List of destroyed heritage
This is a list of cultural heritage sites that have been damaged or destroyed accidentally, deliberately, or by a natural disaster, sorted by continent, then by country.
Cultural heritage can be subdivided into two main types—tangible and
Deliberate and systematic destruction of cultural heritage, such as
Africa
Egypt
- The Library of Alexandria was destroyed during the Palmyrene invasion of Egypt and the following Roman counterattack during the 3rd century AD.
- In the late 12th century, Sultan Al-Aziz Uthman demolished part of the Pyramid of Menkaure.
- The Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was heavily damaged by earthquakes in the 10th and 14th centuries, before being demolished[5] in 1480 to make way for the Citadel of Qaitbay. Some stones from the lighthouse were used in the construction of the citadel, and some other remains have survived underwater.
- Villa Aghion, Alexandria.[6]
- Rock-cut portion of the Temple of Gerf Hussein, flooded by Lake Nasser
- Objects stolen from the Al-Rifai Mosque.[7]
- Institut d'Égypte, destroyed on 17 December 2011 during anti-government demonstrations.
Libya
- During the 2011 Libyan Civil War, various sites were vandalized, looted, or destroyed.[8]
- In March 2015, during the ]
- The Islamic State completely destroyed the tomb of Zuhayr ibn Qays, located at the As-Sahabah Mosque in Derna Libya in 2012 and May 2014.[9][10]
Madagascar
- In November 1995, a fire broke out in the
Mali
- The Great Mosque of Djenne was allowed to fall into disrepair after the conquest of Djenne by Seku Amadu in 1818. It was rebuilt in 1907, however.
- Parts of the World Heritage Site of Timbuktu were destroyed after the Battle of Gao in 2012, despite condemnation by UNESCO, the OIC, Mali, and France.
Nigeria
- During the Royal Palace of the Oba of Benin were destroyed, while the Benin Bronzes are currently preserved in the British Museum.
- During the 18th-19th century Bornu Empire.
- During the Battle of Gawakuke, the Sokoto Caliphate destroyed the Hausa city-state of Gobir.
Sudan
- Faras Cathedral, flooded by Lake Nasser, paintings salvaged and now in the Faras Gallery in Warsaw and the National Museum of Sudan
South Africa
- The 2021 Table Mountain fire partially or completely gutted several historical and/or culturally significant buildings and collections in the University of Cape Town, including Mostert's Mill (South Africa's oldest working windmill, built 1796) and the university's Special Collections Library, which held over 1,300 collections and over 85,000 books and other items, including a historically significant Bible, an original illustration of The Jungle Book, drawings, maps and transcripts of stories from the indigenous peoples of the Cape, a major dictionary of the isiXhosa language, copies of historic Xhosa language newspapers, papers by Ray Alexander Simons, and archives of papers relating to many anti-apartheid movements.[13][14][15] It is known that the fire completely gutted the library's Reading Room but that a fire detection system prevented the fire from reaching the rest of the library, likely preserving most collections; however, some rare collections were likely lost.[16] A later assessment found that a vast majority of the African Studies Published Print Collection (about 70,000 items) and the entirety of the African Studies Film Collection DVDs (about 3,500 items) had been destroyed, along with documents relating to the university itself as well as any manuscripts or archives being kept in the Reading Room for digitization or after being digitized, but that the rare and antique collections kept underground, including significant documentation and works of the San and Khoi people who lived in the area in the 1870s, had been preserved.[17][18]
Zimbabwe
- Great Zimbabwe has faced some damage since the colonial era. The removal of gold and artifacts in amateurist diggings by early colonial antiquarians caused widespread damage,[19] notably diggings by Richard Nicklin Hall, who was determined to find evidence that the monument was not built by indigenous Africans until he eventually relinquished this belief.[20] More extensive damage was caused by the mining of some of the ruins for gold.[19] Reconstruction attempts since 1980 caused further damage, leading to alienation of the local communities from the site.[21][22] Another source of damage to the ruins has been due to the site being open to visitors with many cases of people climbing the walls, walking over archaeological deposits, and the over-use of certain paths all have had major impacts on the structures at the site.[21] These are in conjunction with damages due to the natural weathering that occurs over time due to vegetation growth, the foundations settling, and erosion from the weather.[21]
Asia
Abkhazia
- A fire in 2024 destroyed the National Art Gallery in Sukhumi and all but 150 of its collection of 4,000 paintings.[23]
Afghanistan
- During the Buddhist monastery complex in Tepe Shortor which dates back to the 2nd century AD, and the National Kabul Museum. These sites were ransacked by various pillagers, including the pro-Russian government forces, destitute villagers, and the local crime rings. The National Museum of Afghanistan suffered the greatest damage, in which the systematic looting has plundered the museum collection and the adjacent Archaeological Institute. As a result, more than two-thirds of one hundred thousand pieces of museum treasures and artifacts were lost or destroyed.[24]
- A pair of 6th-century monumental statues known as the Buddhas of Bamiyan were dynamited by the Taliban in 2001, who had declared them heretical idols.
Armenia
- In 1870, a report by the Shia mosques in the region.[25] After 1917, many of the city's religious buildings were demolished in accordance with the Soviet government's modernization and anti-religious policies.[26] A mosque in Yerevan was pulled down with a bulldozer at the beginning of the year 1990, which was done as a result of Azerbaijan destroying the Armenian church in Baku.[27] Today there is only one mosqueremaining in the city.
Azerbaijan
- Azerbaijani authorities destroyed the Armenian cemetery in Julfa in December 2005 in the region of Nakhchivan.[28] The Azerbaijani representative of Nakhchivan denied that there was an Armenian cemetery there in the first place.[29]
- Azerbaijani authorities demolished the Church of the Holy Virgin in Baku in 1992 as part of their "de-Armenisation" campaign which also took place in Nakhichevan. The rest was turned into a restaurant.[30][31]
Bahrain
- At least 43 Bahraini uprising of 2011.
Cambodia
- The Roman Catholic Cathedral of Phnom Penh was the first building to destroyed by the Khmer Rouge after the establishment of their regime,[32] as they considered it a physical symbol of everything they opposed. The Cathedral of Battambang was also destroyed in 1975 for the same reasons.
