Published in the “Official Gazette of BiH”, no. 97/09.

Pursuant to Article V para. 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Article 39 para. 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, at a session held from 11 to 17 September 2007 the Commission adopted a

D E C I S I O N

I

The historic site of the necropolis with stećak and nišan tombstones in Krupac, Municipality East Ilidža, is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument). 

The National Monument consists of 21 stećak tombstones and 12 nišan tombstones relocated from their original site in order to open the quarry in Krupac.

The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 122/1 (new survey), title deed no. 52, c.m. Krupac, corresponding to part of c.p. 630/10 and c.p. 630/11 (old survey), c.m. Hrasnica, Land Register entry no. 621, Municipality East Ilidža, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The provisions relating to protection measures set forth by the Law on Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established pursuant to Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of Republika Srpska no. 9/02 and 70/06) shall apply to the National Monument.

II

The Government of Republika Srpska shall be responsible for providing the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary for the protection, conservation and presentation of the National Monument.

The Commission to Preserve National Monuments (hereinafter: the Commission) shall determine the technical requirements and secure the funds for preparing and setting up signboards with basic details of the monument and the Decision to proclaim the property a National Monument.

III

To ensure the on-going protection of the National Monument, the following measures are hereby prescribed;

Protection Zone I consists of the area defined in Clause 1 para. 3 of this Decision. In this zone the following protection measures shall apply:

-       all works are prohibited with the exception of investigative and conservation works, including those designed to present the monument, with the approval of the ministry responsible for regional planning in Republika Srpska and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of Republika Srpska;

-       a hedge shall be planted around the National Monument;

-       the graves shall be cleared of overgrowth;

-       archaeological investigations shall be carried out on the graves and any mortal remains found shall be conserved;

-       a programme for the presentation of the National Monument shall be drawn up and implemented;

-       the site of the monument shall be open and accessible to the public, and may be used for educational and cultural purposes.

Protection Level II applies to a buffer zone of 50 m around the necropolis.  In this zone:

-       all works that could have the effect of altering the site or the environs are prohibited;

-       the dumping of waste is prohibited.

IV

All executive and area development planning acts not in accordance with the provisions of this Decision are hereby revoked.

V

Everyone, and in particular the competent authorities of the Republika Srpska, and urban and municipal authorities, shall refrain from any action that might damage the National Monument or jeopardize the preservation and rehabilitation thereof.

VI

The Government of Republika Srpska, the Ministry responsible for regional planning in the Republika Srpska and the heritage protection authority of the Republika Srpska, and the Municipal Authorities in charge of urban planning and land registry affairs, shall be notified of this Decision in order to carry out the measures stipulated in Articles II – V of this Decision, and the Authorized Municipal Court shall be notified for the purposes of registration in the Land Register.

VII

The elucidation and accompanying documentation form an integral part of this Decision, which may be viewed by interested parties on the premises or by accessing the website of the Commission (http://www.aneks8komisija.com.ba).

VIII

Pursuant to Art. V para. 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, decisions of the Commission are final.

IX

This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Gazette of BiH.

This Decision has been adopted by the following members of the Commission: Zeynep Ahunbay, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, Dubravko Lovrenović, Ljiljana Ševo and Tina Wik.

No: 05/2-2-74/06-6

12 September 2007

Sarajevo

Chair of the Commission

Dubravko Lovrenović

E l u c i d a t i o n

I – INTRODUCTION

Pursuant to Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Law on Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established pursuant to Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a “National Monument” is an item of public property proclaimed by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments to be a National Monument pursuant to Articles V and VI of Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina  and property entered on the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of  BiH no. 33/02) until the Commission reaches a final decision on its status, as to which there is no time limit and regardless of whether a petition for the property in question has been submitted or not.

On 6 April 2006 the Fund for the Protection and Maintenance of the Burial Grounds of Shahids and Fallen Combatants of Sarajevo Canton submitted a petition/proposal to designate the necropolis with stećak tombstones in Krupac as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Pursuant to the provisions of the law, the Commission proceeded to carry out the procedure for reaching a final decision to designate the Property as a National Monument, pursuant to Article V, para. 4 of Annex 8 and Article 35 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.

II - PROCEDURE PRIOR TO DECISION

In the procedure preceding the adoption of a final decision to proclaim the property a national monument, the following documentation was inspected:

-       Documentation on the location and current owner and user of the property (copy of cadastral plan and copy of land registry entry).

-       Data on the current condition and use of the property, including a description and photographs, data of war damage, data on restoration or other works on the property, etc.

-       Historical, architectural and other documentary material on the property.

The findings based on a review of the above documentation and the condition of the site are as follows

1. Details of the property

Location

The village of Krupac is at the south-eastern end of the Sarajevo plain, where the river Željeznica emerges from a gorge and begins to flow through the plains. The necropolis is close to the intersection of the roads to Trnovo and Bjelašnica.  Above it is a hill topped by the old Teferić fort(1). The necropolises are to the east of the main road to Trnovo. To the south of the necropolis is the turning for the village of Krupac.

The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 122/1 (new survey), title deed no. 52, c.m. Krupac, coresponding to part of c.p. 630/10 and c.p. 630/11 (old survey), c.m. Hrasnica, Land Register entry no. 621, Municipality East Ilidža, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Historical information

            In mediaeval times the Sarajevo area and its environs, including the Sarajevo plain, was in the župa (county) of Vrhbosna. This is one of the least studied regions in Bosnia and Herzegovina as regards the period prior to the arrival of the Ottomans. During late mediaeval times the county remained an agricultural region.

A detailed reconnaissance of the area from Hrasnica to the south to Otes in the north, close to where the Željeznica joins the river Bosna, revealed about 20 necropolises of stećak tombstones. Sizeable mediaeval burial grounds in the Sarajevo plain have been investigated in Vrutci and Mihaljevići and indicate the existence of quite sizeable mediaeval settlements. In Donji Kotorac is a family necropolis which had 59 stećak tombstones, of which only a stećak with an epitaph has survived, marking the grave of Bokčin, only son of prince Stipko Ugarčić "on his noble land." Despite the meagre historical documents and degree of research, and the destruction of mediaeval remains by rapid urbanization, much evidence of settlement in this region can be gleaned from toponomastics(2). Mediaeval toponyms that have survived to this day in the names of inhabited areas include Lužani, Butmir, Vojkovići, Stup and Otes. The toponym Kovačevina, where the stećak tombstones and burial ground in Krupac were originally located, suggests certain economic activities on the part of the inhabitants.  Numerous toponyms indicate the structure of the agricultural estates and the centres of social life of a given community.

Early Ottoman censuses dating from 1455 and 1468 provide much more information about the region. At that time Hrasnica was one of the largest settlements in the Željeznica basin.  There was a market in Kotorac, which rapidly died out. Many villages in this area belonged to the timars (feudal landholdings) of the garrison of the Hodidjed fort. The village of Krupac is referred to as one of these.

The village of Krupac is at the south-eastern end of the Sarajevo plain, by the river Željeznica, which emerges at that point from a gorge. Above Krupac and the necropolis of stećak tombstones and graves, on a nearby hill, is the small fortress of Teferić, which was built at this strategic site at the entrance to the fertile valley of the Sarajevo plain. It is clear that life continued in this village after the Ottoman conquest of these parts.

2. Description of the property

Until 1978 the entire complex was in Kovačevina, to the west of the Vojkovići-Trnovo road. The old Muslim burial ground was to the south-east of the quarry in Krupac. To the east of the burial ground was an Orthodox cemetery, with the necropolis of stećci (pl. of stećak) forming an extension to it. This sepulchral ensemble was at risk from the quarry workings, which were steadily expanding towards the necropolis. Of the 37 stećci counted by Đuro Basler in 1951, all that remained were 23, damaged and shifted from their original positions. In 1976 the extraction of stone from the quarry extended right up to the tombstones, leaving the necropolis on the edge of a 10-15 m deep pit. To the south-west of the necropolis, a new rural road was laid. The old rural road, which was still in constant use by the local people, ran through the middle of the burial ground, dividing it into two. Many of the nišan tombstones were broken in half(3). 

The necropolis with the stećci and the Muslim graves were moved to the east of the road. There is a new Orthodox cemetery not far from the newly-located tombstones.

The tombstones were laid out on the new site over an area of about 55 m (north-south) x 20 m, or 1100 m2. The group of nišan tombstones were relocated to the northern part of the plot and the stećci were distributed over the entire area.

On the new site, there are 21 intact stećci: one gabled (no. 22), six gabled with plinth (nos. 1, 10, 14, 16, 20, 23), nine chest-shaped (nos. 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 17, 21), and five chest-shaped with plinth (nos. 3, 6, 13, 18, 19). There is part of one stećak of which only the sunken base remains, so that its shape is not known (no. 17), and part of the corner of a tombstone (no. 9).

The stećci lie either west-east or north-south. The workmanship is crude, but there was an obvious tendency on the part of the stonemason or the person commissioning the tombstones to put the emphasis on size, or even to make tombstones with plinths, of which there are almost as many as there are without. Only one stećak is decorated, while one has a small rosette carved onto the plinth. The decorations are in bas relief.

Necropolis of stećci

Stećak no. 1 Gabled with plinth, measuring (chest) 1.45 m in length x  0.6 m in width  x  0.3 m in height; plinth: 1.7 x 0.8 x 0.25 m. Lying W-E. Poor workmanship. The west end of the gable and part of the plinth have been broken off.

Stećak no. 2 Chest, measuring 1.7 x 0.6 x 0.4 m. Lying N-S. There are almost no signs of the stonemason's work, with the natural shape of the stone barely hewn.

Stećak no. 3 Chest with plinth, measuring (chest) 1.5 x 0.8 x 0.27 m; (plinth) 1.9 x 1 x 0.15 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 4 Chest, sunken, measuring 1.8 x 0.9 x 0.2 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 5 Chest, measuring 1.5 x 0.77 x 0.35 m. Lying N-S.

Stećak no. 6 Chest with plinth, measuring (chest) 1.2 x 0.8 x 0.8; (plinth) 1.4 x 1 x 0.2 m. The top surface is angled lengthwise to a height of 0.8 m to the north to 0 m to the south. Lying N-S.

Stećak no. 7 Chest, measuring 1.65 x 0.7 x 0.35 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 8 Chest, measuring 2.15 x 0.9 x 0.8 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 9 Broken-off corner of a stećak or remains of the corner of a stećak.

Stećak no. 10 Gabled with plinth. The sides of the gabled part narrow towards the base.  Measuring (gabled) 1.45 x 0.60 (0.56) x 0.8 (height of the gable itself is 0.2) m. Lying N-S.

Stećak no. 11 Chest, measuring 1.9 x 1.2 x 0.8 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 12 Chest, measuring 1.9 x 1.07 x 0.4 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 13 Chest with plinth, measuring (chest) 1.46 x 0.64 x 0.36 m; (plinth) 1.85 x 0.76 m, sunken. Lying N-S.

Stećak no. 14 Gabled with plinth, measuring (gabled) 1.6 x 0.76 x 0.53 (height of the gable itself is 0.06 m); (plinth) 2 x 1.2 x 0.3 m. Lying W-E. The long side of the plinth has a small quadrifoil rosette.

Stećak no. 15 Lower part of a broken stećak. Partly buried.

Stećak no. 16 Gabled with plinth, measuring (gabled) 1.7 x 0.75 x 0.55 (height of the gable itself is 0.1 m); (plinth) 1.9 x 0.85 x 0.25 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 17 Chest, measuring 1.8 x 0.65 x 0.43 m. Lying N-S.

Stećak no. 18 Chest with plinth, measuring (chest) 1.7 x 0.73 x 0.5 m; (plinth) 2 x 0.9 x 0.13 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 19 Chest with plinth, measuring (chest):1.8 x 1.23 x 0.45 m; (plinth) 2.16 x 1.45 x 0.12 m. Lying W-E.

Stećak no. 20 Gabled with plinth, measuring (gabled) 1.55 x 0.78 (0.7) x 68 (height of the gable itself is 0.2 m); (plinth) 1.30 x 1 x 0.24 m. Lying W-E. The ends are decorated: the west end has a crescent moon and the west [sic] end has a crescent moon with two demiorbs. Bas relief.

Stećak no. 21 chest with plinth, measuring (chest) 1.7 x 0.7 x 0.35, with the plinth marked at the base by a projection of about 2 cm.

Stećak no. 22 Gabled, partly buried, measuring 1.4 x 0.7 with just part of the gable, to a height of 0.17 m, above ground Lying W-E

Stećak no. 23 Gabled with plinth, measuring (gabled): length (in bushes), width 0.7, height 0.7 m. Lying W-E

Old Muslim burial ground

            At the northern end of the site is a group of 12 nišan tombstones and two short stubs remaining from tombstones belonging to the burial ground (nos. 6 and 12). Common to all these tombstones are: the shape of the nišans, dating from the very earliest times, where there is still a strong influence from the stonemasonry tradition of the stećak; bas-relief motifs transposed from stećak tombstones; the absence of epitaphs; their location together with the stećak tombstones; the careful workmanship of some of the tombstones. The shapes of the nišan tombstones, either in the form of a stele with a gabled top, some of which were topped by a demiorb, or in the form of pillars with prismatic tops or a broken prism topped by a demiorb. All the decorations on the nišans are carved in bas relief. 

