Cambodia · early 12th c. CE
Angkor Wat
The largest religious monument on Earth, built as a map of the Hindu cosmos.
Medieval
UNESCO
The Heritage Atlas
Heritage sites in Asia
16 sites — filter by era and region, then open a pin to read the archaeologist’s notes.
Iraq · height in the 6th c. BCE
Babylon
One of the most famous cities of the ancient world, on the Euphrates south of Baghdad.
Iron Age
UNESCO
Indonesia · 9th c. CE
Borobudur
Nine stacked platforms, 2,672 relief panels and hundreds of Buddha statues in Central Java.
Medieval
UNESCO
Türkiye · c. 9500 BCE
Göbekli Tepe
Carved T-shaped pillars raised before farming, pottery or writing — and before Stonehenge by about 6,000 years.
Prehistoric
UNESCO
India · 14th–16th c. CE
Hampi
Temples, bazaars and royal enclosures scattered across a landscape of giant boulders.
Medieval
UNESCO
Pakistan · c. 3300–1300 BCE
Harappa
The first Indus city to be excavated — and the reason the whole civilization is often called “Harappan”.
Bronze Age
Pakistan · rebuilt from 1566 CE
Lahore Fort
Mughal palaces, mirror-work halls and a tiled picture wall in the heart of old Lahore.
Early Modern
UNESCO
India · c. 2200–1900 BCE
Lothal
A Harappan trading town in Gujarat with a large brick basin often interpreted as a dock.
Bronze Age
Pakistan · c. 7000–2500 BCE
Mehrgarh
A Neolithic village where people grew barley and herded cattle thousands of years before the Indus cities.
Prehistoric
Pakistan · c. 2500 BCE
Mohenjo-daro
The planned city of the Indus — grid streets, covered drains, a great bath, and no palace in sight.
Bronze Age
UNESCO
Iran · founded c. 518 BCE
Persepolis
Columned halls and carved processions of tribute-bearers from across an empire.
Iron Age
UNESCO
Jordan · flourished c. 1st c. BCE – 1st c. CE
Petra
A Nabataean trading capital carved straight into rose-red sandstone cliffs.
Classical
UNESCO
Sri Lanka · 5th c. CE
Sigiriya
Gardens, frescoes and a lion-gate stairway leading to a palace in the sky.
Classical
UNESCO
Pakistan · c. 6th c. BCE – 5th c. CE
Taxila
Three successive cities and dozens of Buddhist monasteries at a crossroads of empires.
Classical
UNESCO
China · c. 210 BCE
Terracotta Army
Found by farmers digging a well in 1974 — each soldier with individual features.
Classical
UNESCO
Türkiye · c. 7100–5700 BCE
Çatalhöyük
Thousands of people lived in tightly packed mud-brick houses entered through holes in the roof.
Prehistoric
UNESCO