Heritage Sites in Vanuatu!

Visit the Vanuatu Kaljoral Senta (VKS) and National Museum to learn about 2 of Vanuatu’s world heritage sites declared by UNESCO, to experience the culturally rich heritage and traditional art history of Vanuatu passed on from one generation to the next for hundreds of years. The sites and attractions are:

Chief Roi Mata Domain
Chief Roi Mata’s Domain is the first site to be inscribed in Vanuatu. It consists of three early 17th century AD sites on the islands of Efate, Lelepa and Artok associated with the life and death of the last paramount chief, or Roi Mata, of what is now Central Vanuatu. The property includes Roi Mata’s residence, the site of his death and Roi Mata’s mass burial site.

It is closely associated with the oral traditions surrounding the chief and the moral values he espoused. The site reflects the convergence between oral tradition and archaeology and bears witness to the persistence of Roi Mata’s social reforms and conflict resolution, still relevant to the people of the region.

Year of Inscription 2008
Add world heritage to your travel plans – plan to visit Chief Roi Mata’s Domain! Sign up on GoUNESCO to get travel advice, tips, partners and help with traveling to Chief Roi Mata’s Domain.

Intangible Cultural Heritage – the sand drawing
Situated in the South Pacific, the Vanuatu archipelago has preserved a unique and complex tradition of sand drawing.

This multifunctional “writing” is more than an indigenous artistic expression and it occurs in a wide range of ritual, contemplative and communicative contexts. The drawings are produced directly on the ground, in sand, volcanic ash or clay. Using one finger, the drawer traces a continuous meandering line on an imagined grid to produce a graceful, often symmetrical, composition of geometric patterns. This rich and dynamic graphic tradition has developed as a means of communication among the members of some 80 different language groups inhabiting the central and northern islands of Vanuatu.

The drawings also function as mnemonic devices to record and transmit rituals, mythological lore and a wealth of oral information about local histories, cosmologies, kinship systems, song cycles, farming techniques, architectural and craft design, and choreographic patterns. Most sand drawings possess several functions and layers of meaning: they can be “read” as artistic works, repositories of information, illustration for stories, signatures, or simply messages and objects of contemplation. Sand drawings are not merely “pictures”, but refer to a combination of knowledge, songs, and stories with sacred or profane meanings.

A master sand drawer must therefore possess not only a strong knowledge of graphic patterns but also a deep understanding of their significance. In addition, sand drawers should have the ability to interpret the drawings for spectators. As attractive symbols of Vanuatu identity, the drawings are often showcased as a form of decorative folklore for tourists and other commercial purposes. If left unchecked, this tendency to appreciate sand drawings on a purely aesthetic level may result in the loss of the tradition’s deeper symbolic significance and original social function.

Asia Luxury Holidays

Luxury Holidays in Armenia
Luxury Holidays in Azerbaijan
Luxury Holidays in Bangladesh
Luxury Holidays in Bhutan
Luxury Holidays in Cambodia
Luxury Holidays in China
Luxury Holidays in Cyprus

Luxury Holidays in Georgia
Luxury Holidays in Hongkong
Luxury Holidays in India
Luxury Holidays in Indonesia
Luxury Holidays in Israel
Luxury Holidays in Japan
Luxury Holidays in Jordan
Luxury Holidays in Kazakhstan
Luxury Holidays in Lebanon
Luxury Holidays in Laos
Luxury Holidays in Macau
Luxury Holidays in Myanmar
Luxury Holidays in Mongolia
Luxury Holidays in Maldives
Luxury Holidays in Nepal
Luxury Holidays in Oman
Luxury Holidays in Philippines
Luxury Holidays in Qatar
Luxury Holidays in Russia
Luxury Holidays in Sri Lanka
Luxury Holidays in Singapore
Luxury Holidays in South Korea
Luxury Holidays in Taiwan
Luxury Holidays in Thailand
Luxury Holidays in Tibet
Luxury Holidays in Uzbekistan
Luxury Holidays in UAE
Luxury Holidays in Vietnam

