At the Unesco meeting in Fuzhou, China, about new additions to the World Heritage List, no discussion was necessary when it came to the “Great Baths of Europe”. There are three in Germany: Bad Kissingen, Baden-Baden and Bad Ems. You can now print the image-enhancing, but also compulsory title “World Heritage Site” on the city signs and letterheads.
The joint application from eleven European cities from seven countries, including cities such as Spa in Belgium, Bath in England or Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic, took into account only a small part of the once around 1000 spa towns in Europe that were Century have retained the flair of the historical health vacation.
But the selection of this city elite still pays tribute to a glamorous culture of the aristocratic and upper-class lifestyle with some of its most outstanding examples. This had a major impact on social life, especially in the 19th century, not only with expressive architecture and idyllic urban planning, but also through many a famous novel. Just think of Dostoyevsky’s “The Gambler”. This is based on the author’s time in Baden-Baden.
Award for the Mathildenhöhe
In contrast, the fact that the successful preservation of a bygone culture in its building documents might not be enough to be included in the world cultural heritage briefly threatened the application from Darmstadt for the Mathildenhöhe. The world-famous Art Nouveau ensemble, which was designed by style-defining architects such as Peter Behrens and Joseph Maria Olbrich shortly after the turn of the century, was one of the most contentious objects on the long list of the first day of nomination.
The Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt: The Art Nouveau ensemble is currently being extensively renovated.
(Photo: Frank Rumpenhorst / dpa)
The plan for a new visitor center on the site and the expectation of an increased volume of traffic in the area had led the Icomos inspection committee to recommend not to award the title to Hesse for the time being. However, in view of the undeniable importance of this landmark in European architectural development, the responsible committee nevertheless approved the application, so that Germany now has four new world cultural heritage sites.
The other three German applications for the nomination years 2020 and 2021 will also be voted on this weekend. The so-called “wet Limes”, i.e. the fortification of the Roman Empire on the Danube, probably has fewer chances than the application of the Jewish cultural and burial sites from Mainz, Worms and Speyer or those for the Lower Germanic Limes after Hungary’s withdrawal from the also transnational application between Germany and the Netherlands.