Argentina UNESCO world heritage sites

Buenos Aires province [capital = Buenos Aires]

ESMA Museum in Buenos Aires at Av. Del Libertador, 8151
As part of a national strategy to destroy armed and nonviolent opposition to the military regime, the Officers' Quarters building at ESMA (Escuela Superior de Mecánica de la Armada) was used for holding captive opponents who had been abducted in Buenos Aires and interrogating, torturing and eventually killing them.

Curutchet House in La Plata at Avenida 53 No 320
The house represents a landmark in Corbusier own trajectory because it exemplifies how cultural and historical characteristics of architecture (the elements of the traditional Latin American courtyard house) can be rewritten using Corbusier's five points of modern architecture.

Catamarca province [capital = Catamarca]

Andean road in Aconquija on Ruta Nacional 65 at S 27 23 10.4, W 65 59 2.0
It demonstrates mastery in engineering technology used to resolved myriad problems posed by the Andes variable landscape by means of variable road construction technologies, bridges, stairs, ditches and cobblestone pavings.

Ruins of Pukara in Aconquija at S 27 42 13.7, W 66 1 7.0
The Pucara de Aconquija, an imposing archaeological attraction on a peak that dominates the entire Campo de Pucara and the adjacent mountainous areas. There, a wall of about three kilometers and up to three meters high persists, that the perimeter of 380 hectares occupied by houses and barracks, which according to specialists dates back about 500 years.

Andean road in Los Varela on Ruta Provincial 1 at S 27 48 19.8, W 65 52 16.6
See andean road above.

Chubut province [capital = Rawson]

Los Alerces National Park in Esquel at Puerto Sagrario, Villa Futalaufquen on RP 71
The National Park has the largest alerce forest of Argentina. Alerce is one of the longest-living trees in the world; some in the park are around 3,000 years old, with many of them over 1,000 years.

Valdes Peninsula in Puerto Pirámides on RP 2
The dynamic coastal zone features rocky cliffs of up to 100 metres in height, shallow bays and shifting coastal lagoons with extensive mudflats, sandy and pebble beaches, active sand dunes, and small islands. It is home to an important breeding population of the endangered southern right whale as well as important breeding populations of southern elephant seals and southern sea lions. The orcas in this area have developed a unique hunting strategy to adapt to local coastal conditions.

Cordoba province [capital = Cordoba]

Jesuit Block in Cordoba at Av. Vélez Sarsfield 215
The outstanding nature of this ensemble is illustrated by the convergence of two typologies: on the one hand, the European convent layout, with a main church, residence, and college in the city; and on the other, novel rural settlements, where the church, residence, and trading post merged in a productive and interrelated territory.

Jesuit stay in Jesus Maria on Pedro de Onate
Half monastery and half merchants association, the barracks occupied by the natives and the slaves slowly changed into constructions made of brick, stone and tiles, typical of the Order. The central yard is enclosed by a two-story cloisters section. The ample galleries and the semi-circular arches complete the typical style of the Company.

Jesuit stay in Jesus Maria at Coroya
The entire residence revolves around an ample central yard boasting two huge palm trees at the entrance, followed by a lush garden giving off the sweet aroma of elm trees, orange trees and palm trees. Next to the chapel, the area where the fishing nets are hung, the dam, the remains of the mill house and the irrigation ditches, in addition to the area devoted to the orchard, represent an outstanding sample of residential architecture in the rural environment.

Jesuit stay in Santa Catalina on National Route 9
The region's largest Jesuit estancia, and without doubt its most beautiful, originally specialised in cattle breeding. Located in the heart of a small village, it comprises a church, a residence, and a rancheria with dwellings for slaves.

Jesuit stay in La Candelaria at S 31 5 42.4, W 64 51 29.8
The environment marked the architectural differences with other Jesuit estancias, as its unusual situation of fort and residence with a sanctuary is unique in the province. Its surrounding walls and only access gate give evidence of the resistance of the natives against colonization in a moor where rocks prevail.

Jesuit stay in Alta Gracia at Padre D. Viera 41
The residence consists of seventeen rooms around a green patio with cloisters. It has been transformed into a museum where the history of the estancia is displayed through colonial furniture and utensils, and pieces of art.

Jujuy province [capital = San Salvador de Jujuy]

Andean road in Santa Ana at S 23 18 47.9, W 65 2 47.8
See andean road above.

