France - Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley

"The Vézère valley contains 147 prehistoric sites dating from the Palaeolithic and 25 decorated caves. It is particularly interesting from an ethnological and anthropological, as well as an aesthetic point of view because of its cave paintings, especially those of the Lascaux Cave, whose discovery in 1940 was of great importance for the history of prehistoric art. The hunting scenes show some 100 animal figures, which are remarkable for their detail, rich colours and lifelike quality." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1

Lascaux II (Montignac) - Dordogne Perigord - Rotonde. Thanks to Jean-Pierre of France.

Postcard 2

Rock paintings of Grotte de Font-de-Gaume, Dordogne, France. Thanks to Marie of France.

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Lascaux - multi-view of drawings in cave. Thanks to Jean-Pierre of Frnace. Received in July 2019.

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Lascaux Grotto is one of the Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley, France - a UNESCO World Heritage site. Thanks to Jean-Pierre of France.

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The Lascaux Caves is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in France. Thanks to Jean-Pierre of France.

Croatia - Stari Grad Plain

"Stari Grad Plain on the Adriatic island of Hvar is a cultural landscape that has remained practically intact since it was first colonized by Ionian Greeks from Paros in the 4th century BC. The original agricultural activity of this fertile plain, mainly centring on grapes and olives, has been maintained since Greek times to the present. The site is also a natural reserve. The landscape features ancient stone walls and trims, or small stone shelters, and bears testimony to the ancient geometrical system of land division used by the ancient Greeks, the chora which has remained virtually intact over 24 centuries." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

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Aerial view of Stari Grad town with surrounding agricultural activity done sicne early Greek era. Thanks to Jacek of Poland.

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Stari Grad, Croatia is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to Nikola of Croatia.

India - Moidams – the Mound-Burial System of the Ahom Dynasty

"Set in the foothills of the Patkai Ranges in eastern Assam, the property contains the royal necropolis of the Tai-Ahom. For 600 years, the Tai-Ahom created moidams (burial mounds) accentuating the natural topography of hills, forests and water, thus forming a sacred geography. Banyan trees and the trees used for coffins and bark manuscripts were planted and water bodies created. Ninety moidams – hollow vaults built of brick, stone or earth – of different sizes are found within the site. They contain the remains of kings and other royals together with grave goods such as food, horses and elephants, and sometimes queens and servants. The Tai-Ahom rituals of “Me-Dam-Me-Phi” and “Tarpan” are practiced at the Charaideo necropolis. While moidams are found in other areas within the Brahmaputra Valley, those found at the property are regarded as exceptional."

Source: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Postcard 1

Moidams - the Mound-Burial System of the Ahom Dynasty in Assam, India spanning from 1228 to 1826. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 2024. Postcard was missent to South Korea. Thanks to Amar of India.

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Moidams - Mound Burial System of the Anom Dynasty, Assam, northeast India. Thanks to Amar of India.

Greece - Archaeological Site of Olympia

"The site of Olympia, in a valley in the Peloponnesus, has been inhabited since prehistoric times. In the 10th century B.C., Olympia became a centre for the worship of Zeus. The Altis – the sanctuary to the gods – has one of the highest concentrations of masterpieces from the ancient Greek world. In addition to temples, there are the remains of all the sports structures erected for the Olympic Games, which were held in Olympia every four years beginning in 776 B.C." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1
Ancient Olympia. Written on June 1, 2011 and arrived in Penang on June 27, 2011. Thanks to Sylvia of New Jersey, USA who was visiting Greece.

Postcard 2

Olympia is one of the most important religious centers of Ancient Greece where since the 6th century BC, the Olympic Games were held every fifth year. Today, the flames of the modern Summer and Winter Olympic Games are lighted here every 4 years. Cool stamps used here. Thanks to Sofia of Greece.

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Ancient Olympia, Greece is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to Athina of Greece.

Germany - Town of Bamberg

"From the 10th century onwards, this town became an important link with the Slav peoples, especially those of Poland and Pomerania. During its period of greatest prosperity, from the 12th century onwards, the architecture of Bamberg strongly influenced northern Germany and Hungary. In the late 18th century it was the centre of the Enlightenment in southern Germany, with eminent philosophers and writers such as Hegel and Hoffmann living there." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1
A panaroma view of Bamberg. Thanks to YL who was visiting Bamberg, Germany. Interestingly, the stamp is missing from postcard.

Postcard 2

Blick zum Rathaus, Schone Grube aus Bamberg. The city hall is built in the middle of the river since the local lord would not give any land to the people. Thanks to Ruth of USA for mailing from Germany in 2012.

