Chile National Monument

The National Monuments of Chile (Spanish: Monumentos Nacionales de Chile), also abbreviated MN, are the constructions, elements and places that form part of the country's cultural heritage, and they are protected by law. They are National Heritage Sites that are an important part of the culture of Chile.

The law N° 17.288 of national monuments stipulates that:

Are national monuments stays under the State's tuition and protection, the places, ruins, constructions or objects of historic or artistic nature; the Indian burial grounds or cemeteries or other aborigin rests, the pieces or antropo-archaeologic, paleontologic or naturally-formed objects, that exists under or over the national territory surface or in the submarine platform of its jurisdictional waters and which their conservation interests the history, arts or science; the sanctuaries of nature; monuments, statues, columns, pyramids, fonts, shields, crowns, inscriptions and, generally, the objects destined to stay on a public site, with conmemorative character., that law creates the National Monuments Council

There are 938 national monuments as at October 2008. The monuments are grouped on the following categories:

Are considered National Monuments:

...the places, ruins, constructions and objects, of fiscal, municipal or particular property that by its quality and historic or artistic interest, or by its antiquity, could be declared such as by supreme decree, dictated by request and previous agreement by the Council.

In the register of the National Monuments Council, there are 633 elements (October 2008). Some of the most notable are:

Public Monuments are all the objects used to perpetuate the memory on public places. The Law determines the Public Monuments as:

...statues, columns, fonts, pyramids, shields, crowns, inscriptions and, generally, all the objects placed to perpetuate memory on countries, streets, public squares or other public places.

The National Monuments Council of Chile is trying to create a register in which all of the Public Monuments could be listed, using information from the local authorities. As of October 2008, there are 150 Public Monuments on the list.

Are considered Archaeologic Monuments:

... places, ruins, deposits and antropo-archaeologic pieces that exists under or over the national territory surface.

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Wikipedia