The 11,130m2 property, the first to be inscribed in the country,
with its imposing stone walls is the best preserved of ten
fortresses in the Lobi area and is part of a larger group of 100
stone enclosures that bear testimony to the power of the trans-
Saharan gold trade. Situated near the borders of Côte d’Ivoire,
Ghana and Togo, the ruins have recently been shown to be at
least 1,000 years old. The settlement was occupied by the Lohron
or Koulango peoples, who controlled the extraction and
transformation of gold in the region when it reached its apogee
from the 14th to the 17th century. Much mystery surrounds this
site large parts of which have yet to be excavated. The
settlement seems to have been abandoned during some periods
during its long history. The property which was finally deserted
in the early 19th century is expected to yield much more
information. The Ruins of Loropéni © DGPC Burkina Faso
Outstanding Universal Value The dramatic and memorable Ruins of
Loropéni consist of imposing, tall, laterite