UNESCO judges World Heritage nominations against a single set of ten selection criteria

Background

To be included on the World Heritage List, a site must be of outstanding universal value and meet at least one out of ten selection criteria.
Criterion (i) asks a site to represent a masterpiece of human creative genius.
Criterion (iii) covers sites that bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization.
Criterion (vi) covers sites directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas or with beliefs, or with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance.
Criterion (vii) covers superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance.
Criterion (x) covers the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value.
Until the end of 2004 sites were selected on the basis of six cultural and four natural criteria; the revised Operational Guidelines brought them together as a single set of ten.
The protection, management, authenticity and integrity of properties are also important considerations.