It almost seems like Spain will withdraw the nomination, but its also a bit unclear later in the article. If it is withdrawn, the aim will be for 2019 or 2020.

http://www.lavanguardia.com/vida/20170518/422712982933/la-menorca-talayotica-tendra-q ue-esperar-al-menos-hasta-2019-para-ser-patrimonio-de-la-humanidad.html

Inscribe
- Venetian Works of Defence (Italy, Croatia, Montenegro) less components approved
- Okinoshima Island and Related Sites in Munakata Region (Japan) less components approved
- Gulangyu (China)

Deferral
- Talayotic Culture of Minorca (Spain) Withdrawn

Not Inscribe (status - withdrawn)
- Sila National Park (Italy)
- Hanyangdoseong, the Seoul City Wall (South Korea)

Seems fairly certain at this point for these nominations. I am not 100% sure Spain's nomination has been Withdrawn, but based on recent reports the backers of this nomination are already set on 2019-2020. Poland is out of the Primeval Beech Forests nomination, but the overall recommendation is still unknown.

winterkjm You truly are our South Korea expert; just loved your lapsus/typo there on Italy's Sila NP

Haha! I will fix it, nice catch!

The documents were posted!

Good spot! They are here including the
ICOMOS Evaluations
and IUCN Evaluations

Gett'um while they're hot!! Alas I'm on a train and can't download them at the moment

Officially withdrawn:

ï‚· Bahrain: Dilmun Burial Mounds
ï‚· Italy: Sila National Park
ï‚· Republic of Korea: Hanyangdoseong, the Seoul City Wall
ï‚· Republic of Moldova: Orheiul Vechi Archaeological Landscape

Without counting extensions, 29 sites are to be considered.
Out of them:
Inscribe - 12 (Africa - 2, S.America - 2, Europe - 4, Asia - 3, Oceania -1)
Refer - 1
Defer - 8
Not inscribe - 6
Urgent decisions to be published later (Hebron and Dauria) - 2


1 ANGOLA Historic Centre of Mbanza Kongo I
2 ARGENTINA Los Alerces National Park I
3 AZERBAIJAN Historic Centre of Sheki with the Khan's Palace N
4 BRAZIL Valongo Wharf Archaeological Site I
5 CAMBODIA Sambor Prei Kuk Archaeological Site D
6 CHINA Kulangsu: a Historic International Settlement I
7 CHINA Qinghai Hoh Xil I
8 DENMARK Kujataa – a subarctic farming landscape in Greenland R
9 ERITREA Asmara: Africa's Modernist City I
10 FRANCE Taptapuatea I
11 GERMANY Caves with the oldest Ice Age art I
12 GERMANY Naumburg Cathedral and the High Medieval Cultural Landscape of the Rivers Saale and Unstrut N
13 GHANA Mole National Park N
14 INDIA Bhitarkanika Conservation Area N
15 INDIA Historic City of Ahmadabad D
16 IRAN Historic City of Yazd D
17 JAPAN Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region I
18 JORDAN As-Salt Ecletic Architecture (1865-1915), Origins and Evolution of an Architectural Language in the Levant N
19 MEXICO Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley: originary habitat of Mesoamerica D
20 MIXED Landscapes of Dauria TBD
21 MIXED The Venetian Works of Defence between 15th and 17th centuries I
22 PALESTINE Hebron/Al-Khalil Old Town TBD
23 POLAND Tarnowskie Góry Lead-Silver-Zinc Mine and its Underground Water Management System D
24 RUSSIA The Assumption Cathedral of the town-island of Sviyazhsk I
25 SOUTH AFRICA Khomani Cultural Landscape D
26 SPAIN Talayotic Minorca D
27 TURKEY Aphrodisias D
28 UAE Khor Dubai, a Traditional Merchants' Harbour N
29 UNITED KINGDOM The English Lake District I

Hebron (Palestine) will be processed on an emergency basis this year. This nomination is highly political. Israel regards Hebron (other than Bethlehem or Jericho for example) as a holy city with long ties to Judaism. There is a Jewish Israeli settlement (illegal under international law) in the old town of Hebron, exactly the core of the nomination. The Palestinians who live there had to close their shops and restrict their movements so to allow the free movement of the Israeli settlers. The Jewish settlers there are also known to have attacked their Palestinian neighbours. I wonder how such a political nomination will be handled by the committee.

Beech forests extension - defer
W park extension (to include Benin and Burkina Faso) - approved
Straßburg extension - approved
Bauhaus extension - approved
Luther extension - not approved

The Primeval Beech Forest Nomination got a Deferral. While this could be overturned in favor of an Inscription by the WHC, it seems more likely for the first time in decades Italy will not be the sole leader of WHS.

China 52
Italy 52

Both state parties have (2) nominations up for inscription in 2018.

