About the inscription on the list

Jože Plečnik’s works in Ljubljana were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on 31 July 2021. At its 44th session, the World Heritage Committee followed the recommendation of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and unanimously adopted the decision to inscribe Plečnik’s Ljubljana on the list of properties that constitute humankind’s valuable heritage. The Committee recognized Plečnik’s Ljubljana as an outstanding example of human-centred urban design that reflects the profoundly humanistic vision of an architect who transformed a provincial town of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire into a symbolic national capital.

The body of recognized work consists of selected public spaces (city squares, parks, streets, promenades, embankments, and bridges across the Ljubljanica river); and public institutions (the national library, markets, funerary complex, and churches). The architect, the Committee noted, succeeded in subtly integrating his designs into the existing urban, cultural, and natural contexts to create a new identity for the city and meet the needs of its residents. The inscription recognised the systematic efforts of competent institutions, owners, and communities to protect Plečnik’s heritage. Similarly, going forward, the Committee’s recommendations will serve to inform the protection and management of the World Heritage property.

The nomination process brought together museums and heritage-related institutions, national and municipal institutes, experts and scholars, owners, and the local community alike. The complex and extensive work performed by the interdisciplinary working group built on past research and various presentations of Plečnik’s creative work. Placed in the context of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention the architect’s work brings tangible added value to the contemporary understanding of universally recognized concepts. With the inscription the national responsibility for the protection of Plečnik’s heritage has grown into a broader commitment to the international community. Further, the project itself has evolved into a lasting obligation to accord our common heritage the respect and protection it deserves.

Partners of the inscription

Owners and individual managers

World Heritage Site joint manager

National Focal Point for the World Heritage Convention (culture)

Expert stakeholders

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The website was created with the financial support of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia.