Photo/Illutration Dolls recreate the workings of an Edo Period (1603-1867) tunnel at the Sado gold mine in Sado city, Niigata Prefecture, on April 25. (Yuki Kitazawa)

NEW DELHI--Japan’s Sado Island gold mine formally gained World Cultural Heritage status during a meeting of the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO here on July 27.

The decision brings the total number of World Heritage sites in Japan to 26, of which 21 are designated as cultural and five as natural.

Although the world’s mines were mechanized during the 16th to 19th centuries, the gold mines of Sado island in Niigata Prefecture developed a system of producing pure gold through traditional methods at the time. In the 17th century, it became one of the largest gold producers in the world.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), an advisory body to UNESCO, which conducted a preliminary review, recommended an “information inquiry” to request supplementary explanations regarding the site. The committee approved Japan’s response and decided to register the site.

After negotiations between Japan and South Korea over the issue of “forced labor” during the war, the two countries agreed to install an exhibit at a facility on Sado Island that explains the harsh working conditions of those brought over from the Korean Peninsula and elsewhere.

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