The tombstones are erected with the wider faces (west and east) lying north-south. The tombstones and the decorative motifs are worked in the same way. These tombstones, and their location alongside a necropolis with stećak tombstones (on their original site), have all the characteristics of the most ancient nišan tombstones. There are nišans of these shapes in burial grounds in Sarajevo (at Alifakovac, by the Ali pasha mosque, Hambina carina, in Lukavica, in Hrasnic, and in Trnovo – in Govedovići and Turovi). The tombstones that most resemble these in shape and decoration are those in the old burial ground in Hrasnica (which has disappeared as this built-up neighbourhood expanded) and in Lukavica(4). It is impossible to determine when exactly these tombstones came into being – it could have been as early as the second half of the 15th century, when the Ottomans finally established their rule in this area, or just before the 16th century. Nišan tombstones of these shapes and with these decorations have been recorded throughout Bosnia and parts of Herzegovina, though this type of tombstone has not been well studied(5).  

The report on the relocation of the necropolis and Muslim burial ground reveals that only one grave was moved with its pair of tombstones (nos. 1 and 13 on the plan). These two nišans certainly belonged to the same grave. The distance between them is more than 3 m.

Nišan no. 1 Nišan in the form of a stele ending in a gable, measuring 1.4 m in height (of which 0.3 m is the height of the gable) x 0.58 in width x 0.24 m thick. The wider sides face east and west, the narrower north and south. The top half of the west face is decorated with four demiorbs below which is a crescent moon with its horns upwards, and the lower half with a sword and another demiorb. The east face has three demiorbs on the top half with a crescent moon below them, and another demiorb and a drawn bow with an arrow on the lower half. The bottom of the north side has a mace and the south side two demiorbs.

In a good state of preservation, apart from a thin coat of moss on the narrower sides of the gable and the top of the gable being broken off.

Nišan no. 2 Nišan in the form of a stele, the same as no. 1, measuring 1.38 (of which 0.25 is the height of the gable) x 0.46 x 0.36 m. The west face has a crescent moon with its horns pointing upwards. The narrow north and south sides each have a pair of demiorbs.

The tombstone has a vertical crack.

Nišan no. 3 Nišan in the form of a stele, the same as nos.1 and 2, measuring 1.1.85 (of which 0.30 is the height of the gable) x 0.51 x 0.25 m. The west face has a demiorb in the gable and a crescent moon with a demiorb below it on the top half. The top half of the east side has two demiorbs with a crescent moon centrally below them, with below it another demiorb. The narrower sides each have a pair of demiorbs. At the top of these sides, the transition from the gable to the slab is accentuated. There are cracks here and there, and the top is covered with moss.

Nišan no. 4 Nišan in the shape of a block with the top corners rounded, measuring 0.92 x  0.40 (0.37 at the base) x 30 (0.35 at the base) m. Undecorated. There are cracks in several places along the tombstone.

Nišan no. 5 Nišan in the shape of a block with a pyramidal top, measuring 1.3 (of which 0.35 is the height of the top) x 0.60 x 0.26 m. The ends of the vertical sides have chamfered edges 2 cm wide. The west, north and east sides each have a demiorb. There are quite large cracks on the top part of the nišan.

Nišan no. 6 piece of a nišan tombstone in the form of a cylindrical column, diameter 0.2 m.

Nišan no. 7 Nišan in the form of a stele terminating in a gable, measuring 1.16 (of which the height of the gable is 0.2) x 0.45 x 0.19 m. Both narrower sides are decorated with a sword. The top of the gable has been broken off, and the body of the stele is cracked. There is a thin coat of moss here and there on the tombstone.

Nišan no. 8 Nišan of the same shape as no. 7, measuring 1.18 (of which the height of the gable is 0.3) x 0.37 x 0.24 m. The narrower sides of the gable are damaged.

Nišan no. 9 Nišan in the shape of a block with a pyramidal top on which is a demiorb.  The tombstone measures 0.83 (of which the height of the top is 0.13) x 0.34 x 0.25 m. The edges of the sides are chamfered. A mace is carved on the north side. Minor damage can be seen on the tombstone.

Nišan no. 10 Nišan in the form of a stele with the top part of the gable knocked off. The surviving height is 0.62 (of which about 0.1 is the gable) x 0.30 x 018 m.

