Japan signed the convention in June 1992 and has six cultural and two natural properties on the list: the Buddhist monuments in the area around the temple Horyuji (Nara Prefecture), Himeji Castle (Hyogo Prefecture), the ancient cedar forests of Yakushima Island (Kagoshima Prefecture), the beech forests of the Shirakami Mountains (Aomori and Akita Prefectures), historic monuments of ancient Kyoto, the historic villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama (Gifu and Toyama Prefectures), and the Atomic-Bomb Dome and Itsukushima Shrine in Hiroshima Prefecture.

A ninth property from Japan is expected to be added to the heritage list at the Kyoto session this year: the historic monuments of ancient Nara.

Buddhist Monuments in the Horyuji Area
Horyuji is a Buddhist temple that was built in the early seventh century by Prince Shotoku, who played a big role in establishing Buddhism in Japan. The temple consists of several wooden buildings--some of which are the oldest wooden structures standing in the world today. In order to preserve them, they've been dismantled and rebuilt every few hundred years. The temple holds a valuable collection of Buddhist art, including masterpieces from the Asuka period (593 to 710).

Himeji-jo
Himeji-jo (Himeji Castle) is sometimes called the "white heron castle" because of its majestic, white appearance. It was first built in the mid-fourteenth century and rebuilt and expanded at the turn of the seventeenth century. The castle has survived numerous natural disasters, including the Great Hanshin Earthquake of January 1995, over its 400-year history.

Yakushima
Yakushima is a mountainous, 500-square-kilometer (190-square-mile) island off the southern coast of Kyushu. At the center of the island is the 1,935-meter Mt. Miyanoura, the highest peak in the Kyushu district. The island gets a lot of rainfall--anywhere from 400 to 1,000 centimeters (160 to 390 inches) a year. Because of the frequent rains and mountainous terrain, the island has very unique plants. The most famous is a type of giant cedar called the yakusugi; these cedars are some of the oldest trees on the planet.

Shirakami Sanchi
The Shirakami Sanchi (Mountains) stretch for almost 1,300 square kilometers along the border of Aomori and Akita Prefectures in northern Japan. The 170-square-kilometer (66-square-mile) beech forest is one of the world's largest and is the home of the several rare and protected animal species, including the golden eagle and black woodpecker.

Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto
The historic monuments of ancient Kyoto are located in what are today the cities of Kyoto, Uji, and Otsu. Heiankyo--Kyoto's ancient name--became the nation's capital in 794 and remained so for over a thousand years until 1868. Modeled after the capital of Tang China, it prospered as the center of national culture under many emperors and shoguns. Countless Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines were built in the city over the years, and it's a treasure house of priceless cultural assets.

Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama
The historic villages in the Shirakawa-go district in Gifu Prefecture and Gokayama district in Toyama Prefecture are well known for their historical gassho-zukuri (thatched-roof) farmhouses. The region gets a lot of snow in winter, so the roofs are tall and steep to allow snow to slide off and prevent the house from being crushed. These large farmhouses are divided into three to four levels, some of which were used to raise silkworms or make hand-molded paper during the winter months.

Hiroshima Peace Memorial
The Atomic Bomb Dome in the city of Hiroshima is what remains of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall after the world's first atomic bomb to be used in armed conflict was dropped near it on August 6, 1945. Originally built in 1915, the building has become a silent witness to the tragedy of war and an enduring symbol of peace.

Itsukushima Shinto Shrine
Itsukushima Shrine is built along the shore on Miyajima, a sacred island in Hiroshima Bay. It was founded at the end of the sixth century and reconstructed and expanded during the twelfth century by orders of Taira no Kiyomori, the most powerful warrior-politician at the time. The shrine is built so that much of it stands above water at high tide, making it appear to be floating. The shrine has historically been known as one of the three most scenic places in Japan, along with Ama no Hashidate in northwestern Kyoto Prefecture and Matsushima in Miyagi Prefecture.

Photo: The Kinkaku, or Golden Pavilion, in the temple Rokuon-ji in Kyoto. (Kyodo)

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