China
- The historical Northern Zhou dynasty (557–581). After being rebuilt, it was destroyed again by an earthquake during the Longqing's years (1567–1572) of the Ming dynasty. After another reconstruction, it was destroyed again during the Cultural Revolutionof 1966–1976. The present structure was completed in 1987.
- The Huang Chao rebellion (874–884) devastated the city of Chang'an, a historical capital of several ancient Chinese empires. The city was sacked and occupied by the rebels who looted and demolished the buildings, whose materials were then reused to build the subsequent capital city of Luoyang. Chang'an never recovered after this obliteration, and it was followed by the decline of the Tang dynasty. Huang Chao's former lieutenant Zhu Wen completed the destruction by dismantling Chang'an and transporting the materials east to Luoyang. A medieval Chinese source claimed that Huang Chao killed 8 million people.[33] Huang Chao's army in southern China committed the Guangzhou massacre against foreign Arab and Persian Muslim, Zoroastrian, Jewish and Christian merchants in 878-879 at the seaport and trading entrpot of Guangzhou.[34]
- During the Taoist Emperor Wuzong of Tang, more than 4,600 Buddhist temples were destroyed across the empire.[35]
- In 955, Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou ordered the systematic destruction of Buddha statues due to the need for copper to mint coins. The ordinance led to the destruction of 3,336 of China's 6,030 Buddhist temples.[36]
- In 1739, the Pagoda of Chengtian Temple was destroyed after a large earthquake struck the city of Yinchuan. The pagoda was subsequently restored in 1820.[37]
- The Porcelain Tower of Nanjing, which dates back to the 15th century, was destroyed during the course of the Taiping Rebellion (1850–1864). A modern life-size replica was built in 2015.[38]
- In 1860, much of the Old Summer Palace, a Qing-era imperial palace, was set on fire and sacked during the Second Opium War. The palace was later sacked again and destroyed by the Eight-Nation Alliance when they invaded Beijing.[citation needed]
- Beijing city fortifications which date back to the 15th–16th century were destroyed through the course of the decline of the Qing dynasty in the late 19th to early 20th century. They were severely damaged during the Boxer Rebellion (1898–1901), with the gate towers and watchtowers destroyed and troops of the Eight-Nation Alliance tearing down much of the outer city walls. After the collapse of the Qing in 1912, and end of the Republic of China in 1949, the fortifications were dismantled to build modern ring roads around Beijing. Today, nothing of the Outer City remains intact.[citation needed]
- In 1921, Buddhist murals at the Mogao Caves were damaged and vandalized by White Russian soldiers fleeing the Russian Civil War.[39]
- On 8 June 1928, the soldiers of warlord Sun Dianying ransacked Qing Imperial tombs including the tombs of Empress Dowager Cixi and the Qianlong Emperor.
- Buddhist murals at the
- During the Kumul Rebellion in Xinjiang in the 1930s, Buddhist murals were vandalized by Muslims.[42]
- Yongdingmen, the former front gate of the outer city wall of the Beijing city fortifications, which dates back to 1553, was demolished in the 1950s to make way for the new road system. It was rebuilt in 2005.
- The Gate of China in Beijing was demolished by the Chinese government in 1954 to make way for the expansion of Tiananmen Square. The Chairman Mao Memorial Hall occupies the former site of the site of the gate.
- A shrine dedicated to Wei Yan was destroyed by the Chinese government in 1968. A stone tablet which contained the record of his presence was lost after the demolition. The shrine was rebuilt in 1995.[43]
- During the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, many artifacts, monuments, and buildings belonging to the Four Olds were attacked and destroyed, including:
- White Horse Temple in Luoyang, the oldest Buddhist temple in China. Some historical artifacts are still missing.[44]
- Famen Buddhist Temple, Shaanxi.
- According to anthropologist Robert E. Murowchick, a quarter million tombs have been raided since the 1990s to rob the antiquities which lay beneath them. Murowchick points out that growing demand for antiquities from both domestic and international markets have encouraged the tomb raiding in China.[46]
- China's aggressive development has resulted in the destruction of more than 30,000 items listed by the state administration of cultural heritage, compiled from various archaeological and historic sites. One conservation campaigner tells that the rate of destruction is worse than during the Cultural Revolution. Destroyed heritage sites include the old town in Qianmen, and a section of the Great Wall of China.[48] Historical neighborhoods of Beijing and Nanjing were also razed.[49][50]
- The construction of the
- In 2016, the Chinese government ordered the demolition of historical housings in the Larung Gar Tibetan Buddhist institution.[53]
- By 2017, the old town of Kashgar had been destroyed by the Chinese government, and replaced by a significantly smaller and lower-quality "theme park" version of the site.[54]
- During the 2020 China floods, multiple historic bridges were destroyed, including the Lecheng Bridge and the Zhenhai Bridge.
India
- In 1024, during the reign of
- In 1323, when the siege to the Warangal Fortand destroyed it.
- Around 1200 CE, the most prominent seats of learning in Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khalji.
- The famous Martand Sun Temple, located in Jammu and Kashmir, was destroyed by the Muslim Sultan Sikandar Butshikan in the early 15th century, with demolition lasting a year.
- In 1565 CE, after the Bahamani Sultanates. What remains now are the ruins of Hampi.
- The Shiva temples of Puneshwar and Narayaneshwar in the city of Pune were destroyed by the invader army of Alauddin Khalji. Later a tomb of a Muslim preacher was erected at the sites.
- In 1664, Aurangzeb destroyed the Kashi Vishwanath Mandir and built the Gyanvapi Mosque over its walls. The remnants of the temple wall can still be seen today, as was depicted in the 19th century sketch by James Prinsep. Christian missionary Edwin Greaves (1909), of the London Missionary Society, described the site as follows: "At the back of the mosque and in continuation of it are some broken remains of what was probably the old Bishwanath Temple. It must have been a right noble building; there is nothing finer, in the way of architecture in the whole city, than this scrap. A few pillars inside the mosque appear to be very old also."[61]
- In 1696, the Madrasa Mahmud Gawan of Bidar was struck by lightning and a part of it was destroyed.