Nišan no. 11 Nišan in the form of a stele with an elongated gable, measuring 0.6 (of which the height of the gable is 0.24) x 0.40 x 0.19 m.

Nišan no. 12 Nišan in the form of a stele with a gable of which the top is broken off. The surviving height is 0.69 (of which the height of the remaining part of the gable is 0.13) x 0.3 x 0.1 m. There is a demiorb in the middle of the east face. The north side of the tombstone is cracked vertically.

Nišan no. 13 piece of, probably, the top part of a stele with a rounded top. The remains of the nišan measure 0.23 m in width and 0.3 m in height.

Nišan no. 14 Nišan in the shape of a block with a pyramidal top, measuring 0.62 (of which the height of the top is 0.2) x 0.29 x 0.22 m. The tip of the tombstone is broken off.

3. Legal status to date

By Ruling of the City Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments no. 552/76 or 8 December 1976, it was determined that the necropolis of stećak and nišan tombstones in Krupac was of the nature of a cultural monument, and it was placed under the protection of the social community.

The collective valorization of the Regional Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina to 2000, Stage B, Natural and Culturo-Historical Values, compiled in 1980, left many burial grounds unrecorded, including the one in Krupac.

4. Research and conservation and restoration works

From 10 to 12 August 1977, all the tombstones were moved to a new site, where they are still. Twenty three stećak tombstones and 14 nišan tombstones were moved. The works were carried out by experts from the City Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments, Sarajevo.

It would appear from the report that only one grave had both its nišan tombstones in place (nos. 1 and 3 on the plan). The nišans (nos. 2 and 4 on the plan) that were set up on the new site as a pair, had already been extracted from the ground during World War II, serving as breastworks for some Italian troops. The bones from the graves were placed in two coffins and buried between nišan tombstones nos. 1 and 13 and 2 and 4 on the new site.

The necessary conservation works were carried out on the nišan tombstones at the time of their transfer to the new site.

5. Current condition of the property

During an on-site inspection in August 2007 it was found that the site is not kept maintained. Some of the tombstones have cracks caused by natural factors. The same was observed on the remains of two nišan tombstones.  Signs of repairs can be seen on some of the nišans. 

6. Specific risks to which the property is exposed

-       Natural factors will lead to further deterioration.

-       Lack of maintenance.

III – CONCLUSION

Applying the Criteria for the adoption of a decision on proclaiming an item of property a national monument (Official Gazette of BiH nos. 33/02 and 15/03), the Commission has enacted the Decision cited above.

The Decision was based on the following criteria:

A.         Time frame

B.         Historical value

C.         Artistic and aesthetic value

C.i.       quality of workmanship

C.iii.      proportions

C.v.      value of details

D.         Clarity (documentary, scientific and educational value)

D.i.       material evidence of a lesser known historical era

D.ii.      evidence of historical change

E.         Symbolic value

E.ii.      religious value

E.iii.      traditional value

E.v.      significance for the identity of a group of people

G.         Authenticity

G.i.       form and design of nišan tombstones

G.iv.     traditions and techniques

G.vi.     spirit and feeling

H.         Rarity and representativity

H.i.       unique or rare example of a certain type or style

The following documents form an integral part of this Decision:

-       Copy of cadastral plan

-       Copy of land register entry

-       Photodocumentation (photographs taken on site on 1 August 2007)

-       Plan of the necropolis (by Adi Čorović)

Bibliography

During the procedure to designate the monument as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina the following works were consulted:

1947.    Sergejevski, Dimitrije. “Arheološki nalazi u Sarajevu i okolici” (Archaeological Finds in Sarajevo and its Environs), Jnl of the National Museum in Sarajevo, new series no. II. Sarajevo: 1947, 13-50.

1971.    Bešlagić, Šefik. Stećci, kataloško-topografski pregled (Stećak tombstones, a catalogue-cum-topographical survey). Sarajevo: 1971, 142-143.

1978.    Bešlagić, Šefik. Nišani XV i XV vijeka u Bosni i Hercegovini (15th and 16th century Nišan Tombstones in BiH). Sarajevo: Academy of Sciences of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Transactions, Bk. LIII, Social Sciences Dept., bk. 30, 1978.

2005.    Mušeta Ašćerić, Vesna. Sarajevo i njegova okolina u XV stoljeću. Između istoka i zapada (Sarajevo and its  Environs in the 15th Century. Between East and West). Sarajevo: 2005.