ATHENS —
The Ministries of Culture and Environment and Energy expressed their particular satisfaction in a joint statement over the unanimous decision by UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee to inscribe the “Wider Area of Olympus” on the World Heritage List. The decision was taken during the 48th session of the Committee, which has been taking place since July 19 in Busan, South Korea.
According to the statement, the inscription of the mythical mountain on the List represents one of the most significant international distinctions in the cultural and natural heritage protection. They noted that the decision recognises the outstanding universal value of Olympus, placing it among the world’s most emblematic sites requiring special protection and care for the benefit of humanity.
Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said the decision strengthens the international profile of a place that has long been a symbol of Greek culture, nature and universal heritage. She also stressed the shared responsibility of the international community to preserve it for the benefit of present and future generations.
“Through Homer’s epics and ancient Greek literature, Olympus is the mountain that carried Greek mythology and Greek culture across the world. It remains the eternal symbol of the home of the Olympian gods and of a multidimensional and ‘dramatic’ landscape, inspiring awe and respect while continuing to fuel thought, art, science and global cultural creation,” she said.
Mendoni also thanked Greece’s Permanent Representative to UNESCO Giorgos Koumoutsakos, for his consistent and substantial support to officials of both the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Environment and Energy.
Environment and Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou said Greece’s natural environment is a living and inseparable part of the country’s identity, history and culture.
“Its protection and promotion are at the core of our government policy. Olympus was declared Greece’s first National Park in 1938 and serves as a refuge for rare birds of prey while hosting 28% of plant groups – more than 1,900 species, including 27 found only on Olympus and nowhere else in the world – as well as significant wildlife populations. From Olympus, a global symbol linking the ancient myth of Greece’s highest mountain as the home of the gods with the environmental future of our country, to the Untrodden Mountains and the new National Marine Parks announced by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and which we are implementing, we are proving in practice that the protection of nature and biodiversity is a consistent national priority,” he said.
The inscription of Olympus on the World Heritage List recognises its unique natural value as a site of exceptional importance for biodiversity. Rising to an altitude of 2,918 metres and due to its proximity to the Aegean Sea, the mountain has a wide altitudinal range and a historic role as a glacial refuge, hosting 1,983 taxa, representing more than 25% of Greece’s flora.
This rich botanical diversity, combined with an exceptionally high concentration of narrow endemic species-those found exclusively on Olympus and nowhere else in the world-confers significant global value upon the mountain, rendering it a true biodiversity ark. At the same time, it hosts rich fauna, including numerous bird and mammal species, as well as the brown bear and the largest Greek subpopulation of chamois, along with reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates.
Olympus, Greece’s highest mountain and a timeless symbol of Greek culture and global cultural heritage as the mythical home of the Twelve Olympian Gods, holds a central place in the worldview of the ancient Greeks. Its influence, through Homer’s epics, Hesiod’s Theogony and later literature, extended beyond the boundaries of the ancient world. Today, it continues to inspire literature, the arts, philosophy, science and contemporary global cultural creation.