- On 6 December 1992, the Babri Masjid was destroyed by Hindu nationalists
- On 26 April 2016, the National Museum of Natural History, New Delhi and its valuable collection of animal fossils and stuffed animals was destroyed by fire.[62]
Indonesia
- a rebellion. What remained of the palace and fortifications around it was further looted by treasure hunters during the Dutch colonial era.[63]
- The original Gambir railway station. Demolished in 1988 due making new overpass line.
- In 2016 it was discovered that the wrecks of cruiser HNLMS Java, HNLMS De Ruyter, HMS Exeter, destroyer HNLMS Kortenaer, HMS Electra, HMS Encounter and USS Pope which are located in the Java Sea have been destroyed by illegal Chinese salvage operations.[64][65][66][67][68]
- The roof that covers the line 1 and 2 was demolished in 2019 due to expansion of the Jatinegara Station. The original station still remains.
Iran
- In 330 BC, Alexander the Great sent the main force of his army to Persepolis by the Royal Road and destroyed it.
- During the reign of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, Nahavand Castle was ruined hoping to find treasures beneath.
- In 861 AD, a sacred tree in Zoroastrianism called the Cypress of Kashmar was felled by orders of Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil.
Iraq
- The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, are believed to have been destroyed sometime after the 1st century AD. Their existence is not confirmed by archaeology, and there have been suggestions that the gardens were purely mythical.
- The Tamerlanein 1401, leading to the almost destruction.
- Several historical gates of Baghdad dating back to the 12th century were demolished by the occupying Allied and Ottoman forces during the First World War.[69]
- Since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, various archaeological sites and museums have been looted, including the ancient cities of Adab, Hatra and Isin where U.S. military protection was absent. The most prominent among them being the Iraq Museum where as much as 170,000 items were looted, including the 5,000 year old statues. In addition, several sites such as Babylon saw the destruction of its archaeology-rich subsoil as a result of military planning.
- During the Al-Askari Mosque was bombed by Sunni militants twice in the course of two years. In 2006, the Minaret of Anah and the statue of Al-Mansur were bombed by Shia militant and destroyed. All the aforementioned buildings were later reconstructed.
Al Askari Mosque - The Dair Mar Elia, and artifacts from the Mosul Museumwere also destroyed.
Israel and Palestine
- The First Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 587 BCE, and the Second Temple by the Roman Empire in 70 CE.
- Following the systematically damaged and destroyed. In particular, all but one of the thirty-five synagogues of the Jewish Quarter were destroyed.[71]
- Following Jerusalem's Old Town to make room for a plaza in front of the Western Wall.
- The Baptist Church of Jerusalem in Narkis Street was burned down by Jewish Nationalists in 1982,[72] and subjected to an arson attack in 2007.[73]
- In 1996, the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf began unauthorized construction on the Temple Mount, damaging ancient structures and weakening the stability of the Southern Wall. 300 truckloads of topsoil were excavated and dumped in the Kidron Valley without permitting proper archaeological care. (See Temple Mount Sifting Project).
- In 2015, in one of a series of attacks on churches in Israel and the West Bank by Jewish extremist groups, a former settler on the West Bank torched and set fire to the Church of the Multiplication in Tabgha on the shore of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel. This was the church where some Christians believe Jesus to have carried out his miracle of the feeding of the 5000.[74][75]
- Joseph's Tomb in the city of Nablus has been repeatedly vandalized, with Palestinian mobs burning and pillaging it immediately after the withdrawal of Israeli forces in 2000,[76] in 2003,[77] and in 2009, when the tomb was vandalized with graffiti including swastikas.[78] The tomb was vandalized again by Palestinian rioters in 2015 and 2022.[79][80][81]
- During the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, Israel damaged or destroyed more than 100 heritage sites in Gaza, including the Church of Saint Porphyrius, the Great Mosque of Gaza, and the Rafah Museum. This figure was reached by mid-November.[82][83]
- The Palestinian Arabs from the region.[84]
Japan
- The majority of Japanese castles were smashed and destroyed in the late 19th century in the Meiji restoration by the Japanese people and government in order to modernize and westernize Japan and break from their past feudal era of the Daimyo and Shoguns. It was only due to the 1964 Summer Olympics in Japan that concrete replicas of those castles were built for tourists.[89][90][91] The vast majority of castles in Japan today are new replicas made out of concrete.[92][93][94] In 1959 a concrete keep was built for Nagoya castle.[95]
- An earth wall with uneven stones made up the original base of Komine Castle before it collapsed in the 1970s due to rain. The Japanese local government repaired it with concrete and the entire section of the repaired wall was destroyed by the earthquake in 2011 due to using concrete. The Japanese government then begged for photographs of the original wall from local citizens as they had no idea what it looked like to repair it to its original state.[96]
- The destroyed Kumamoto Castle, Fushimi Castle, Hiroshima Castle were rebuilt with concrete after World War II and Tokyo Imperial Palace was rebuilt after World War II. Kinkaku-ji was rebuilt after a monk burned it down. Kyoto Imperial Palace was rebuilt in 1855.
- The Japanese used mostly concrete in 1934 to rebuild the Togetsukyo Bridge, unlike the original destroyed wooden version of the bridge from 836.[97]
- Japanese had to look at old paintings in order to find out what the Horyuji temple used to look like when they rebuilt it.[98]
- During the Meiji restoration's Shinbutsu bunri, tens of thousands of Japanese Buddhist religious statues and temples were smashed and destroyed.[99] Japan then closed and shut done tens of thousands of traditional old Shinto shrines in the Shrine Consolidation Policy and the Meiji government built the new modern 15 shrines of the Kenmu restoration as a political move to link the Meiji restoration to the Kenmu restoration for their new State Shinto cult.
