World Heritage Listing

The Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation is working in partnership with the WA Government – in particular, the WA Department of Biodiversity, Conservation, and Attractions as well as the WA Department of Planning, Lands, and Heritage – and in collaboration with the Federal Government and other stakeholders, including Woodside Energy and Rio Tinto Iron Ore, to prepare Murujuga’s World Heritage List Nomination in recognition of its outstanding universal (Aboriginal cultural) value.

With one to two million images, Murujuga is home to one of the largest, densest and most diverse collections of incised or carved rock art, referred to as petroglyphs, in the world. Murujuga is the only place on earth where the story of the people and their changing environment has been continuously recorded through art for more than 50,000 years. The “stories from the stones” of Murujuga are still relevant today. They have not been lost to history but instead are a key component of the “living culture” of the contemporary Aboriginal Custodians of the land.

To be included on the World Heritage List (WHL), places must be of “Outstanding Universal Value” and meet at least one out of 10 Selection Criteria which have been determined by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).

From the 10 possible Selection Criteria, Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation and its partners and stakeholders have decided to pursue Selection Criteria (i), (iii) and (v). Criterion (i) applies to a place that represents a masterpiece of human creative genius; Criterion (iii) applies to a place that bears unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared; and Criterion (v) applies to a place that provides an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land or sea use which is representative of a culture, or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change.

For more information on how to stay updated on the WHL nomination process, click here.