UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Chile

UNESCO's Description

Rapa Nui, the indigenous name of Easter Island, bears witness to a unique cultural phenomenon. A society of Polynesian origin that settled there c. A.D. 300 established a powerful, imaginative and original tradition of monumental sculpture and architecture, free from any external influence. From the 10th to the 16th century this society built shrines and erected enormous stone figures known as moai , which created an unrivalled cultural landscape that continues to fascinate people throughout the world.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

Geographically isolated, the island forms the eastern geographic and cultural boundary of Polynesia. It is 3,700 kilometres (2,300 mi) west of Chile, about 2,200 km (1,400 mi) east of Pitcairn Island (the nearest human habitat) and is the most remote inhabited spot on Earth. The park is triangular in shape and has a length of 23 km (14 mi) and a width of 11 km (6.8 mi). It is home to an extinct megalithic culture which is seen in the form of edifices of huge statues called "moai" made out of volcanic rocks. The topography includes volcanoes and a rugged coastline. Its elevation varies from sea level to 300 m (980 ft). It has fresh water lakes, volcanic craters and a coastline which is subject to erosion.

Ecology

As the island was isolated there are many endemic species of animals and plants. The park is under IUCN Management Category II in southeastern Polynesia. Its biogeographic and ecological history has undergone a sea change from what existed in the ancient days when there were palm trees and a broad leaf forest. Before the Polynesians settled here in the 4th century, the island had an extensive forest cover of trees, shrubs, ferns, and grasses. The island is now almost completely grass-covered with only a few ornamental trees and shrubs scattered over the island.

Of the 150 recorded plant species, 45 are endemic. However, the island is largely covered by grass with three endemic species. In ancient times the only species of tree found here were Sophora toromiro and Paschalococos.

History

The Rapa Nui people settled the island some time between 300 and 1200 CE. The park was created by the Chilean Government in 1935. The native people were confined to a reserve area just outside the capital city of Hanga Roa and the rest of the land was leased to sheep ranchers. The movement for independence was started in 1964 and following this the lease for sheep farming was terminated during the 1980s and the entire island was declared a historic park. The population of the island which was 2,770 in 1972 rose to 3,792 by 2002, mostly concentrated in the capital.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q1763364 (CC0).

Visiting Rapa Nui National Park

Easter Island (Spanish: Isla de Pascua, Rapa Nui: Rapa Nui) is one of the most isolated islands on Earth. Early settlers called the island "Te Pito O Te Henua" (The Navel of the World). It is a territory of Chile that lies far off in the Pacific Ocean, about 3,600 km away from the mainland and roughly halfway to Tahiti. The island is most famous for its enigmatic giant stone statues or moai depicting oversized heads. Carved centuries ago, they're reflecting the history of the dramatic rise and fall of the most isolated Polynesian culture.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Easter Island (CC BY-SA 4.0).

UNESCO's Description

The Churches of Chiloé represent a unique example in Latin America of an outstanding form of ecclesiastical wooden architecture. They represent a tradition initiated by the Jesuit Peripatetic Mission in the 17th and 18th centuries, continued and enriched by the Franciscans during the 19th century and still prevailing today. These churches embody the intangible richness of the Chiloé Archipelago, and bear witness to a successful fusion of indigenous and European culture, the full integration of its architecture in the landscape and environment, as well as to the spiritual values of the communities.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q27964 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

Humberstone and Santa Laura works contain over 200 former saltpeter works where workers from Chile, Peru and Bolivia lived in company towns and forged a distinctive communal pampinos culture. That culture is manifest in their rich language, creativity, and solidarity, and, above all, in their pioneering struggle for social justice, which had a profound impact on social history. Situated in the remote Pampas, one of the driest deserts on Earth, thousands of pampinos lived and worked in this hostile environment for over 60 years, from 1880, to process the largest deposit of saltpeter in the world, producing the fertilizer sodium nitrate that was to transform agricultural lands in North and South America, and in Europe, and produce great wealth for Chile. Because of the vulnerability of the structures and the impact of a recent earthquake, the site was also placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger to help mobilize resources for its conservation.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Geography

Humberstone and Santa Laura are located 48.1 km east of the city of Iquique in the Atacama Desert in the Tarapacá Region in northern Chile. Situated in the commune of Pozo Almonte, these sites represent the most well-known of the former saltpeter works or "nitrate towns" in the region. Other notable saltpeter works include Chacabuco, Maria Elena, Pedro de Valdivia, Puelma and Aguas Santas.

