Status of monument -> National monument

Published in the „Official Gazette of BiH“ no. 26/08.

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 29 January to 4 February 2008 the Commission adopted a

D E C I S I O N

I

The historic site of the Mramorje-Grborezi necropolis with stećak tombstones, Municipality Livno, is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument).

The National Monument consists of the necropolis with stećak tombstones and movable heritage found on the historic site and now housed in the National Museum in Sarajevo, as listed in the inventory records of the Museum.

The National Monument is located on a site designated as part of cadastral plot no. 1608 (Mramorje), Land Register entry no. 244, title deed no. 501, part of c.p. no.  1609/1 (house and courtyard), Land Register entry no. 244, title deed no. 501, part of c.p. no  1609/2 (garden by house), Land Register entry no. 244, title deed no. 501, cadastral municipality Guber, Municipality Livno, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The provisions relating to protection measures set forth by the Law on the 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 the Federation of  BiH nos. 2/02, 27/02, 6/04 and 51/07) shall apply to the National Monument.

II

The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the Government of the Federation) shall be responsible for providing the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary to protect, conserve, and display the National Monument.

The Commission to Preserve National Monuments (hereinafter: the Commission) shall determine the technical requirements and secure the funds for preparing and erecting 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 on the area defined in Clause 1 para. 3 of this Decision., the following protection measures are hereby stipulated:

• all works are prohibited other than conservation and restoration works, including works designed to display the monument, with the approval of the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
• 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 Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Canton, 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 removal of the movable heritage items referred to in Clause 1 para. 2 of this Decision (hereinafter: the movable heritage) from Bosnia and Herzegovina is prohibited.

By way of exception to the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Clause, the temporary removal from Bosnia and Herzegovina of the movable heritage for the purposes of display or conservation shall be permitted if it is established that conservation works cannot be carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Permission for temporary removal under the conditions stipulated in the preceding paragraph shall be issued by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, if it is determined beyond doubt that it will not jeopardize the movable heritage in any way. 

In granting permission for the temporary removal of the movable heritage, the Commission shall stipulate all the conditions under which the removal from Bosnia and Herzegovina may take place, the date by which the items shall be returned to the country, and the responsibility of individual authorities and institutions for ensuring that these conditions are met, and shall notify the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the relevant security service, the customs authority of  Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the general public accordingly.

VII

The Government of the Federation, the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning, the Federal Ministry responsible for culture, the Federation heritage protection authority, 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 to VI of this Decision, and the Authorized Municipal Court shall be notified for the purposes of registration in the Land Register.

VIII

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) 

IX

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.

X

On the date of adoption of this Decision, the National Monument shall be deleted from the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of BiH no. 33/02, Official Gazette of Republika Srpska no. 79/02, Official Gazette of the Federation of BiH no. 59/02, and Official Gazette of Brčko District BiH no. 4/03), where it featured under serial no. 344.

XI

This Decision shall enter into force on the date of its adoption and shall be published 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: 07.2-2-124/06=6

30 January 2008

Sarajevo

Chair of the Commission

Amra Hadžimuhamedović

E l u c i d a t I o n

I – INTRODUCTION

Pursuant to Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Law on the 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.

The Commission to Preserve National Monuments issued a Decision to add the necropolis with stećak tombstones in the village of Grborezi, Municipality Livno, to the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, numbered as 344.

The movable property from the site is housed in the National Museum in Sarajevo, and is listed in the inventory.

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 register 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, as set out in the bibliography forming part of this Decision.

The findings based on the review of the above documentation and the condition of the property are as follows:

1. Details of the property        

Location

The site of Mramorje is at an altitude of 716 m, at longitude 43°47’55.4”, latitude 16°54’14.8”, 1.5 km west of the village of Grborezi, and 11 km west of Livno, just north of the road to Split.

The National Monument is located on a site designated as part of cadastral plot no. 1608 (Mramorje), Land Register entry no. 244, title deed no. 501, part of c.p. no. 1609/1 (house and courtyard), Land Register entry no. 244, title deed no. 501, part of c.p. no  1609/2 (garden by house), Land Register entry no. 244, title deed no. 501, cadastral municipality Guber, Municipality Livno, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Historical information

In the 9th century, the county of Livno probably covered not only the Livno plain but also the Duvno and Glamoč plains. The country town was Livno, which is first referred to in 892 by the name of Cleuna, in a charter of the Croatian prince Muncimir, which cites Želimir, lord of the county of Livno, in the capacity of witness (M. Petrinec, 1999, p. 32). The name of the town also appears in a census of inhabited forts in the mid 10th century work by the Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, De Administrando Imperio, in which he describes Croatia and lists its counties, with Livno first on the list of eleven.  Livno county probably covered the Duvno and Glamoč plains as well as the Livno plain.  A charter of King Zvonimir dating from the last quarter of the 11th century refers to Dobrila, comes (count) of Livno.

Ecclesiastically speaking, in mediaeval times Livno was under the jurisdiction of the Split archbishopric, and its powers were confirmed by the Hungaro-Croatian kings Koloman (1103) and Andrija II (1207). Pope Celestine III also included the county of Livno within this bishopric. With the formation of the Bosnian vicariate in 1340, Livno formed part of the Duvno custodiate, which covered western Herzegovina, the Cetina region and Tropolje (Završje).

From the early 13th century, the area covering the Livno, Glamoč and Duvno plains was increasingly referred to as Tropolje (Tres campi). In 1326, during the reign of Stjepan II Kotromanić (1314-1353), Tropolje became part of the Bosnian state, after which it was known as Završje or the Western Marches, reflecting a central Bosnian point of view.

The Livno fort itself (castrum Cleune) was also known at times as the Bistrica fort(1) (castrum Bystryze), since the mediaeval fort, of which the ramparts and towers are still visible, was above the source of the river Bistrica.

The major mediaeval road that linked Split with the Livno region ran alongside the present-day village of Grborezi (Jireček, K.J, p.128, 1951). Whether Grborezi existed in mediaeval times is not know. There is reference to it as a settlement in a Turkish census of the Bosnian nahijas(2) and timars(3) in the early 17th century (Š. Bešlagić, p.11, 1964). One of the indigenous clans of this region is the Sučić clan, who are believed to descend from the Sučević tribe, referred to in King Stjepan Ostoja's famous charter of 1400 as one of the twelve tribes of „Hlivno“ (Š. Bešlagić, p.11, 1964).

Stećak tombstones are of particular value among the cultural and historical heritage mnonuments of the rich past of the Livno region. Most of them in this area are of poor workmanship, with many amorphous in shape, few bearing decorations of quality, and many sunk into the ground as a result of the lie of the land. Anđelko Zelenika has provided a description of 43 necropolises with stećak tombstones in the Livno region (A. Zelenika, p. 89, 1994).

2. Description of the property

Description of the graves

The name of this burial ground in Grborezi, Mramorje, derives from the stećak tombstones or „marbles,“ as they are known locally.           

The graves lay east-west with a slight deviation south-west/north-east. A total of 265 graves have been excavated (grave no. 97 with stećak tombstone has not been excavated, but was left for possible further orientation). The graves fall into three groups: simple dug-out earth pits, simple dug-out pits with wooden boards or coffins, and graves with stone surrounds.

Simple graves accounted for 38% of the total, at 102. The grave was rectangular, or occasionally oval, in shape. This type of grave appears quite early on and continued in use for a long time, usually preceding the other types but also featuring alongside them.

There were only 26 graves where wood was used (10%), or 20% of the total number of simple graves. The remains of wood were also found in 22 of the graves revetted with stone. This type of grave persisted until late mediaeval times; the wooden planks were probably placed around the deceased's body in the grave itself.