- Japanese building company Kongō Gumi started using CAD software and concrete with wood to build temples after the Meiji restoration.[100]
- The Japanese built a Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (Kannon) statue out of concrete at a temple Ryozen Kannon in Kyoto which was constructed after World War II.[101]
- The Japanese in 1958 used concrete to rebuild the Kannon-do temple at the Senso-ji Temple in Toko after it was destroyed in 1945 in World War II.[102]
- Kumamoto Castle, Kumamoto: Seriously damaged in 1877 during the Siege of Kumamoto Castle, part of the larger Satsuma Rebellion; subsequently rebuilt in the 1960s, with further historical restoration work completed from 1998 to 2008. The castle was again seriously damaged during 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes, with the required rebuilding effort estimated to take several decades.[103][104]
- Shuri Castle, a palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom first built in the 14th century, was destroyed during the Battle of Okinawa in World War II. The Japanese forces had set up a defense perimeter which goes through the underground of the castle. U.S. military targeted this location by shelling with the battleship USS Mississippi (BB-41) for three days in May 1945. The castle burned down subsequently after. It was later reconstructed in the 1990s. On the morning of 31 October 2019, the main courtyard structures of the castle were again destroyed in a fire.
- The Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavilion) of Kyoto was burnt down by an arsonist in 1950, but was restored in 1955.[105]
- A large number of Important Cultural Property, libraries, museums, and other archives were damaged or destroyed by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
- Blood tax riots, the Japanese Meiji government brutally put down revolts by Japanese samurai angry that the traditional untouchable status of burakumin was legally revoked.
- Meiji Era, men of the samurai classes were forced to cut their hair short, effectively abandoning the chonmage.[106]: 149
Malaysia
- Candi Number 11 also known as Candi Sungai Batu Estate, a 1,200 year old ruin of a tomb-temple located in the Bujang Valley historical complex in Kedah was demolished in 2013 by housing developers who claimed not to have known the historical significance of the stone edifice.[107]
Maldives
- On 7 February 2012, in the aftermath of the coup in which Mohamed Nasheed was toppled as President, the National Museum was stormed by Islamists who destroyed Buddhist artifacts.[108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115] Most of Maldive's Buddhist physical history was obliterated.[116][117] Hindu artifacts were also targeted for obliteration and the actions have been compared to the attacks on the Buddhas by the Taliban.[118][119][120][121][122][123]
Myanmar
- Shwedagon Paya temple complex in Yangon, built c. 6th and 10th centuries AD, was severely damaged after Cyclone Nargis passed the region in 2008, which caused the worst natural disaster in the recorded history of Myanmar.[124]
Nepal
- The 7.8 Mw Patan Durbar Squares along with the tower of Dharahara, the temple of Changunarayan, some temples of the Pahupatinath complex, the main stupa of Boudhanath and the temples of Swayambhunath Stupa.[125][126]
Pakistan
- The Archaeological site of Harappa which dates back to 2600 BCE was heavily damaged during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Bricks from the ruins were brought out and used as track ballast during the construction of Lahore–Multan railway line.[127] Since the discovery, the site was constantly being damaged by the local farmers in the process of turning it into an agriculture land.[128]
- Sun Temple of Multan, a grand Hindu temple dedicated to the Sun deity built in 614 CE or earlier, was destroyed in the late 10th century by Ismaili rulers and a mosque was built atop it, which was also destroyed in the 11th century by Mahmud of Ghazni. The ruins of the temple exist in modern day Multan, Pakistan.
- Prahladpuri Temple, Multan, was destroyed by a Muslim mob in 1992 in the aftermath of Babri mosque destruction in neighboring India.
- Shaheed Ganj Mosque in Lahore was demolished by the Sikhs in 1935. Sikhs had been occupying the public square near the mosque since the capture of Lahore by Bhangi Misl in the 18th century. The conflict concerning the mosque had heightened during the colonial era, as Muslims were forbidden to pray there by the mosque administration. The demolishing of the mosque had led to the Muslims protesters holding marches toward the mosque, which was dispersed by the police opening fire on them.[129]
- Looters and the Buddha's face, were demolished by the Taliban.
[133][134][135][136] The government was criticized for doing nothing to safeguard the statue after the initial attempt at destroying the Buddha, which did not cause permanent harm, and when the second attack took place on the statue the feet, shoulders, and face were demolished.[137] A rehabilitation attempt on the Buddha was made by Luca Olivieri and a group from Italy.[138][139]
Philippines
- During the Spanish Colonization of the Philippine islands, the Spanish observed native structures called Kota or citadels made of large wooden houses or lime stones which made up the ancient cosmopolitan city-states of Luzon, Visayas and even in Mindanao.
- The City of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi assigned his nephew, Juan de Salcedo, to "pacify" Cainta. After travelling several days upriver, Salcedo lay siege to the city, and eventually found a weak spot on the wall. The final Spanish attack over 400 residents of Cainta killed including their leader Gat Maitan.[140]
- Martin de Goiti ordered his men to set the city in fire.[143]
- During the Battle of Manila in 1945, most of the city's unique architecture was destroyed. After the battle, in the business district, only two buildings dating to before the war remained intact, and these buildings' plumbing had been looted.[144] After the war ended, much of Manila was rebuilt in a modernist style, and thus the original architectural heritage of the city is largely lost.
- Manila Jai Alai Building, a historic jai alai venue demolished in 2000 which was opposed by heritage conservationists.[145][146] The demolition led to the passage of the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009.[147]
- Several historic buildings were damaged or destroyed during the 2013 Bohol earthquake, including the Loboc Church, the Loon Church, the Maribojoc Church and the Baclayon Church.
- The Philippine Su Kuang Institute building was demolished in 2017 after the owners sold the building to a private developer within the same year. The 1940s was the last
Saudi Arabia
- Various mosques and other historic sites, especially those relating to early Islam, have been destroyed in Saudi Arabia. Apart from early Islamic sites, other buildings such as the Mecca Royal Hotel Clock Tower.
Singapore
- The Singapore Stone was blown up in 1843 to make way for Fort Fullerton. One fragment survives and is currently displayed at the National Museum of Singapore. It has been designated as a national treasure of Singapore.
South Korea
- Hwangnyongsa, a massive Buddhist temple in Gyeongju which dates back to the 7th century, was burned down by the Mongolians during their invasion in 1238.
- Hundreds of Buddhist monasteries were shut down or destroyed during the Joseon period as a part of anti-Buddhism policy. In 1407, during the reign of Taejong, the regulations were imposed on the number of Buddhist temples which limited to 88.[149] Sejong the Great further reduced the number to 36.[150][149] Many Buddhist statues were also destroyed during the reign of Jungjong(1506–1544).
