There are fifty-two of them. Fifty-two natural and cultural sites which are the pride of France and which are listed as UNESCO world heritage sites. This prestigious list includes Mont-Saint-Michel, the Cordouan lighthouse, the Canal du Midi, the cathedrals of Chartres, Bourges and Amiens and even the Pont du Gard.
But other sites would also like to integrate this global elite, such as the parish enclosures of Finistère. Launched two years ago, the candidacy of these architectural ensembles typical of Brittany from the 16th and 17th centuries has just taken a big step forward since it has been included on the indicative list of French properties that are possible candidates for UNESCO world heritage. .
“We have taken a first and formidable step, which makes us official candidates of France,” said Maël de Calan, president of the Finistère departmental council, on Friday. “It’s a decisive step,” added former Minister of Culture Jean-Jacques Aillagon, president of the mission responsible for carrying out the candidacy. The latter stressed that this stage generally took “six or seven years, and for some others more than ten years”.
Registration will take at least four years
Out of around a hundred sites listed in Finistère, the mission selected 31 because of their state of conservation and their integrity. This list should be gradually reduced to around fifteen particularly remarkable enclosures. “There is still a lot of work to be done. I am hopeful that, with this work accomplished, we will ultimately succeed in including the parish enclosures on the world heritage list,” assured the former minister of Jacques Chirac.
Without waiting for this registration, which will take at least four years, work potentially reaching several tens of millions of euros will be scheduled to restore the main enclosures. In October 2022, France’s indicative list included thirty-three sites, according to the UNESCO website. Some have been there since 1996, such as the Carnac megaliths, whose World Heritage listing is expected in 2025 or 2026.