Stone graves are taken to include all those in which stone was used in any form, and account for 52% of the total, at 138. Most of them had a stone surround in the shape of an equal-sided trapezium and were covered by slabs. Of this type of grave, 86 had stećak tombstones. It is impossible to say how long such graves were used, but they probably first appeared relatively late (Š. Bešlagić, p. 93, 1964).

There were 62 graves with multiple burials (two, three or more skeletons. In all, 355 people were buried there, all inhumations with the deceased lying on their backs, legs outstretched and, unlike most other burial grounds (especially in Dalmatia), usually with their arms crossed on their chest or stomach. In this kind of burial ground (in rows, with a significant number of multiple burials, including two-tier graves), the graves must have been marked in some way. Many of them were marked with stećak tombstones; the others would have had wooden markers, which have vanished over the centuries.

Description of grave goods

            Grave goods were found in 73 graves (28%), a total of 146 artefacts not counting pottery shards. These artefacts were classified according to the material they were made of: metal, pottery, textiles and other. A relatively large number of grave goods were of metal: gold, silver, bronze and iron, used to make diadems, earrings, necklaces, buttons, rings, buckles, clasps and tongues for belts(4),  knives and pins.

Earrings (of which there were 57 in all) are the most numerous and valuable grave goods, found in 27 graves. They were made of silver, silver-gilt or pure gold, using various techniques: casting, twisting, repoussé, filigree and granulation. They also came in a range of shapes: plain links, S-shaped earrings, earrings with grape-like pendants, earrings with three large equal-sized beads, double beads with tear-drop-shaped pendants, and hoop earrings. Thirty-four examples of triple-beaded earrings were found in 18 simple graves, mainly women's but two men's.  Most of these were of elaborate workmanship. Five examples had an S-curve at one end of the link. In terms of workmanship and decoration, they were classified into five groups, within which there are also subgroups. Earrings very similar to these, or with some differences, have been found mainly in Dalmatia, but none exactly like these have yet been found in published material. They range in date from the 10th to the 15th century (Š. Bešlagić, p. 94, 1964).

Double-beaded earrings with tear-drop pendants were found in six graves – a total of 11 examples. They were classified into three types based on differences of workmanship, appearance and decoration. A few analogous examples have been found in Dalmatia, Bosnia and Serbia. These date from the 12th to the 15th century. Other earrings are rare or isolated finds at this site. Earrings resembling grape clusters were a valuable find – five examples in a single grave, three of which were gold earrings of distinctive Byzantine manufacture (similar to the famous find from Trilje), whilte the silver earrings are a prototype of the Bjelobrdo earrings. They date from the 10th to the 11th century (Š. Bešlagić, p. 94, 1964). A pair of gilded hoop earrings, also of Byzantine manufacture, were an isolated find, tentatively dated to the late 12th to 14th century (Š. Bešlagić, p. 94, 1964).

Grave goods featuring in rather larger numbers include iron and bronze buckles, 15 in all from 13 graves, of which only one had a stone surround. All are round or rectangular, mainly wrought in simple forms, other than one example with two crescent-moon extensions, an original feature. The only similar find to this is one from Hungary. These cover a wide timespan from the 10th to the 14th century (Š. Bešlagić, p. 94, 1954).

Other metal finds were rare. Rings are simple thin silver bands (three examples) form the 10th to the 11th century. Iron knives (four examples) also cover a wide time span from the 10th to the 14th century. A twisted silver necklace dates from the 10th to the 11h century. Other isolated finds include a diadem of gilded platelets, dating from the 13th to the 14th century, and a pin, probably 14th-15th century. A double bronze clasp with plant and animal stylizations and a red stone probably dates from the 14th or 15th century. Other clasps from the legs of čakšire (baggy trousers) date from the 14th or 15th century.

Six pottery vessels and eight shards were found in simple graves with no boards, stone surround or stećak tombstone, suggesting a relatively early period in the history of this burial ground.  Judging from the material and workmanship, the pottery from Grborezi belongs to the „gradište“(5) type,  and could date from the 10th-11th century.

