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A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been recognized with the official national historic site status. A historic site may be any building, landscape, site or structure that is of local, regional, or national significance.
Historic sites may be thought of in three broad categories

Historic site visitors

Historic sites and heritage sites are often maintained for members of the public to be able to visit. Visitors may come out of a sense of nostalgia for bygone eras, out of wishing to learn about their cultural heritage, or general interest in learning about the historical context of the site.^[1][2] Many sites offer guided tours for visitors,^[2] conducted by site staff who have been trained to offer an interpretation of life at the time the site represents.^[3] A site may also have a visitor center with more modern architecture and facilities, which serves as a gateway between the outside world and the historic site, and allows visitors to learn some of the historical aspects of the site without excessively exposing locations that may require delicate treatment.




Historical place is very inportant 


 

Why is the historic environment important?

As well as being indispensable to the study of history and archaeology, the historic thread of our environment is vital to our understanding of how our society and our landscape have developed over time. Its contribution to modern life is varied.

Enhancing our quality of life

In contributing to the familiar, aesthetic quality of our surroundings, where we live and work, the historic environment enhances our sense of well-being. As it is all around us and easily accessible, it provides a setting for a great variety of local activities.

• Enhancing our quality of life: in contributing to the familiar, aesthetic quality of our surroundings, where we live and work, the historic environment enhances our sense of well-being. As it is all around us and easily accessible, it provides a setting for a great variety of local activities.
• Knowing ourselves: the historic environment is fundamental to our sense of place, helps link us to our roots and underpins our sense of cultural identity. It is of value for what it tells us about past society, modern culture and human interaction with the environment, and it helps give us a long-term view of social and environmental change.
• Place-making: the historic environment contributes significantly to people’s sense of place and their enjoyment of different spaces. The character of our local landscape and townscape is largely the product of historic development, and this is reflected in the diversity and distinctiveness of field patterns and settlement lay-outs, as well as in building styles, materials and cultural traditions. This historic character is not only attractive in its own right, but it can act as a catalyst for creative new designs.
• Sustainability: the historic environment represents considerable past investment of physical, natural and intellectual resources.  Where archaeological and historic features already exist, it makes good sense to make the most of the resource they provide, rather than destroy them or allow them to decay with consequent cultural, environmental, social and economic costs.
• Environmental regeneration: the historic environment can make a beneficial contribution to the regeneration of both urban and rural areas. Through the adaptation of historic buildings for modern uses, and in providing a high quality setting for new development, the historic environment provides a unique environment where people choose to live and work. Their inherent quality provides an opportunity for reviving run-down areas.
• Employment and economic success: the historic environment can make a significant contribution to economic prosperity. The historic environment generates value by creating a high quality setting for modern life, attracting inward investment and helping to create economic prosperity. The economic benefits of tourism are also closely linked to the historic environment - 83% of visitors to Scotland come primarily to visit historic sites and make an important contribution to the Scottish economy. Attracting visitors to an area provides economic benefits through direct employment linked to the historic sites, as well as to tourism-related businesses, while  heritage projects also generate employment and play an important role in maintaining traditional skills for wider application.
• An educational resource: the historic environment provides a focus and resource for lifelong learning about the human past and how people have inhabited the landscape and used natural resources through time. This aids teaching about our modern culture and our present environment.
• Recreation and access: archaeological and historic sites are popular places for recreation, attracting local people and visitors alike.
• Our broader environment: investigation of the historic environment contributes significantly to our understanding of environmental change and the impact of human activity on natural resources through time. Such knowledge of the past is vital for informing management decisions today.  Historic features frequently provide locally important habitats for flora and fauna, the nature of which is often closely related to human activity in the past.

What Are the Most Important Historical Sites in the World?

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You already know big name destinations like the Great Pyramids, Stonehenge, the Great Barrier Reef, Machu Pichu, and the Taj Mahal. But these lesser-known treasures are also worth the trip.

Cueva de las Manos, Rio Pinturas

This cave in Santa Cruz, Argentina, may be the world’s oldest art gallery. Neolithic paintings and drawings of hunting scenes date back 13,000 years. The big draw, though, is the haunting stenciled silhouettes of human hands on the rock wall. The ancient Patagonians pressed their left hands against the rock and sprayed painted them by blowing into a bone pipe. Spray paint has been around longer than you think!

Petra, Jordan

Wedged in a canyon between the Dead Sea and Red Sea, a handful of 6th century BC buildings are carved into a rosy sandstone cliff. An artificial oasis, Petra was the capital of the Navataean Empire for 500 years until the Romans took over. It was recently named one of the seven new wonders of the world.

Prehistoric Alp Pile Dwellings

To the untrained eye, these look like sticks poking out of the mud. But they’re actually the remains of the oldest settlements in Europe. What’s left of 111 Bronze Age stilt houses can still be found across Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, and Switzerland. The stilts—called piles—have been waterlogged and preserved by creeping wetlands and lakeshores, giving an amazing look at early European society.

Old City of Salamanca

If you need to study up on your European architecture, ditch the books and head North of Madrid to Salamanca, Spain. The city is dotted with ancient-yet-still-functional architecture. Reaching back as far as 2000 years, you’ll find every style from the pages of your old art history textbook—including Moorish, Renaissance, Gothic, Romanesque, and Baroque. The buildings are most stunning near Salamanca University. Founded in 1134, it’s the third oldest university in the world.

Flint Mines of Spiennes

6000 years ago, Neolithic people in Belgium started digging their way out of the Stone Age. They dug a labyrinth of flint mines—the largest and earliest mines on the Continent. The flint harvested was knapped into axes and adzes, which were used to build Europe’s earliest huts, establishing the first settled communities. This is where the Bronze Age began!

Calakmul

Calakmul was a Mayan superpower. It was the capital of the Snake Kingdom and was a major player in Mesoamerica for more than 12 centuries. Home to nearly 7000 ancient structures—including a remarkable pyramid—the architecture is the best preserved in Mexico. You’ll just have to hike far off the beaten path to get there.