Confirmed!“Meiji Japan’s Industrial Revolution Heritage Sites” inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage

▲ Battleship Island off the coast of Nagasaki has now been elevated to World Heritage status. (Photo / Reporter Huang Shiyuan)

Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Following Mount Fuji and the Tomioka Silk Mill and Related Sites, Japan has added another historical landmark to its list of World Heritage Sites. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee, meeting in Germany, decided on the 5th local time to designate the “Meiji Japan’s Industrial Revolution Heritage Sites”—which include 23 facilities such as Gunkanjima (Battleship Island) in Nagasaki—as a World Heritage Site.

▲ Take a look at the full view of Battleship Island. (Video / Reporter Huang Shiyuan)

According to Japanese media reports, the “Meiji Japan’s Industrial Revolution Heritage Sites” comprise 23 facilities across 8 prefectures, including those related to iron and steel production, shipbuilding, and coal industries that propelled Japan’s modern industrialization. Among these, the most well-known to Taiwanese travelers is Nagasaki’s Battleship Island.

Located offshore of Nagasaki, Battleship Island was originally named “Hashima.” It earned the nickname “Battleship Island” due to its resemblance from afar to the battleship “Tosa.” The island was rich in coal mines, which began operation in the early Meiji period. As coal production increased, so did the population on the island, making it one of the most densely populated places in the world at one point. After the coal mines closed in 1974, the island became uninhabited and reopened to the public for tours in 2009.

With the official inscription of the “Meiji Japan’s Industrial Revolution Heritage Sites,” this marks Japan’s third consecutive year being added to the World Heritage List.

Overview of the 8 Prefectures and 23 Facilities of the “Meiji Japan’s Industrial Revolution Heritage Sites”

Yamaguchi Prefecture, Yahata City
1. ? Blast Furnace
2. `u Ushimisaki Shipyard Ruins
3. Ogaya Tatara Iron Making Site
4. ? Castle Town
5. Matsushita Village School

Kagoshima
1. Former Seirenkan
2. Terayama Coal Mine Ruins
3. Sekiguchi Waterway

▲ The Kushiyama Blast Furnace is currently considered Japan’s only surviving operational blast furnace. (Photo / From Wikipedia)

Shizuoka Prefecture, Izunokuni City – Kushiyama
1. Kushiyama Blast Furnace

Iwate Prefecture, Hanamaki City
1. Hashino Iron Mining and Smelting Site
Saga Prefecture, Saga City
1. Mietsu Naval Dock Site

Nagasaki Prefecture, Nagasaki City
1. Kosuge Ship Repair Yard Ruins
2. Nagasaki Shipyard’s Third Dry Dock
3. Giant Crane at Nagasaki Shipyard
4. Old Wooden Mold Factory at Nagasaki Shipyard
5. Shusenkan Pavilion at Nagasaki Shipyard
6. Takashima Coal Mine
7. Hashima Coal Mine (also known as Gunkanjima or Battleship Island)
8. Glover Residence

Fukuoka Prefecture (Omuta City), Kumamoto Prefecture (Arao City, Uki City)
1. Miike Coal Mine 0?? (Note: Unintelligible characters preserved) 2. Sankaku Nishi Old Port

Fukuoka Prefecture (Kitakyushu City, Nakama City)
1. Former Head Office of the Government-Run Yahata Iron Works
2. Okukae River Water Source Pumping Station