The 47th session of UNESCO Meeting held in Paris, France had removed Lumbini from the delisting potential. The provision is said to be effective for a year. Moreover. the meeting did not approve the proposal to include Tilaurakot in the UNESCO World Heritage List as it was not moved forward at the 47th session of UNESCO conducted during 6 July 6 to 16 July.
That means, Nepal’s long-standing efforts to include the historic and archaeological site of the ancient Shakya Republic Tilaurakot, Kapilvastu, has been unsuccessful during this session.
Nepal’s decade-long campaign could not succeed after UNESCO’s technical advisor, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), recommended deferring the nomination of Tilaurakot, meaning they did not endorse its inscription during this session.
During the recently concluded 47th UNESCO session of the World Heritage Committee in Paris, discussions regarding Tilaurakot’s inclusion in the World Heritage List took place for over two days, but the site was not listed.
A delegation comprising Minister of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation Badri Prasad Pandey, Vice Chairman of the Lumbini Development Trust Dr. Lharkyal Lama, Senior Director Gyanin Rai, and SandipKhanal, Chief of the World Heritage Preservation Division at the Department of Archaeology, travelled to Paris to participate in discussions supporting Tilaurakot’s nomination.
It is to recall that UNESCO’s technical advisor body ICOMOS had earlier recommended placing a Tilaurakot in the deferred (suspension) list during its evaluation. Since none of the 21 member states proposed an amendment to this recommendation in the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee, the proposal was not taken forward.
A final nomination document of about 1,000 pages for Tilaurakot’s inclusion was submitted to UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre in Paris on January 31, 2024, by Dr. Sudhir Bhattarai, Nepal’s Permanent Representative to UNESCO and Ambassador to France.
Nepal’s decade long efforts failed after ICOMOS did not produce a positive recommendation regarding Tilaurakot.
Under the UNESCO-Japanese Fund-in-Trust project, sufficient grounds and scientific archaeological evidence have been gathered through excavations conducted since 2014 under the leadership of Professor Robin Conningham of Durham University.
The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the Lumbini Development Trust, and the Department of Archaeology have conducted several consultations with international heritage experts in the Tilaurakot area at various stages.
Tilaurakot was included on UNESCO’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites in 1996.
This time, discussions are being held on whether to nominate or not nominate 32 proposed sites from around the world, including 24 cultural sites, seven natural sites, and one mixed site. The session.
Tilaurakot, the ancient capital of Kapilvastu, where Gautam Buddha spent 29 years. Tilaurakot-Kapilavastu is the archaeological site of an ancient fortified city in the western Terai of Nepal, sited adjacent to the Banganga River in a generally flat agricultural landscape.
The property is focused on the fortified city area which is encircled by a modern fence and retains a substantial tree cover compared to the surrounding area. While the ancient remains are sub-surface, some structures have been interpreted by modern low brick walls on top of the remains which replicate the original structures. Ancient roadways are interpreted by elevated timber walkways.
Surrounding the fortified city area are open agricultural areas with a few surface remains but mostly sub-surface archaeological remains. The visible remains include the Eastern Stupa and Twin Stupas to the north.
Research has revealed a rich legacy of extensive archaeological remains, with many of the structures constructed in brick. The evidence of first settlement dates from the eighth century BCE, and city development from the sixth century BCE with cardinally-oriented planning. This development continues through until the first century CE with defensive structures, earthen platforms, iron working, a Central Walled Complex, brick-lined ponds, the Eastern Monastery, shops, shrines, walls and paving.
While there is evidence of decline or at least the abandonment of some features from the first century CE, a new major complex is constructed in the fifth century CE. By the seventh century CE large parts of the city and its hinterland were abandoned, including the Eastern Monastery structures. Another major temple complex is abandoned in the tenth century CE.The later history of the property is not well understood, but it is thought the city was largely abandoned. The ancient city was re-discovered in the 1890s CE. It was identified at this time as Kapilavastu, leading to its veneration by those believing it to be the capital of the Shakya Kingdom associated with the life journey of the Lord Buddha.
Tilaurakot-Kapilavastu is the best preserved Early Historic city and hinterland in South Asia and is widely believed to be closely associated with the early and secular life, and subsequent renunciation of that life, by the Lord Buddha.
The property is an outstanding example of buildings and structures within the extended site of an ancient city, including religious and industrial ensembles, and it displays the earliest known example of a grid iron plan based on Indic knowledge system planning models.
Tilaurakot-Kapilavastu is an important place of historical and contemporary pilgrimage in Buddhism, a major world religion, because it is believed to be the city where the Buddha grew up as a prince and lived a secular and privileged life. Crucially, it is also believed to be where he renounced that life and departed on his journey seeking spiritual enlightenment. The property is directly and tangibly associated with the foundations of Buddhism’s history and teachings. The main attributes of Tilaurakot-Kapilavastu consist of the archaeological remains of the central fortified city with preserved remains of suburban enclaves to the north and southwest, and an industrial area to the south.