- Namdaemun was damaged by fire caused by arson in 2008. It reopened in 2013.
- In March 2021, a main hall of the historic Naejangsan temple in Jeongeup, was burned into ashes by a 53-year-old monk arsonist.
Sri Lanka
- The Palace of King Parakramabahu I of Polonnaruwa was set into fire by the Kalinga Magha lead Indian invaders in the 11th century. The ruins and the effect of the fire is still visible.[151]
- The Library of Jaffna, which had over 97,000 manuscripts, was burnedin 1981, as a part of the Sri Lankan war.
Syria
- The Aleppo Codex, the authoritative Hebrew Bible text, was partially destroyed during anti-Jewish riots in Syria in 1947.
- Much of Syrian Civil War. Destroyed buildings include the minaret of the Great Mosque of Aleppo and the Al-Madina Souq, while others such as Krak des Chevaliers were damaged.[152]
- Khusruwiyah Mosque (Husrev Mosque).[153]
- The Arch of Triumph, and other sites in Palmyra. The group also destroyed the Monastery of St. Elian, the Armenian Genocide Memorial Church, and several ancient sculptures in the city of Raqqa.
- During the Turkish military operation in Afrin in 2018, Turkish shelling seriously damaged the ancient temple of Ain Dara in Afrin.[154][155]
Thailand
In June 1932 in Siam—now Thailand—a revolution overthrew 700 years of absolute monarchy. A political structure based on a constitution that required non-royal governments elected by the people, was introduced. On 10 December 1936, the first post-revolution prime minister, Phraya Phahon, held a small ceremony to embed a small plaque the size of a dinner plate into the ground at the spot, in front of Bangkok's Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall, where he had first announced the end of the absolute monarchy.[156] The inscription on it read: "Here on 24 June 1932 at dawn, the People's Party proclaimed a constitution for the country's advancement."[157]
Eighty years later, sometime between 2–8 April 2017, the democracy plaque was replaced by a new plaque. Its message read: "To love and respect the Buddhist trinity, one's own state, one's own family, and to have a heart faithful to your monarch, will bring prosperity to the country". Prime Minister
On 20 September 2020, a new updated version of the plaque was installed by democracy activists at Sanam Luang. Within a day of its installation it was removed by persons unknown.[159]
Turkey
- The Library of Antioch was ordered destroyed by the Roman Emperor Jovian in 363 AD.
- The Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was destroyed by arson in 356 BC. It was later rebuilt, but was damaged in a raid by Goths in 268 AD. Its stones were subsequently used in other buildings. A few fragments of the structure still survive in situ.
- The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, another Wonder of the Ancient World, was destroyed by a series of earthquakes between the 12th and 15th centuries. Most of the remaining marble blocks were burnt into lime, but some were used in the construction of Bodrum Castle by the Knights Hospitaller, where they can still be seen today. The only other surviving remains of the mausoleum are some foundations in situ, a few sculptures in the British Museum, and some marble blocks which were used to build a dockyard in Malta's Grand Harbour
- Port city of Great fire of Smyrna in the aftermath of the Greco-Turkish war.
- The abandonment and confiscation of Armenian monasteries and cultural heritage in places such as Ani contributed to their eventual destruction. In 1974, UNESCO stated that after 1923, out of 913 Armenian historical monuments left in Eastern Turkey, 464 had vanished completely, 252 were in ruins, and 197 needed repair.[160] In 2011, there were 34 Armenian churches functioning in Turkey, primarily in Istanbul.[161]
Turkmenistan
- The Church of the Transfiguration in Ashgabat was destroyed in 1932 by the Soviet Government.
- The country's only Bahá'í Temple, in Ashgabat (called Ishqabad by its followers) which was completed in 1908 was later destroyed in 1962 after being damaged in the 1948 Earthquake.[162]
Europe
Albania
- war memorialin its place. Many religious sites have also been destroyed over the years.
Austria
- Second World War. Incendiary bombs and shelling had set the roof on fire, and the cathedral's original larch girders, said to be made from an entire forest of larches, were destroyed, as were the Rollinger choir stalls, carved in 1487. The building was rebuilt soon after the war.[163]
Belgium
- The Palace of Coudenberg in Brusselsburned down in 1731 and its ruins were demolished half a century later.
- Many churches and abbeys were demolished during the St. Lambert's Cathedral in Liège, the St. Donatian's Cathedral and Eekhout Abbey in Bruges, Florennes Abbey in Florennes, and St. Michael's Abbey in Antwerp.
- The Herkenrode Abbey in Hasselt survived the French Revolution, but subsequently fell into disrepair. In 1826 a fire destroyed much of the church, and the remaining ruins were demolished in 1844.
- On 25 August 1914, during World War I, the university library of Leuven was destroyed by the Germans against the backdrop of other war crimes. 230,000 volumes were lost, including medieval and Renaissance manuscripts and more than 1,000 incunabula. After the war, a new library was built. During World War II, the new building was again set on fire and nearly a million books were lost.
- During World War I, the city of Ypres was destroyed, including its Town Hall and Cloth Hall. These monuments were later rebuilt.
- The declared UNESCO World Heritagein 2000.
- neo-Gothiccastle in Celles was demolished in 2016-17.
- The Valemprez farm, a 13th century farmhouse rebuilt in the 18th century in Dottignies, was demolished in 2008[164]
Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Through the course of the Bosnian War, numerous sites of cultural and religious heritage were destroyed:
- In the Bosnian War during the Siege of Sarajevo, culturcide was committed by Army of Republika Srpska. The National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina was specifically targeted and besieged by cannons positioned all around the city and it was destroyed in the fire, along with 80 percent of its contents. Some 3 million books destroyed, along with hundreds of original documents from the Ottoman Empire and the Austro-Hungarian monarchy.[165]
- Muslim heritage sites suffered the most, with 614 mosques and several other religious facilities, schools, and institutions destroyed by the authorities of the Republic of Srpska as a part of the ethnic cleansing campaign against the local Muslim populations. The most well known among them include Mehmed Pasha Kukavica Mosque, Arnaudija Mosque, and Ferhat Pasha Mosque. A substantial proportion of these mosques date back to the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarianera. Many of them, such as the Ferhadija and Arnaudija mosques, have since been rebuilt with financial and professional assistance from Turkey.
