Sarmizegetusa (Dacia) / UNESCO Site July 2011 Update

Sarmizegetusa (Dacian Capital) Damage July 2011 / UNESCO Protected Heritage Site in Sureanu Mountains, Romania
Photos by Dan Dimancescu (July 25, 2011) / See also news article in Business Insider

Left: Wall damage done by illegal bulldozing activity at the UNESCO Protected Heritage SIte
Below: Parking & Amenities

July 2011 – I visited the Sarmizegetusa UNESCO Heritage site to find it being headlined in the national press for illegal buldozing activity.
This is an exceptionally beautiful mountain area site with a unique history and important achaeological value. Reaching it takes some effort even by car over a lengthy unpaved forest road. First parking-lot impressions are a serious let down though the second-impression of the sanctuary ruins provide a surprising emotion of ‘lost-civilization discovery’.

THE BAD NEWS: A number of things become immediately apparent:
– there is no prominent evidence that this is a UNESCO Heritage site
– signage is antiquated and cursory
– enormous damage was done by Communist-era ‘concrete’ resconstruction projects left unfinished
– more recent circular movie-set wooden pillars remain standing though having no historic relevance
– amenities consist of a single quaintly structured picnic table and a metal trash can

THE GOOD NEWS: In the wake of the July 2011 illegal buldozing, national authorities (see article) stepped in with promises of improved oversight and funding to initiate further archaeological research.

Dan Dimancescu

Source: Nine O’Clock / Aug 4, 2011

AERIAL VIEW OF ZONE

PROTV (2009) Hard-hitting report