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Germany has a new UNESCO site: the Speicherstadt Hamburg

The UNESCO committee in Bonn has awarded world heritage status to Speicherstadt and the nearby Kontorhausviertel in Hamburg.

August 05th, 2015
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On Sunday July 5th, during the consultation for new additions to the list of UNESCO sites in Bonn, Speicherstadt in Hamburg, together with the nearby Kontorhausviertel, was awarded world heritage status.

The UNESCO committee selected this site in Hamburg not only because it is the largest storage complex in the world, but also because its architecture has remained unchanged over time. The typical storehouses date back to the late nineteenth century and are built on small islands on the Elbe River. The Speicherstadt site is part of the new district, Hafen Hamburg, and also includes the surrounding buildings. The Kontorhausviertel is the location for the offices of the harbor and the navigation company, which were built between 1920 and 1940. This southeasterly area of the old town in Hamburg is famous for being the first “business district” of Europe. The dark red brick facades and its tip, which recalls the prow of a ship, make the Kontorhausviertel easily recognizable from other parts of the city.

The Senator Barbara Kisseler expressed her joy at the end of the celebrations, thanking the other German regions for their support.

In addition to Hamburg, other candidates for world heritage status included the ancient city of Hedeby in the Schleswig-Holstein and the German Naumberger Dom. Although neither of these were included in the famous list, the UNESCO committee decided to give the latter a second chance: the Saale region will have the chance to review its application, work on it and resubmit it to the Committee, with the view to being awarded world heritage status in the coming years.

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News from Berlin
Eleonora Beggiora, Berlin Global