Brief synthesisThe world's first university botanical garden was created in Padua in 1545, which makes the Botanical Garden of Padua the oldest surviving example of this type of cultural property. The Botanical Garden of Padua is the original of botanical gardens in Europe, and represents the birth of botanical science, of scientific exchanges, and understanding of the relationship between nature and culture. Criterion (iii): For more than five centuries, the Botanical Garden of Padua has represented an exceptional testimony of scientific and cultural significance. Many renowned botanists become ‘Praefectus’ of the Botanical Garden of Padua, leaving evidence of their scientific works in the plants named after them (e.g. The City Administration protects a 40 m belt around the entire Garden, under a law approved in 1995 (”Protection area of the Botanical Garden”).