Endangered Sacred Sites

Sacred Sites International has compiled the following list of sacred sites endangered by manmade (for example, urbanization or other development efforts) or natural forces (such as erosion, weathering, and exposure to the elements), or even a combination of the two. We encourage you to peruse the list below to learn more about these sacred sites and the forces that threaten their preservation, and if possible, contribute to campaigns and efforts that will ensure their preservation for current and future generations.

• Berkeley Ohlone Shellmound & Village and Burial Site (Berkeley, California, United States)
• Belgian Megaliths (Wallonia, Belgium)
• Black Hills (South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming, United States) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• The Black Madonnas of Southwest France (Racamadour, Aubas, and Limeuil, Perigord & Quercy regins, Southwest France)
• Callanish (Outer Hebrides Islands, Scotland)
• Carnic Massif and the Sacred Places of Rosia Montana (Romania) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Dampier Rock Art [aka Dampier Archipelago], including Burrup Peninsula (Murujuga, Australia) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Dangsannamu, Jocheon-eup, Jeju Island (South Korea)
• Easter Island [Rapa Nui] (Pacific Ocean – west of Chile)
• Endoinyo Ormoruwak [aka “Small Hill of the Elders”] (between Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru in Tanzania)
• Hazaribagh Plateau (India) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
  • Sitagarha Hill, Marwatari Buddhist Site
  • Banadag Megalith Site
  • Bawanbai Hill
• Hensler Petroglyph Site (Wisconsin, United States) – included on the 2008 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Hill of Tara and the Sacred Landscape of Skryne Valley (Ireland) – included in the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Hueco Tanks State Historic Park (Texas, United States)
• Ivanovo Medieval Rock Churches (Ivanovo, Bulgaria)
• Kaya Forests (Kenya)
• Lake Baikal (Siberia, Russia)
• Lascaux Cave (Montignac, France) – included on the 2008 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• The Little Chapel of the Fourteen Bunders (Broek of Blaasveld, Antwerpen, Belgium – near Willebroek)
• Llullaillaco & Other High Altitude Ruins of the Andes (The Andes Mountain Range – Southern Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, and Northern Chile)
• Machu Picchu (Peru)
• Mangyu Gompa Monastery (Ladakh, India) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Mayan Temples of Yachilan & Piedras Negras (Usumacinta River – Mexico/Guatemala border)
• McCloud River Watershed (California, United States) – included on the 2008 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba (Cordoba, Spain)
• Mount Hood (Oregon, United States)
• Mount Taylor (New Mexico, United States) – included on the 2013 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Mount Tindaya (Fuerteventura, the Canary Islands, Spain)
• Mukurwe Wa Nyagathanga (Kenya, Africa) – included on the 2013 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Nan Madol (Pohnpei, US Micronesia)
• Nazca Lines (Peru)
• Newgrange (Boyne Valley, County Meath, Ireland)
• North Karanpura Valley (India) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
  • Eastern North Karanpura Valley
    • Isco Rock Art Site
    • Barwadi Punkhri Megalith
    • Barwadi Punkhri Buddhist Site
• Octagon Mounds (Ohio, United States) – included on the 2005 SSIF Endangered Sites List
• Sarmizegetusa (Orastie Mountains, Romania)
• Seokguram (Gyeongju, South Korea)
• Site of Palmyra (Palmyra, Syria)
• Stonehenge (Wiltshire, Western England)
• Tassili-n-Ajjer (Algeria)
• Tibetan Sacred Lake – Yamdrok Tso (Tibet)
• Weris Dolmens (Belgium)
• Wirikura Mountain [aka Cerro Quemado] (Mexico) – included on the 2013 SSIF Endangered Sites List

[Back to List of Sites]