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Typologies of Cultural Landscapes
Cultural landscapes are defined by the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO as cultural properties and represent the “combined works of nature and of man”. It denotes “a diversity of manifestations of the interaction between humankind and its natural environment” (UNESCO, 2012).
From the definition, it can be seen that the primary emphasis in cultural landscapes has been on human beings that they have always played a major role in creating the multi-faceted characters of cultural landscapes. The Committee also identified three broad categories of world heritage cultural landscapes to explicitly illustrate the diverse interactions between humans and nature.
Category I: Clearly Defined Landscape Designed and Created Intentionally by Man
The first category is the “clearly defined landscape designed and created intentionally by man”. It often features with parks and gardens which have a strong aesthetic focus in their design and construction, which are often (but not always) associated with religious or other monumental buildings and ensembles. Examples are:
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)
Kew Gardens, located in the London suburb of Richmond, was created by internationally renowned landscape architects Bridgeman, Kent, Chambers, Capability Brown and Nesfield. Kew Gardens was created to house the most comprehensive collection of botanic specimens known on earth, and therefore, opened an important avenue for horticulture and scientific research. The architectural and landscape design of Kew Gardens clearly expressed the aesthetic sense and ideals of English landscape garden in the 18th-20th centuries.
Source: Francesco Bandarin
Dragon Garden (Hong Kong)
The Dragon Garden is an 8-hectare heritage garden in Hong Kong. Through careful consideration of spatial organisation, the landscape design of the garden demonstrates a perfect integration of man-made features with the existing surroundings. It is a fine example of designed landscape integrated with Chinese Renaissance architecture that embraces Chinese Fung Shui protocol, cosmogonic beliefs, western construction techniques as well as the environmental sustainability principles in its design and construction.
Category II: Organically Evolved Landscape
The second category is the “Organically Evolved Landscape” (either relic or continuing). It refers to the landscapes that have developed into their present forms through human-induced evolution (e.g. patterns of settlement, traditional lifeway, land use, and resource exploitation). Such landscapes reflect the process of evolution in their form and component features. They fall into two sub-categories:
A relict (or fossil) landscape is one in which an evolutionary process came to an end at some time in the past, either abruptly or over a period. Its significant distinguishing features are, however, still visible in material form (UNESCO, 2012). Examples are:
Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley (Afghanistan)
The site was inscribed on the world heritage list in 2003, with archaeological evidences of artistic and religious development. Ancient remains such as the foundations of Buddhist stupa, fragments of ancient mural and sculptures, have revealed significant development of the Kingdom of Bamiyan from the 1st to 13th centuries CE.
Source: Roland Lin
Mount Davis Battery (Hong Kong)
Mount Davis Battery, situated on the hilltop safeguarding the western entrance of the Victoria Harbour, is one of the most intact historic military sites in Hong Kong built by the British for coastal defence. The completeness of the site including the site layout, military structures, connection pathways and use of topography are evidential of the typical British utilitarian military architecture and landscape designed for military function. It also testifies the evolution of weaponry technology as well as the British colonial coastal defense strategies between two world wars.
A continuing landscape is one which retains an active social role in contemporary society closely associated with the traditional way of life, and in which the evolutionary process is still in progress. At the same time it exhibits significant material evidence of its evolution over time (UNESCO, 2012). Examples are:
Viñales Valley (Cuba)
The valley is an outstanding karst landscape found in the western Cuban province of Pinar del Rio where traditional methods of agriculture for tobacco cultivation have survived unchanged for several centuries. The agricultural usage pattern, rich vernacular tradition in various forms such as architecture, crafts, and music illustrate the cultural development of Cuba and the islands of the Caribbean. Cubans identify strongly with this “living landscape” because of its natural beauty, and its historical and cultural importance.
Long Valley (Hong Kong)
Located at the urban fringe of Sheung Shui in Northern part of the New Territories, Long Valley is the largest piece of active, low-lying, contiguous agricultural land in Hong Kong. The significance of Long Valley is embodied in the setting, natural features, resources of land and cultural context in association with the indigenous settlement and farming tradition in Hong Kong. It represents a typical local example of traditional agricultural landscape in the New Territories for centuries cultivated by indigenous and tenant farming communities (Chick, 2011).
Category III: Associative Landscape
The third category is the “associative landscape” which embraces the spiritual value, traditional features and cultural identity of the local people. The inclusion of such landscapes on the World Heritage List is justifiable by virtue of the powerful religious, artistic or cultural associations of the natural element rather than material cultural evidence, which may be insignificant or even absent (UNESCO, 2012).
Much of the religious sites and assorted sacred places fall into this category. It differs from the “organically evolved landscape” in the way that its significance is centred on our spiritual connection with nature, which can be largely reflected upon a series of vistas rather than the physical attributes. Examples are:
Tongariro National Park (New Zealand)
Tongariro National Park was the first cultural landscape property being inscribed on the World Heritage List due to its strong and long association of volcanic features with intangible Maori cultural and spiritual beliefs. The associations are expressed through notable features such as the high geophysical integrity with spectacular landscapes and important ecosystems, and their direct and tangible association with living traditions, ideas and beliefs representative of the culture of Ngati Tuwharetoa.
Lion Rock Mountain (Hong Kong)
The first generations of public housing estates were built at the feet of Lion Rock Mountain which inhabited most local working class since the 1950s. The harsh living conditions generated a communal assiduous spirit among the neighbourhood which has a tremendous social and economic influence to the society underpinning the speedy development of Hong Kong in the subsequent decades. Lion Rock Mountain, a natural geographic mountain feature in the immediate area, has then been associated with the resilience character of the working class by local Hong Kong community over time (Yau, 2018).
