It would be a shame to see some of the world’s most revered historic sites crumble to dust owing to rapid urbanisation, natural calamities, and other disasters. Combatting this threat is a team of experts who are breathing in new life into these UNESCO cultural heritage sites. Read on to know what they’re doing. By Bayar Jain; Photographs by Budget Direct
From motorists to militants, natural disasters to manmade — cultural heritage sites across the world have fallen prey to various threats, in turn accelerating their paths to degradation. Despite being listed in UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger, their eventual downfall seems imminent. Paired with the current ongoing travel restrictions, chances are that many might not get to see these structures in all their glory.
Combatting this hurdle is a team of experts at Budget Direct — an Australian insurance company — who are helping ensure the structures’ sustenance, and bringing them straight to your homes virtually. As a part of this project, experts at Budget Direct have taken endangered monuments listed as ‘in danger’ across the globe and tried imagining what they would have looked like had they been preserved.
Six such sites, namely Iraq’s ancient city, Hatra; Libya’s Leptis Magna from the Roman empire; Syria’s ancient Semitic city, Palmyra; Panama’s Portobelo-San Lorenzo fortifications; Micronesia’s archaeological site, Nan Madol; and Jerusalem’s Old City and its walls, have been digitally recreated to transport wanderbugs to the tourist hotspots.
A series of images (both, old and new), animated GIFs, and videos have brought these dilapidated structures to life. A dreamy, virtual escape like no other, don’t you think?
Related: Peru Goes Green To Protect Its UNESCO World Heritage Site — Machu Picchu!