Gorge of Humahuaca at S 23 11 50.0, W 65 21 5.3
The valley shows substantial evidence of its use as a major trade route over the past 10,000 years. It features visible traces of prehistoric hunter-gatherer communities, of the Inca Empire (15th to 16th centuries) and of the fight for independence in the 19th and 20th centuries.

La Rioja province [capital = La Rioja]

Andean Road in Famatina at S 28 55 40.3, W 67 31 46.0
See andean road above.

Talampaya Provincial Park in Talampaya on km 144, Ruta 76
The dramatic natural landscape of the property exposes six geological formations that clearly and exceptionally document the major stage of Earth's history from the evolution from the mammal ancestors in the Early Triassic to the rise of dinosaur dominance during the Triassic.

Mendoza province [capital = Mendoza]

Andean road from Cienaga de Yalguaraz to Puente del Inca via Los Tambillos + San Alberto + Tambo Inca de Ranchillo
See andean road above.

Misiones province [capital = Posadas]

Ruins of Santa Maria la Mayor in San Javier on 23km from San Javier on PR 2
The residence, workshops cemetery and the orchard conserve a large part of their walls. On the periphery of the reduction, important remains of chapels, breakwaters, ditches, roads and field establishments are preserved.

Reduction of Our Lady in Santa Ana at Acceso a Reduccion Jesuitica de Santa Ana
The vestiges of its architecture still allow us to recognize the remains that formed the central core: plaza, church, town hall and cemetery; but it also makes it possible to admire those that gave rise to ponds, bridges and cisterns.

Guarani Jesuit Mission of Our Lady in Loreto at Los Abuelos
Vegetation has grown over and contributed to deterioration of the ruins.

Ruins of San Ignacio Mini in San Ignacio at Alberdi 458-477
The red-tinted architecture of San Ignacio Miní is impressive even in its ruined state. The mix of Spanish baroque and Guaraní styles is still evident in the disconnected walls and arches of the church. San Ignacio Miní is a spectacular example of mission planning and layout, one of only few that survive today.

Iguazu Falls in Parque Nacional Iguazu on Ruta 469
Made up of many cascades producing vast sprays of water, it is one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world. The surrounding subtropical rainforest has over 2,000 species of vascular plants and is home to the typical wildlife of the region: tapirs, giant anteaters, howler monkeys, ocelots, jaguars and caymans.

Salta province [capital = Salta]

Archeological site in Santa Rosa de Tastil at Ruta Nacional 51, Km 106
The labyrinthine layout of Tastil included catacombs and plazas, and the central square was built around a wanka (a sacred stone).

Andean road in Santa Rosa de Tastil at S 24 35 42.1, W 66 2 26.2
See andean road above.

Inca Barns in La Poma at S 24 48 14.8, W 66 10 34.6
There are 25 circular and rectangular silos. They were mainly used to store corn. Installation in mud is complex, since it contains the modern principles of ventilation and rodent protection that are in force until now.

Andean road in Mina La Casualidad at S 25 2 2.1, W 68 14 3.5
See andean road above.

San Juan province [capital = San Juan]

Ischigualasto Provincial Park in Ischigualasto at Ruta 150, km 120
This Basin boasts an exceptionally complete record and sequence of plant and animal life in the geological period from roughly 250 to 200 million years ago which represents the origin of both dinosaurs and mammals.

Andean road in Rodeo at S 30 12 17.9, W 69 9 18.5
See andean road above.

Andean road in El Chinguillo at S 29 42 53.2, W 69 9 38.3
See above.

Santa Cruz province [capital = Rio Gallegos]

Los Glaciares National Park in El Calafate on Av. del Libertador 1302
The Los Glaciares National Park is an area of exceptional natural beauty, with rugged, towering mountains and numerous glacial lakes, including Lake Argentino, which is 160 km long. At its farthest end, three glaciers meet to dump their effluvia into the milky grey glacial water, launching massive igloo icebergs into the lake with thunderous splashes.

Cave of the hands in Rio Pinturas on Ruta Provincial 97
It takes its name (Cave of the Hands) from the stencilled outlines of human hands in the cave, but there are also many depictions of animals, such as guanacos (Lama guanicoe ), still commonly found in the region, as well as hunting scenes.