The Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream has been successfully inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The 47th session of the World Heritage Committee, which has been held in Paris, France from July 6 to 16, 2025, made the final decision to inscribe the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream on the World Heritage List on July 12.

Following its inscription on the Tentative List of World Heritage Sites in 2010, the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream has finally come to fruition after 15 years. With this inscription, the Republic of Korea now holds a total of 17 UNESCO World Heritage properties including 15 cultural and 2 natural sites.

The newly inscribed Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream is a single World Heritage property that includes the National Treasures of 'Daegok-ri Petroglyphs' and 'Cheonjeon-ri Petroglyphs' located in Ulju District, Ulsan Metropolitan City. The World Heritage Committee acknowledged the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream to be a masterpiece of human creative genius, which displays a wide range of images executed with great artistic mastery by the coastal inhabitants in the Korean Peninsula. The acute sense of observation reflected in the realistic depictions of various motifs and their specific compositions demonstrate the exceptional aesthetic sense of these artists. Their creativity is particularly evocative in prehistoric images depicting whales and certain stages of whaling, a subject only rarely represented in rock art around the world. The Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream also attest to a tradition of rock carving that was practiced for approximately 6,000 years within the landscape formed by the Bangucheon Stream. These rock carvings are exceptional because they demonstrate a complex form of artistic expression and concisely illustrate the cultural evolution of the coastal inhabitants of the peninsula over this long period.

Meanwhile, along with the inscription decisions, the World Heritage Committee recommended that the State Party:

a) Inform the World Heritage Center of the progress of the Sayeon Dam works,

b) Ensure the effective operationalization of the Bangucheon Petroglyphs World Heritage Center,

c) Formalize the role of local communities and residents in the management system,

d) Inform the World Heritage Center of the intention to undertake or authorize all major projects which may affect the Outstanding Universal Value of the property.

The inscription of the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream as a World Heritage Site was achieved through collaborative efforts involving Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Korea Heritage Service, Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Korea to UNESCO and local governments.

The Korea Heritage Service will take this inscription as an opportunity to preserve the value of the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream as a World Heritage property, while continuing its policy efforts to promote coexistence with the local community.