to the UNESCO World Heritage list and develop them into a global tourist destination.” Ganghwa Island has 127 designated cultural heritage including 30 pieces designated by the state, 77 by the city of Incheon, and 20 by Ganghwa county, and has over 1,000 pieces, if undesignated cultural heritage is included.