- The Ottoman clock tower of Banja Luka Banjalučka sahat-kula was also destroyed during the Bosnian War, in line with efforts to destroy all Ottoman heritage sites in the region.[166][167][168][169]
- Roman Catholic sites also suffered with more than 269 churches being destroyed, which was associated with the killings of Bosnian Croats, mostly by Bosnian Serbs.[170][171][172]
- As many as 125[173][174] Serbian Orthodox religious buildings were destroyed in the war, such as the 13th-century Sase Monastery, Vozuća Monastery, and others.
- Parts of the old city of Mostar, including the Stari Most, were destroyed by the Croatian Defence Council during the war. The Stari Most has been rebuilt. Another symbol of the city, the monumental Serbian Orthodox Cathedral of the Holy Trinity was shelled, set afire, and finally blown up by the local Croat forces.[175][176][177] The reconstruction of the church is ongoing.[178][179]
Croatia
- In the Independent State of Croatia 450 Serb Orthodox churches and monasteries were destroyed along with monumental iconostasis, thousands of icons and number of manuscripts and books which included archival books about births, weddings and deaths.[180][181] The destroyed ritual items were of great cultural and historical importance and beauty.[180]
- War damage of the Serbian Orthodox churches were badly damaged or destroyed. Valuable inventories were looted from over 100 churches. The most drastic example of destruction of cultural monuments, art objects, and artifacts took place in Vukovar. After the occupation of the devastated city by the Yugoslav Army and Serbian paramilitary forces, portable cultural property was removed from shelters and museums in Vukovar to museums and archives in Serbia.[182]
- Church of St. Nicholas, Karlovac, destroyed between 1991 and 1993. Renovated in 2007.
- Medieval Dragović monastery, Vrlika, destroyed in 1995. Reestablished in 2004.
- After Croatia gained independence, about 3,000 memorials dedicated to the anti-fascist resistance and the victims of fascism were destroyed.[184]
- In September 1991, Jasenovac Concentration Camp and vandalized the museum building, while exhibitions and documentation were destroyed, damaged and looted.[185]
Cyprus
- Following Cypriot intercommunal violence (which ultimately led to the 1974 Cypriot coup d'état and the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus), many Ottoman era Mosques were left desolate or destroyed after the Turkish Cypriots left.[186]
Czech Republic
- The Old Town Hall in Prague was severely damaged by fire during the Prague uprising of 1945. The chamber where George of Poděbrady was elected King of Bohemia was devastated; the town hall's bell, the oldest in Bohemia, dating from 1313, was melted; and the city archives, comprising 70,000 volumes (most of which were transported to the outskirts of Prague due to the fear of the bombardment),[187] as well as historically priceless manuscripts, were destroyed.[188]
- The Vinohrady Synagogue (one of Europe's largest Synagogues) was destroyed during the Bombing of Prague.
Denmark
- Copenhagen Fire of 1728, where a great part of medieval Copenhagen vanished.
- Christiansborg Palace, main residence of the Danish Kings, destroyed by fire in 1794.
- Copenhagen Fire of 1795, where a great part of medieval and renaissance Copenhagen vanished.
- Hirschholm Palace, summer residence of the Danish Kings, demolished in 1809–1813 after it stood empty after its role in the affair between Johann Friedrich Struensee and Queen Caroline Matilda of Great Britain in the 1770s.
- The fire in 16 April 2024.[189]
Estonia
- During Soviet bombing raids. Only 3 buildings, including the town hall, are still remaining.
France
- During the stained glass windows, and archaeological artefacts. The most famous lost object was the original manuscript of the Hortus deliciarum.
- On 23 May 1871, the Tuileries Palace, which had been the usual Parisian residence of French monarchs, was almost entirely gutted in a fire set by members of the Paris Commune, leaving only the stone shell. It was subsequently demolished in 1883.
- In 1914, First World War. The cathedral was rebuilt after the war.
- The 1978 Palace of Versailles bombing severely damaged parts of the Palace of Versailles, including several priceless pieces of art. The palace was rebuilt and reopened to the public within four years.
- On 15 April 2019, the roof of the restoration, though an investigation is ongoing.[192]
Germany
- Many historically and architecturally significant buildings were destroyed or severely damaged during Dresden Frauenkirche, Berlin Cathedral, and Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. Several have been rebuilt since 1990 (including all those mentioned except Monbijou Palace and Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church).
- The Paulinerkirche was a medieval church from 1231 in Leipzig. The church survived the war practically unscathed but was dynamited in 1968 during the communist regime of East Germany. After the reunification of Germany, a new building in a contemporary style, the Paulinum, was built on the site.
- The building housing the Historical Archive of the City of Cologne collapsed on 3 March 2009 during an underground railway line construction.
- The Immerath was demolished on 9 January 2018 as part of the demolition of the entire village to make way for an expansion of the Garzweiler surface mine. The church had been added to the list of heritage monuments in Erkelenz on 14 May 1985.[193]
- In October 2020, artworks displayed at various museums at
Greece
- The Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was destroyed in the 226 BC Rhodes earthquake, and its remains were destroyed in the 7th century AD while Rhodes was under Arab rule. In December 2015, a group of European architects announced plans to build a modern Colossus where the original once stood.
- The Statue of Zeus at Olympia, also a Wonder of the Ancient World, was destroyed around the 5th century CE, although it is not known exactly when or how.
- The Parthenon was extensively damaged in 1687 in the Morean theatre of the Great Turkish War (1683–1699). The Ottoman army fortified the Acropolis of Athens and used the Parthenon as a gunpowder magazine and a shelter for members of the local Turkish community. On 26 September, a Venetian mortar round blew up the magazine, and the explosion blew out the building's central portion. About three hundred people were killed in the explosion, which caused fires that burned until the following day and consumed many homes.[195][196] The Parthenon was extensively and permanently damaged when Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin and ambassador to the Ottoman Empire (occupiers of Greece in the early 19th century), who admired the Parthenon's extensive collection of ancient marble sculptures, began extracting and expatriating them to Britain in 1801. More damage to the site's heritage came after independence, when all Medieval and Ottoman features of the Acropolis (most notably the Frankish Tower) were destroyed by Heinrich Schliemann in a project to rid the site of all post-Classical influence.
