The Hoysala temples at Belur, Halebeedu and Somanathapura are India’s official nominations for inclusion as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, but a few more temples belonging to the same period could join the list in future.
The serial nomination process provides for extension of sites under the same category if the new site meets the UNESCO’s criteria of displaying outstanding universal value besides sharing the same attributes as that of the monuments that were originally included as World Heritage Sites.
Both Belur and Halebeedu have been in the tentative list since 2014. They were nominated as ‘The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas’ to which the Keshava temple at Somanathapura was included as part of the serial nomination process. The three monuments await the final declaration as a UNESCO site.
