UNESCO World Heritage... IP

The label "UNESCO World Heritage" conjures up images of ancient ruins and medieval castles, picturesque villages and unspoiled land. Not necessarily of intellectual property, however.

But in addition to the well-known World Heritage Convention, which seeks to protect the cultural and natural heritage of the world, there is a lesser known program of the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) called "Memory of the World", which seeks to preserve documentary world heritage. Its "Memory of the World Register" lists documents of unique cultural value.

One such document, and recent addition to the UNESCO Memory of the World Register, is the German patent for a "Vehicle with gas engine operation" granted to Carl Benz in 1886, which therefore may now be proudly referred to as a "UNESCO World Heritage Document". The 1886 patent "is of worldwide significance and documents the beginning of the emergence of

individual mobilization in industrialized countries and its spread throughout the world." Somehow, this Kat does not believe the preservation of this document depended on its inclusion in the UNESCO list, but rather on its use for the public relations department of Daimler, but who is to quibble.

Should you want to embellish your wall with a copy of a UNESCO World Heritage Document, you may do so courtesy of espacenet, previously known as patent database, but now also a World Heritage Document Distribution Site.