To affirm the values accepted as the common heritage of all humanity,  to promote and transfer them to future generations, to establish public awareness to attend to aforementioned common heritage and the perpetuate disappearing cultural and natural properties UNESCO adopted “The Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage” at its 17th General Conference held in Paris in 1972. Türkiye ratified the Convention on 14 February 1983.

Natural formations, monuments and sites which held international importance therefore worthy of recognition and protection are inscribed as “World Heritage”. Following a procedure starting with the application of states which has ratified the convention to UNESCO and completed with the evaluation of experts  from International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICONOS) and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) nominated properties are inscribed the status according to the decision made by World Heritage Committee. One of the 18 properties that are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List from Türkiye is “Historic Areas of İstanbul” which is inscribed in 1985.