History

In 1872, when the area was still part of Peru, the Guillermo Wendell Nitrate Extraction Company founded the Santa Laura saltpeter works. Its owner, Lima native Abraham Guillermo Wendell Tizon, obtained a concession of 100 stakes from the Peruvian government to operate in Cala Cala and other areas. In the same year, the Peru Nitrate Company founded the "La Palma" works under James Thomas Humberstone. Both works grew quickly, becoming busy towns characterized by English-style architecture.

While La Palma became one of the largest saltpeter extractors in the entire Tarapacá region, Santa Laura struggled with low production. It was taken over in 1902 by the Tamarugal Nitrate Company.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q572895 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

Situated at 2,000 m in the Andes, 60 km to the east of Rancagua, in an environment marked by extremes of climate, Sewell Mining Town was built by the Braden Copper company in 1905 to house workers at what was to become the world’s largest underground copper mine, El Teniente. It is an outstanding example of the company towns that were born in many remote parts of the world from the fusion of local labour and resources from an industrialized nation, to mine and process high-value natural resources. The town was built on a terrain too steep for wheeled vehicles around a large central staircase rising from the railway station. Along its route formal squares of irregular shape with ornamental trees and plants constituted the main public spaces or squares of the town. The buildings lining the streets are timber, often painted in vivid green, yellow, red and blue. At its peak Sewell numbered 15,000 inhabitants, but was largely abandoned in the 1970s.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).

Climate

Due to its elevation, Sewell has a warm-summer mediterranean climate (Csb, according to the Köppen climate classification), as at least 4 months see an average temperature above 10 °C (50 °F), having dry, moderate summers and cool, wet (sometimes snowy) winters.

History

The town was founded in 1906 by the Braden Copper Company as a company town to support extracting copper from the El Teniente mine. It was named after the company's first president, Barton Sewell.

During the Great Depression, the Braden Copper Company became a subsidiary of Kennecott Copper Company. In 1917 the foundry or smelter was moved from Sewell to Caletones, where another town developed around it.

Originally male workers lived in shared housing at Sewell, called colectivos. Later family housing was added. Playgrounds, plazas, shops, and a movie theatre were later developed. Pedestrians walked up and down vertical staircases to reach the different levels of the town. Streets ran horizontally and were unpaved because of severe winter conditions. There were no cars.

Key Facts

Facts from Wikidata Q588417 (CC0).

UNESCO's Description

The property consists of three component parts: Faldeo Norte del Morro de Arica, Colón 10, both in the city of Arica, and Desembocadura de Camarones, in a rural environment some 100km further south. Together they bear testimony to a culture of marine hunter-gatherers who resided in the arid and hostile northern coast of the Atacama Desert in northernmost Chile from approximately 5450 BCE to 890 BCE. The property presents the oldest known archaeological evidence of the artificial mummification of bodies with cemeteries that contain both artificially mummified bodies and some that were preserved due to environmental conditions. Over time, the Chinchorro perfected complex mortuary practices, whereby they systematically dismembered and reassembled bodies of deceased men, women and children of the entire social spectrum to create “artificial” mummies. These mummies possess material, sculptural, and aesthetic qualities that are presumed to reflect the fundamental role of the dead in Chinchorro society. Tools made of mineral and plant materials as well as simple instruments made of bone and shells that enabled an intensive exploitation of marine resources, have been found in the property which bears a unique testimony to the complex spirituality of the Chinchorro culture.

From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).