Sheki received some harsh criticism from ICOMOS. It not only lacks OUV, being of mere regional importance, but also suffers from lack of authenticity (e.g., due to poor reconstructions) and proper preservation due to construction of modern hotels. I can't properly judge neither the site nor ICOMOS review as I have never been to Sheki, but can't help thinking: would this still be the verdict, were the site located in let's say Germany, China, Spain or Iran? How do you define regional importance in contrast to global importance? Taking last year's nomination into account, is Philippi or Antigua Naval Dockyards of more global importance than Sheki? The criterion ICOMOS uses is that there are more similar old towns in the Caucasus and that compared to those Sheki is not exceptional. Well, is Philippi exceptional compared to other ancient Greek cities? Is Antigua Naval Dockyards exceptional compared to other British colonial ports in the Caribbean? I am not saying this because I am against the nomination of either Antigua or Philippi which might have the relevant merits, but I just have the impression of ICOMOS being unbalanced in its views.

I do feel very sorry for them, as it looks like the nomination document just wasn't up to par and focused too much on the town and its sericulture and trade aspects. As noted in the reviews on this website by Juha and myself, the Khan's Palace is the real gem.

The ICOMOS evaluation points out that there are "several similar palaces" in Iran. It does not name them though, and I haven't seen any during my trip to Iran which followed the one to Azerbaijan. Maybe Solivagant, who saw almost all Iran WHS and many TWHS, can testify whether there is an intimate Safavid or Qajar palace among them. ICOMOS may hint at the Golestan Palace, but that has many more European influences.

I can't remember having seen the "only of regional importance" argument used by ICOMOS in recent times. In the earliest days of the WH scheme it was often adopted. Then there was perhaps a different "vision" as to what sort of sites would constitute "World Heritage" -all Taj Mahals and Grand Canyons, though that doesn't explain how e.g The Madara rider got in (1979) - a "regional importance" site par excellence if there ever was one!!
The development of "case law" as more and more middling sites scraped in plus the growth of beliefs in the essential importance and equality of all cultures of the World seemed to make this rather damning put down somewhat passé.
ICOMOS would seem to have overstepped matters and should perhaps have limited their criticisms at the authenticity and too many modern buildings. It could I suppose have said that the building isn't unique enough or of good enough quality compared with others but "only of regional significance" is not a good enough reason IMO.
But I think we all know in our hearts that, despite the valiant efforts each year to conjure some meaning out of the phrase "OUV", it just isn't definable in any objective form and that, after a few hundred "top" WHS, the rest are on the List because of their medium interest, good nomination files, cultural bias in the assessment (not always operated solely in favour of the "west") and international politics! That doesn't mean they are of no value just that they aren't any more "special" than many other similar sites which are not on the List!


I don't know to what they might be referring - they really should have been more specific.
As I haven't seen Sheki Khan's Palace I only really have Els's photo to indicate what it looks like - but I don't know how big/magnificent/intimate it is etc. The already inscribed Eram Gardens in Shiraz include a "small" Qajar Summer Palace which has similar stylistic features (we visited the Gardens but the Palace is closed). See www.google.co.uk/search?q=eram+gardens+photos&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ah UKEwjwgcjVv4DUAhUJBcAKHVAvDR8QsAQIJg&biw=1600&bih=770
Regarding Safavid examples I found this comment on the Web
"SAFAVID PALACES - Isfahan, under the Safavid dynasty witnessed a golden era of construction and development. Extensive construction was carried out in Isfahan. Magnificent palaces and beautiful gardens and orchards were built along the Zayandeh Roud River. Unfortunately, after the fall of Safavid Empire and especially during Qajar period most of these palaces were destroyed."
So Ali Qapu is the only Safavid Palace in Isfahan and is inscribed as part of the Meidan of course. But I also found this when searching on Ali Qapu
"Ali Qapu (also spelled Āli Qapu or Aali Qapu) usually refers to the name for the palaces of Safavid kings. When Iranians were defeated by Ottoman forces, they were forced to move their capital from Tabriz to Qazvin, and then to Isfahan, to avoid occupation of the capital city. At each of these cities, they established a new palace. It may refer to: East-Azerbaijan State Palace, Tabriz, Iran, known as Aali Qapu during Safavid times..."
We visited Qazvin but very little is left of its Palace. see - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_1teEUvvxQ
In Tabriz too the Safavid Palace has been destroyed/rebuilt - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Azerbaijan_Governance_Palace

It looks a little like it (although I haven't been to Isfahan so I cannot really compare), but the Sheki Palace is more like a noble family-sized summer residence (similar size to a school). As described on Wikipedia, the Sheki Palace is known for its stained-glass windows, wooden latticework (shebeke) and 18th century frescoes. The interior is excellent, unfortunately I was not allowed to take pictures but another visitor did (see halfway the page).

Next to Schönbrunn and Potsdam, the more regional Castles of Augustusburg and Falkenlust and the Wurzburg Residence have also been inscribed. I don't see why this couldn't apply to the greater Persian area.