France

Marquesas Islands

WHS Score 0.0 Votes 0

Te Henua Enata – The Marquesas Islands are an archipelago of volcanic origin in the South Pacific Ocean, politically part of French Polynesia.

Due to the great geographical isolation and its rugged topography, the archipelago has developed a unique terrestrial and marine ecosystem. Many endemic species, flora and fauna, are specific to the archipelago, sometimes to a single island, or even to a single peak. Its inhabitants developed a specific culture and artistic style. Most remarkable are the ‘Tiki’ stone sculptures, most of which can be found on the island of Hiva Oa.

Community Perspective: This site has been unreviewed so far. Take a good look at the official site maps before planning a visit since the islands are only inscribed partially.

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Site Info

Official Information
Full Name
Te Henua Enata – The Marquesas Islands (ID: 1707)
Country
France
Status
Inscribed 2024 Site history
History of Marquesas Islands
WHS Type
Mixed
Criteria
  • iii
  • vi
  • vii
  • ix
  • x
Links
UNESCO
whc.unesco.org
All Links
UNESCO.org

Community Information

  • Community Category
  • Natural landscape: Insular
  • Archaeological site: Pacific
Travel Information
No travel information
Recent Connections
View all (29) .
Connections of Marquesas Islands
Individual People
  • Captain James Cook
    "James Cook made a brief stopover there in 1774, and in the years that followed the archipelago was visited by numerous navigators." - AB Evaluation
Geography
Trivia
Ecology
  • Cloud forest
    "The islands are extremely rugged in relief and have a diverse landscape, including continuums of vegetation from the coastline to the island peaks, and areas of tropical montane cloud forests." - AB Evaluation
  • Molluscs
    "Marquesan waters are home to exceptional endemism in relation to the surface area of the property for coastal fish (13.7%) and molluscs (10%), i.e. 3,400 km." - AB Evaluation
  • Sharks
    Scalloped Hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini, CR) and Oceanic Whitetip Shark (Carcharhinus longimanus, CR) "The coastal marine ecosystem is home to 40 emblematic species, including 16 marine mammals, 26 rays and sharks, and 1 endangered marine turtle, all concentrated around the 12 islands that make up the archipelago and many of which are globally threatened. More than 40% of the fish species are endemic to the ecoregion, all of which dwell in shallow marine, brackish and riverine habitats." - AB Evaluation
  • Critically endangered fauna species
    Marquesas Kingfisher (endemic to Tahuata Island), 350 mature individuals

    See www.iucnredlist.org

  • Endemic Bird Species
    The archipelago is home to one of the most diverse seabird assemblages in the tropical waters of the South Pacific. It is one of the few known breeding sites in the world for 21 species of seabirds and 13 species and subspecies of land birds are endemic to the archipelago. Fatu Iva and Tahuata are respectively home to an endangered endemic species, òmaò keekee (around 30 individuals), and the pahi (less than 300 individuals estimated in 2017)." - AB Evaluation
  • Fish
    "The percentage of endemism is high in comparison to older archipelagos, whereas the nominated property supports high species endemism due to its extremely isolated position. For instance, it ranks third in the Indo-Pacific region for endemism of coral reef fishes." - AB Evaluation
Architecture
  • Dry Stone Construction
    "The property also includes archaeological sites ranging from monumental dry-stone structures to lithic sculptures and engravings" - UNESCO
World Heritage Process
Religion and Belief
  • Taboo
    Ua Pou: "dividing the area into tapu (sacred or forbidden places) and community zones" (AB ev)
Human Activity
  • Petroglyphs
    Hatiheu and Fatu Iva; "The Marquesas Islands are also home to many petroglyphs and are said to hold the richest diversity of motifs found in French Polynesia" (AB ev)
WHS on Other Lists
Timeline
  • Built in the 11th century
    "The nominated property shows the extraordinary adaptability of a Polynesian society that arrived by sea around the year 1000 CE on one of the most isolated archipelagos of high islands with steep valleys in the world." (AB ev)
WHS Names
  • Dual WHS names
    Te Henua Enata – The Marquesas Islands: Te Henua Enata in (North) Marquesan means "the land of men", while the Marquesas Islands in English/French were named after "after the wife of the 16th century Spanish Viceroy of Peru, the Marquis of Cañete (Spanish: Marqués de Cañete) by navigator Álvaro de Mendaña, who visited them in 1595."

    See en.wikipedia.org

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