World Heritage of Humanity

The Monastery of Alcobaça was inscribed on the World Heritage List by meeting two of the ten criteria indicated by the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (UNESCO, 1972) for a property's inscription to be considered:

Criterion I - To represent a masterpiece of human creative genius: With its magnificent dimensions, the clarity of its architectural style, the beauty of the material used, and the quality of construction, the Monastery of Alcobaça is a masterpiece of Cistercian Gothic art. It testifies to the spread of an aesthetic style that developed in Burgundy in the time of Saint Bernard, and to the survival of the ascetic ideal that characterized the Order's first establishments such as Fontenay. The tombs of Dom Pedro and Dona Inês are examples of the finest Gothic funerary sculpture.

Criterion IV - To be an outstanding example of a type of building or architectural or technological ensemble illustrating one or more significant periods in human history: As an extraordinary example of a large Cistercian establishment, preserving most medieval regular spaces intact (church, cloister and lavabo, sacristy, chapter house, parlatory, monks' room, refectory and monks' dormitory), the ingenious hydraulic system in the former monastic enclosure, and most of the later constructions, notably the famous kitchen built in the 18th century.

The deepening of scientific knowledge about the monument and the development of the management process over the last decade have provided new approaches and opened new perspectives on the Property, in its different fields of action, from Identification and conservation to its use and promotion.

The reflection provided by the 3rd Cycle of Periodic Reporting (2018-2024), under the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972), coordinated by the World Heritage Centre (WHC), was an extraordinary opportunity to carry out an introspective analysis in the different areas proposed by the WHC, as well as to systematize the monument's condition in relation to them.

In particular, with regard to the Statement of Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the Monastery of Alcobaça, adopted retroactively in 2014, through which the Portuguese State committed to preserving the Values of Integrity and Authenticity, the need to update it in the near future was identified.

This exercise also required rethinking the attributes that justify this OUV and systematizing their condition (preserved, compromised, seriously compromised or lost) and their degree of vulnerability in light of the threats these properties currently face.

The response to the 3rd Cycle of Periodic Reporting (2018-2024) was also an opportunity to review the attributes previously identified and included in the OUV Statement.

Systematizing the attributes "that constitute the direct material expression of Outstanding Universal Value" is fundamental for fully understanding it and, consequently, was essential in the (re)definition of the monument's management process, designed according to its Identity.

In the context of this reflection, 14 main attributes were defined: - The preservation of the Spirit of Place. The monastery remains a site that radiates Culture and the church keeps its liturgical function; - The intimate relationship between the property and the surrounding landscape, demonstrating the monks' capacity for territorial planning, still clearly visible in the area of the former Coutos of Alcobaça; - The nobility and quality of the material used in construction (local limestone), the perfection of carving and installation, aspects that contribute to the Cistercian aesthetic ideal; - The expression of physiographic knowledge in choosing the site for the monastery, as well as technical knowledge in managing natural resources, of which the ingenious hydraulic system is an exceptional testimony; - The preservation of most medieval regular spaces, showing the spatial-functional organization of a Cistercian abbey; - The preservation of most later constructions, which attest to the new spatial-functional needs that emerged between the 16th and 18th centuries, in particular the monumental kitchen; - The originality of the architectural concept and the construction solutions adopted, with the unprecedented decision, for its time, to build the church's three naves at practically the same height; - The deliberate intention for the architecture to perfectly express Cistercian Spirituality, reflecting the Order's aesthetic ideal; - The historical and symbolic importance of the Monastery of Alcobaça plan, a replica of the mythical medieval abbey of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, partially lost in the 19th century, the mother house of Alcobaça; - The quality of execution and iconographic richness of the tombs of D. Pedro I and Dona Inês de Castro, a materialization of the tragic love story still perpetuated today through multiple cultural expressions; - The unique construction system of the vast collection of terracotta sculptures, mostly larger-than-life, polychromed and gilded, produced in the 17th and 18th centuries; - The preservation of original ceramic flooring in situ, in the church ambulatory; - The exceptional nature of the Italian Carrara marble sculptures on the church facade and their iconological reading; - The group of eleven centenary cedar trees (cedrus atlantica) that survive in the former intimate monastic enclosure.

The attributes are associated with values (historical, symbolic, archaeological, architectural, artistic, landscape and ecological, natural and environmental, religious and spiritual, social and economic), and these values may have different meanings or degrees of attachment for the local community, visitors, and the entities or agents that, directly or indirectly, participate in or are "affected" by the management of the Property.

As the basis of the monument's Identity, their weight and interaction are dynamically taken into account in the ongoing integrated management strategy.