Hungary
(Destroyed buildings of Budapest and Destroyed buildings of Hungary, both in Hungarian)
- Numerous historical buildings in Chain Bridge, and the Sándor Palace. These three have now been rebuilt.
Ireland
- During the Battle of Dublin at the beginning of the Irish Civil War in 1922, munitions were stored at the Four Courts building, which housed 1,000 years of Irish records in the Public Record Office. Under circumstances that are disputed, the munitions exploded, destroying much of Ireland's historical record.
- The Irish Republican Army followed a policy of deliberate destruction of Irish country houses (1919–1923).
Italy
- Many historic gardens and villas were destroyed in Rome in the 19th century, including Villa Ludovisi, Villa Negroni and Villa Astalli;
- Tower of Paul III and Convent of Aracoeli, demolished to make room for the Victor Emmanuel Monument.
- Various historic buildings were demolished in the 19th and 20th centuries to make way for railways, industrial areas, or other modern buildings. Examples include the Castello di Villagonia and the Real Cittadella in Sicily.
- Many historic buildings in Italy were destroyed or damaged during World War II. These include the monastery of Monte Cassino, which was destroyed during the Battle of Monte Cassino but was rebuilt after the war.
- Several historic buildings, books, paintings, and sculptures were destroyed during the Florence Flood of 1966. Also, Venice was affected during the flood of 1966.
- Several churches and other heritage sites were damaged or destroyed during earthquakes such as the 1997 Umbria and Marche earthquake, the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake, and the August 2016 Central Italy earthquake.
Kosovo
During the Yugoslavia period there was destruction of Albanian heritage endorsed by the state.
During World War II, a number of Serbian Orthodox religious sites were damaged or destroyed.[197] During the 1968 and 1981 protests, Serbian Orthodox religious sites were the target of vandalism, that continued during the 1980s.[197] NATO bombing in March–June 1999 resulted in some accidental damages to churches and a mosque. Revenge attacks against Serbian religious sites commenced following the conflict and the return of hundreds of thousands of Kosovo Albanian refugees to their homes.[206] Serbian cultural sites in Kosovo were systematically destroyed in the aftermath of the Kosovo War[207][208][209][210] and 2004 ethnic violence.[211][212] According to the International Center for Transitional Justice this includes 155 destroyed Serbian Orthodox churches and monasteries as well as Medieval Monuments in Kosovo, which were inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger.[213][214]
Malta
- Parts of the megalithic Xagħra Stone Circle in Gozo were deliberately destroyed in around 1834–1835 and its megaliths were broken down to form masonry which was used in the construction of a nearby farmhouse. The site was subsequently forgotten for over a century before being rediscovered in the late 20th century.[215]
- A number of buildings of historical or architectural importance which had been included on the Antiquities List[216] were destroyed by aerial bombardment during World War II, including Auberge d'Auvergne, Auberge de France and the Slaves' Prison in Valletta,[217] the Clock Tower,[218] Auberge d'Allemagne[219] and Auberge d'Italie[220] in Birgu, and two out of three megalithic temples at Kordin.[221][222] Others such as Fort Manoel also suffered severe damage, but were rebuilt after the war.[223]
- Other buildings which were not included on the Antiquities List but which had significant cultural importance were also destroyed during the war. The most notable of these was the Royal Opera House in Valletta, which is considered as "one of the major architectural and cultural projects undertaken by the British" by the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage.[224]
- The Gourgion Tower in Xewkija, which was included on the Antiquities List, was demolished by American forces in 1943 to make way for an airfield. Many of its inscriptions and decorated stones were retrieved and they are now in storage at Heritage Malta.[225]
- Palazzo Fremaux, a building included on the Antiquities List and which was scheduled as a Grade 2 property, was gradually demolished between 1990 and 2003. The demolition was condemned by local residents, the local government and non-governmental organizations.[226][227]
- The Azure Window, a 28-metre-tall (92 ft) limestone natural arch on the island of Gozo in Malta. It was located in Dwejra Bay in the limits of San Lawrenz, close to the Inland Sea and the Fungus Rock. It was one of Malta's major tourist attractions. The arch, together with other natural features in the area of Dwejra, is featured in a number of international films and other media representations. The formation was anchored on the east end by the seaside cliff, arching over open water, to be anchored to a free standing pillar in the sea to the west of the cliff. It was created when two limestone sea caves collapsed. Following years of natural erosion causing parts of the arch to fall into the sea, the arch and free standing pillar collapsed completely during a storm in March 2017.
- Villa St Ignatius, a 19th-century villa with historical and architectural significance,[228] was partially demolished in late 2017. This was condemned by numerous non-governmental organizations and other entities.[229]
Netherlands
- The German bombing of Rotterdam that took place on 14 May 1940, also known as the Rotterdam Blitz, decimated most of the historical city center of the Dutch city of Rotterdam, which at the time was the second-largest city in the country. During the bombing, hundreds of years worth of architecture and artwork were destroyed within hours.
- De Noord, a tower mill which had survived the Rotterdam Blitz, suffered a fire in July 1954 and was demolished soon after.[230]
- Kareol, a huge Art Deco building in Aerdenhout. It was built in 1908-1911. It was the largest house being built by a private owner in The Netherlands in the 20th century. It was demolished in 1979.
- Kolleg St. Ludwig, a friary in Vlodrop. It was demolished in 2015.
Norway
- From 1992 to 1995, members of the Christian churches.[231]By 1996, there had been at least 50 attacks.
Poland
- destroyed by Nazi Germanyin 1944, and later rebuilt from the 1950s to 1980s.
Portugal
- Lisbon was almost destroyed during the 1755 Lisbon earthquake and subsequent fire and tsunami.
- A small section of the 19th-century quarter Chiado was destroyed by fire on 25 August 1988. The eighteen damaged buildings were rebuilt in the following 20 years.
Romania
- The 60-meter-high tower of Rotbav fortified church, dating back to the 13th century, collapsed on 20 February 2016.[232][233]
- Many historical buildings were demolished to construct the Centrul Civic in Bucharest.
