Moler cliffs at Limfjorden added to UNESCO World Heritage List

The moler cliffs along the Limfjord tell the story of the Earth's formation and the volcanic eruptions that separated the continents.

Hanklit is a 60-meter-high cliff located on the Limfjord, at Thisted Bredning on the north side of Mors. Together with Knudeklint on the neighboring island of Fur, it has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. (Photo: © Bo Amstrup, Ritzau Scanpix) 17 minutes ago

A unique piece of Denmark has just been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. Namely, the moler cliffs Hanklit on Mors and Knudeklint on the island of Fur in the Limfjord.

This was decided this morning, when the UNESCO World Heritage Committee met in Busan, South Korea, to inscribe new sites on the list.

The cliffs were created 25,000 years ago, when ice pushed the seabed up into enormous hills during the last ice age. But what is particularly interesting about the cliffs is more than 50 million years old.

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Mo-what-now?

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Moler is a special, light type of clay, primarily composed of microscopic silica shells from algae and volcanic ash.

'Mo' is a Danish dialect word meaning 'chalk' or 'clay deposit'.

They consist of more than 100 layers of clay and ash, which were slowly built up while volcanoes raged and a moler sea covered most of Denmark. Fish, birds, insects, and plants were occasionally trapped in the layers and can today be excavated as small fossils.

Now it has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Hanklit is 60 meters high and lies at Thisted Bredning on the north side of Mors. On the neighboring island of Fur, Knude Klint is the largest moler cliff, reaching up to 30 meters in some places.

When a site is added to the list, it marks that the place is significant and considered "irreplaceable for all of humanity."

* A turtle fossil is displayed at the Moler Museum on Mors. It is just one of countless fossils found in the moler layers. (Photo: © James Brooks, AFP/Ritzau Scanpix)

* Hanklit (pictured) and Knudeklint are picturesquely situated on the Limfjord. (Photo: © James Brooks, AFP/Ritzau Scanpix)

* The layers of volcanic ash lie like stripes in the cliffs and can be seen with the naked eye. (Photo: © Bo Amstrup, Ritzau Scanpix)

* Hanklit can also be experienced from the beach. (Photo: © James Brooks, AFP/Ritzau Scanpix)

1 / 4 A turtle fossil is displayed at the Moler Museum on Mors. It is just one of countless fossils found in the moler layers. (Photo: © James Brooks, AFP/Ritzau Scanpix) 1 / 4 Hanklit (pictured) and Knudeklint are picturesquely situated on the Limfjord. (Photo: © James Brooks, AFP/Ritzau Scanpix) 2 / 4 The layers of volcanic ash lie like stripes in the cliffs and can be seen with the naked eye. (Photo: © Bo Amstrup, Ritzau Scanpix) 3 / 4 Hanklit can also be experienced from the beach. (Photo: © James Brooks, AFP/Ritzau Scanpix) 4 / 4

Already, 13 other sites in Denmark have been designated, including Roskilde Cathedral, Møns Klint, and Christiansfeld. Additionally, three sites in Greenland are on the list.

It is the UNESCO World Heritage Committee that makes the decision based on requirements and criteria regarding research, protection, management, and dissemination.

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The World Heritage List

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The countries that have joined the UNESCO World Heritage Convention commit to preserving that part of the world's cultural and natural heritage which is irreplaceable for all of humanity.

This is done by inscribing the sites on the World Heritage List.

Denmark now has 14 sites inscribed on the World Heritage List: The Moler Cliffs, the Jelling Monuments, Roskilde Cathedral, Kronborg Castle, Stevns Klint, Møns Klint, the Wadden Sea, Christiansfeld, the Parforce Hunting Landscape in North Zealand, and five Viking Age ring fortresses. In addition, there are three sites in Greenland.

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