On July 8, 2008, Berat officially joined UNESCO’s World Heritage list. This marked a major milestone for the historic city.

Berat had been declared a museum city in 1961 due to its many national treasures. These include the Berat Castle, the Gorica Bridge with its seven arches, the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, the Onufri Museum, the Gllavenica Epitaph, and the Purple Codex of Berat. Together, these form the rich heritage of this 2,400-year-old city.

Albania has been a UNESCO member since 1958. Berat, known as the “town of one above the other windows,” is internationally recognized alongside Gjirokastër. Both cities are grouped as a single site because of their architectural and historical similarities.

UNESCO highlights Berat as a symbol of coexistence among different religious and cultural communities over centuries. It notes that Berat and Gjirokastër provide exceptional testimony to the diversity of urban societies in the Balkans and the endurance of ways of life that have mostly disappeared today.

Moreover, the two cities represent outstanding examples of various types of monuments and urban houses from the Classical Ottoman period. This architecture continues the medieval cultures that preceded it.

This recognition places Berat among 600 global sites listed by UNESCO for their universal heritage value.

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