Caribbean Luxury Holidays

Luxury Holidays in Aruba
Luxury Holidays in Anguilla
Luxury Holidays in Antigua
Luxury Holidays in Barbados
Luxury Holidays in Bahamas
Luxury Holidays in BV Islands
Luxury Holidays in Cuba
Luxury Holidays in Cayman
Luxury Holidays in Dominica
Luxury Holidays in Dominican
Luxury Holidays in Grenada
Luxury Holidays in Haiti
Luxury Holidays in Jamaica
Luxury Holidays in Montserrat
Luxury Holidays in Martinique
Luxury Holidays in Puerto Rico
Luxury Holidays in Saint Lucia
Luxury Holidays in St. Kitts
Luxury Holidays in Trinidad
Luxury Holidays in USV Islands

Europe Luxury Holidays

Luxury Holidays in Albania
Luxury Holidays in Austria
Luxury Holidays in Andorra
Luxury Holidays in Belarus
Luxury Holidays in Bosnia
Luxury Holidays in Bulgaria
Luxury Holidays in Croatia
Luxury Holidays in Cyprus
Luxury Holidays in Czech
Luxury Holidays in Denmark
Luxury Holidays in Estonia
Luxury Holidays in Finland
Luxury Holidays in France
Luxury Holidays in Germany
Luxury Holidays in Greece
Luxury Holidays in Hungary
Luxury Holidays in Iceland
Luxury Holidays in Ireland
Luxury Holidays in Italy
Luxury Holidays in Lithuania
Luxury Holidays in Luxembourg
Luxury Holidays in Malta
Luxury Holidays in Moldova
Luxury Holidays in Monaco
Luxury Holidays in Montenegro
Luxury Holidays in Netherlands
Luxury Holidays in Norway
Luxury Holidays in Poland
Luxury Holidays in Portugal
Luxury Holidays in Romania
Luxury Holidays in Sweden
Luxury Holidays in Serbia
Luxury Holidays in Spain
Luxury Holidays in Switzerland
Luxury Holidays in Turkey
Luxury Holidays in Ukraine
Luxury Holidays in UK
Luxury Holidays in Vatican City

Africa Luxury Holidays

Luxury Holidays in Angola
Luxury Holidays in Algeria
Luxury Holidays in Botswana
Luxury Holidays in Benin
Luxury Holidays in Burundi

Luxury Holidays in Cameroon
Luxury Holidays in Chad
Luxury Holidays in Congo
Luxury Holidays in Comoros
Luxury Holidays in Cape Verde
Luxury Holidays in Djibouti

Luxury Holidays in Egypt

Luxury Holidays in Eritrea
Luxury Holidays in Ethiopia
Luxury Holidays in Gabon
Luxury Holidays in Ghana
Luxury Holidays in Kenya
Luxury Holidays in Lesotho
Luxury Holidays in Malawi
Luxury Holidays in Mayotte
Luxury Holidays in Mozambique
Luxury Holidays in Mauritania
Luxury Holidays in Madagascar
Luxury Holidays in Mauritius
Luxury Holidays in Morocco
Luxury Holidays in Namibia
Luxury Holidays in Nigeria
Luxury Holidays in Rwanda
Luxury Holidays in Sierra Leone
Luxury Holidays in Senegal
Luxury Holidays in Sudan
Luxury Holidays in Seychelles
Luxury Holidays in South Africa
Luxury Holidays in Tanzania
Luxury Holidays in Tunisia
Luxury Holidays in Uganda
Luxury Holidays in Zambia
Luxury Holidays in Zimbabwe

Americas Luxury Holidays

Luxury Holidays in Argentina
Luxury Holidays in Belize
Luxury Holidays in Bermuda

Luxury Holidays in Bolivia
Luxury Holidays in Brazil
Luxury Holidays in Canada
Luxury Holidays in Chile

Luxury Holidays in Colombia
Luxury Holidays in Costa Rica
Luxury Holidays in Ecuador
Luxury Holidays in El Salvador

Luxury Holidays in Falkland
Luxury Holidays in Guyana
Luxury Holidays in Guadeloupe
Luxury Holidays in Guatemala
Luxury Holidays in Honduras
Luxury Holidays in Mexico
Luxury Holidays in Nicaragua
Luxury Holidays in Panama

Luxury Holidays in Paraguay
Luxury Holidays in Suriname

Luxury Holidays in Peru
Luxury Holidays in Uruguay
Luxury Holidays in Venezuela

Proceed Booking