- Many old towns of different cities were destroyed partially or completely because of communist urban planning. Old towns of cities like Bacău, Bârlad, Câmpina, Galați, Orșova, Pitești, Ploiești, Râmnicu Vâlcea, and Suceava were completely demolished.
- The 1989 fire of the Central University Library in Bucharest destroyed over 500,000 books and 3,700 manuscripts, including manuscripts of famous Romanian writings, such as many of Mircea Eliade's novel manuscripts.
Russia
- In Moscow alone losses of 1917–2006 are estimated at over 640 notable buildings (including 150 to 200 listed buildings, out of a total inventory of 3,500) – some disappeared completely, others were replaced with concrete replicas.
- President Boris Yeltsin ordered the shelling of the White House, seat of the Russian government, during his 1993 consolidation of power, causing a large fire and considerable damage to the top floors.
- 'Mephistopheles', figure on a St Petersburg building on Lakhtinksaya Street known as the House with Mephistopheles, smashed by a fundamentalist Orthodox group in 2015.[235][236][237]
- The original buildings of Metrowagonmash plant, founded by Savva Mamontov in 1897 and built in Russian Gothic style, were demolished between 2016 and 2019 to make way for block houses.
Serbia
- A number of culturally and historically important buildings were destroyed in Old Post Office, Sephard synagogue, and a number of other buildings.
- The Yugoslav Ministry of Defence building, a cultural monument,[241] was partially destroyed during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999. NATO bombing also resulted in the damaging of medieval monuments, such as Gračanica Monastery, the Patriarchate of Peć and the Visoki Dečani, which are on the UNESCO's World Heritage list today.[242] Furthermore, 19 hospitals and 20 health centers were damaged, including the University Hospital Center Dr Dragiša Mišović, which was founded in 1922.[243][244] The Avala Tower, one of the most iconic symbols of the Serbian capital, was destroyed during the bombing.[245]
Slovenia
- Partisan forces or their successors destroyed approximately 100[246] castles and manors during and after the Second World War.[247] Examples include Ajman Manor, Belnek Castle, Boštanj Castle, Brdo Castle, Čušperk Castle, Dol Mansion, Dolena Castle, Gracar Castle, Haasberg Castle, Klevevž Castle, Kolovec Castle, Križ Castle, Krupa Castle, Mokronog Castle, Pogonik Castle, Radelstein Castle, Soteska Castle, Špitalič Manor, Turn Castle, and Volčji Potok Manor.
- An Allied raid heavily damaged Žužemberk Castle during the Second World War.
- Partisan forces or their successors destroyed many churches during and after the Second World War. Examples include the churches in Ajbelj, Gabrje, Hinje, Koče, Kočevska Reka, Morava, Plešivica, Srobotnik pri Velikih Laščah, Stari Log, Trava, Velika Račna, Zafara, and Žužemberk.
- A German raid during the Second World War destroyed the church in Dragatuš.
- Allied raids destroyed churches during the Second World War. Examples include the church in Dvor and Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Ptuj.
Soviet Union
- During February–March 1944, the Soviet conducted the Nakh languagemanuscripts were almost destroyed.
- The native detatarizationcampaign to continue the ethnic cleansing campaign, all the Tatar placenames being replaced with Russian ones, and the Muslim graveyards and religious objects were destroyed or converted into secular places.
- With the change in values imposed by communist ideology, the tradition of preservation was broken. Independent preservation societies, even those that defended only secular landmarks such as Moscow-based OIRU were disbanded by the end of the 1920s. A new anti-religious campaign, launched in 1929, coincided with collectivization of peasants; destruction of churches in the cities peaked around 1932. Several churches were demolished, including the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow and St. Michael's Cathedral in Izhevsk. Both of these were rebuilt in the 1990s and 2000s.
- In 1959 Nikita Khrushchev launched his anti-religious campaign. By 1964 over 10 thousand churches out of 20 thousand were shut down (mostly in rural areas) and many were demolished. Of 58 monasteries and convents operating in 1959, only sixteen remained by 1964; of Moscow's fifty churches operating in 1959, thirty were closed and six demolished.
Spain
- Several monuments demolished in Calatayud: the church of Convent of Dominicos of San Pedro Mártir (1856), Convent of Trinidad (1856), Church of Santiago (1863), Church of San Torcuato and Santa Lucía (1869) and Church of San Miguel (1871).[248]
- The leaning Torre Nueva in Zaragoza was demolished in 1892 amidst fears that it would topple.[248]
- Palacio de los Lasso de Castilla, was 15th century palace in Madrid which became the palace or residence of the Catholic Monarchs. It was demolished during the mid 19th century.
- Churches, monasteries, convents and libraries were destroyed during the Spanish Civil War.[249]
- Muxia, was destroyed by lightning.[250]
- Iglesia de San Pío X, a church located in Todoque, Canary Islands, was destroyed by the 2021 Cumbre Vieja volcanic eruption on 26 September 2021.[251]
Sweden
- Tre Kronor, main residence of the Swedish Kings, destroyed by fire in 1697. Several important documents of the history of Sweden were lost in the fire.
- Klarakvarteren, a part of Stockholm from the 17th century. It was demolished in the 1960–70.
- The city of Norrköping was razed in 1719 by Russians. It was reconstructed with grid pattern streets and using the surviving Johannesborg fort as a quarry.
Switzerland
- The city of Basel was devastated by the 1356 Basel earthquake.
- Pfäfers Abbey was destroyed in 1665 by fire.
- The city of Sion with Majoria and Tourbillon castles was destroyed by fire in 1788.
- Disentis Abbey was destroyed by fire in 1799 with its library and archives.
- The Kapellbrücke (Chapel Bridge) in Luzern (Lucerne) was substantially destroyed in 1993 by fire.
Ukraine
Ukrainian cultural heritage during the 2022 Russian invasion
United Kingdom
North AmericaBelize
Canada
Guatemala
Haiti
Honduras
United States
OceaniaAustralia
New Zealand
South AmericaArgentina
Brazil
Uruguay
Venezuela
See also
References
Sources
Further reading
ISBN 81-85990-49-2 External links
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