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Nice town map of Bamberg. Thanks to Morgaine of Germany in 2009.

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A wonderful postcard of riverine Bamberg town. Thanks to Gabriela of Germany.

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Night view of Altes Rathaus of Bamberg, Germany.

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Kaiserdom St. Peter und St. Georg, Welterbestandt Bamberg, Germany. A UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to Dustin of Germany.

Russia - Rock Paintings of Shulgan-Tash Cave (2025)

"Located in the Southern Ural Mountains of Bashkortostan, the Shulgan-Tash Cave contains extensive Late Palaeolithic rock art. Set within a karst massif near the Belaya and Shulgan Rivers, it features large halls and deep chambers across two levels. The paintings depict steppe fauna—mammoths, woolly rhinoceroses, bison, horses, and a Bactrian camel—alongside anthropomorphic figures, abstract signs, and geometric motifs like the “Kapova trapezoids.” Archaeological finds offer insights into the artistic process and domestic life of its prehistoric inhabitants."

Source: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Shulgan-Tash Cave, Bashkortostan in Southern Urals, Russia. A UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to hidalgo of Spain.

Belgium - Notre-Dame Cathedral in Tournai

"The Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Tournai was built in the first half of the 12th century. It is especially distinguished by a Romanesque nave of extraordinary dimensions, a wealth of sculpture on its capitals and a transept topped by five towers, all precursors of the Gothic style. The choir, rebuilt in the 13th century, is in the pure Gothic style." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage.

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Another Belgium UNESCO World Heritage site - Cathedrale Notre-Dame in Tourni. A beautiful nightview card with the UNESCO logo. Thanks to Gilles of Belgium.

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Aerial view of Tournal, Belgium showing the Belfry and the Cathedral. Both are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Thanks to Gerda of Belgium.

Syria - Ancient City of Damascus

"Founded in the 3rd millennium B.C., Damascus is one of the oldest cities in the Middle East. In the Middle Ages, it was the centre of a flourishing craft industry, specializing in swords and lace. The city has some 125 monuments from different periods of its history – one of the most spectacular is the 8th-century Great Mosque of the Umayyads, built on the site of an Assyrian sanctuary." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

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Omayad Mosque of Damascus built in 705 AD. Thanks to Farah of Egypt who was visiting.






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Azem Palace, Damascus, Syria. This is a postcard that I have received a long time ago before I started to collect postcards. Thanks to Tamin for sending me this postcard.

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Umayyad Mosque of Damascus. It is the Great Mosque and part of UNESCO World Heritage Site. This postcard was mailed from Taiwan - thanks to Chiao.

Uzbekistan - Tashkent Modernist Architecture. Modernity and Tradition in Central Asia (2026)

"The property embodies a representative ensemble of ten modernist buildings and urban complexes constructed between the 1960s and early 1990s, a formative period in the reconstruction and transformation of Tashkent following the 1966 earthquake. The series includes museums, exhibition halls, hotels, residential ensembles, cultural institutions, and scientific or infrastructural facilities, reflecting the broad functional spectrum of late‑Soviet architectural production. Nine out of ten component parts are situated along the newly planned urban axes of the reconstructed city centre, as defined in successive masterplans that reshaped Tashkent into a modern socialist metropolis. Together, they articulate the city’s principal public spaces and demonstrate the integration of modernist planning principles with local climatic, seismic, and cultural conditions. Collectively, the serial property illustrates a distinct phase of architectural modernism characterised by industrialised construction, seismic‑resilient engineering, and the adaptation of standardised systems to regional materials, traditions, and environmental constraints."

Source: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Chor-Su Bazaar in Tashkent in modernist style architecture that is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to hildago of Spain.

India - Ancient Buddhist Site of Sarnath (2026)

"The serial property contains the architectural and archaeological remains of Sarnath, the sacred site where the Buddha is believed to have delivered his first sermon in the 6th century BCE and met his earliest disciples. Identified by the Buddha himself as one of the four principal Buddhist pilgrimage sites, Sarnath grew over many centuries through royal, monastic, and lay patronage, resulting in the construction of numerous stupas, temples, and viharas. After flourishing as a major Buddhist centre, Sarnath declined in the 12th century CE and fell into obscurity until its rediscovery in the 18th century. Today preserved as two archaeological zones, it remains both an important tourist destination and a revived pilgrimage site for Buddhists worldwide."

Source: UNESCO World Heritage Site

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Ancient Buddhist Site of Sarnath is India UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 2026. Thanks to Gururaj of India.

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Nice postcard of Buddhist Site of Sarnath - a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Thanks to Tirtha of India.