The remains of garments made of wool, silk and brocade were found in 14 graves of various types, mainly simple graves. One interesting find was women's caps made like lace with silk and metal threads, such as those worn in Bosnia in late mediaeval times following the Italian fashion. The textiles date from the 12th to the 15th century.

Other finds: two spindle rings (15th century), eight biconical metal beads and fifty glass paste beads from necklaces (10th-12th century), a piece of leather from a belt or garment, and three examples of animal bones (reflecting the custom of providing the deceased with food).

The coins found consist of thirty coins from 21 graves of various types. These were mainly Italian piccoli, most minted in the 13th to 14th century; other distinctive features of this site are that the coins were not accompanied by other grave goods, that they mainly came from graves with two or more skeletons, and that they had stećak tombstones over them.

An analysis of the finds suggests that burials began in the necropolis in Grborezi in the 10th century and continued without a break until the 15th century (Š. Bešlagić, p. 95, 1964). In the light of the fact that most of the coins were minted in the 13th and 14th century, and that triple-beaded earrings and double-beaded earrings with teardrop pendants were the grave goods found in the largest numbers, the burial ground would have been used most in the 12th to the 14th century.

3. Legal status to date

The Commission to Preserve National Monuments issued a Decision to add the Mramorje necropolis with stećak tombstones in the village of Grborezi, Municipality Livno, to the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, numbered as 344.

The property has not been placed under protection by the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage.

4. Research and conservation and restoration works

In the summer of 1954, 1955 and 1956, the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of NR Bosnia and Herzegovina first undertook protective investigations, and then continued until the entire necropolis had been systematically exacavated. This was done by Šefik Bešlagić and Đuro Basler, an archaeologist from the Institute, with the help of Smail Tihić, an art historian assistant in the Institute, and N. Bahtijarević, the Institute's conservator and technician. In 1955 and 1956 Dr Mirjana Ljubinković, a specialist adviser to the National Museum in Belgrade, was also present on site during the works. Dr Jozo Petrović, the National Museum in Sarajevo's numismatics expert, identified the coins found. The conservation and photographic record of the metal artefacts were carried out by Jakov Pavelić, preparator of the Archaeological Museum in Zagreb, and the conservation and photographic record of the textile goods were carried out by Milan Duhać, preparator of the National Museum in Belgrade. Other photographic records (coins and some metal artefacts) were by a photographer from the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments in Sarajevo, Ranko Rosić.

By decision of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments in Sarajevo, all the finds from the necropolis in Grborezi were handed over to the National Museum in Sarajevo.

In 1976, 1977 and 1978, a professional team from the regional institute for the protection of cultural monuments of Mostar conducted field reconnaissance and catalogued the stećak tombstones in the Livno region (number, distribution and artistic treatment). The team was led by Anđelko Zelenika.

5. Current condition of the property

An on site inspection carried out on 21 January 2008 found as follows:

• Six amorphous stećak tombstones that had been shifted from their original positions were found
• The site is neglected and overgrown with grass
• The site was not levelled after the excavations, and the hollows where the graves were excavated can clearly be seen.

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.v. value of details

D. Clarity

D. ii. evidence of historical change

D. iv. Evidence of a particular type, style or regional manner

E. Symbolic value

E. i. ontological value

E. ii. religious value

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
• Photodocumentation;
• Drawings

Bibliiography

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

1951.    Jireček, K.J, Trgovački drumovi i rudnici Srbije i Bosne u Srednjem vijeku (Trade Routes and Mines of Serbia and Bosnia in Mediaeval Times) (trans. from the German by Đ. Pejanović), Sarajevo, 1951.

1962     Bešlagić, Šefik; with Basler Đuro, Grborezi, srednjovjekovna nekropola (Grborezi, Mediaeval Necropolis), Sarajevo, 1962.

1964     Bešlagić, Šefik, Basler Đuro, Grborezi, srednjovjekovna nekropola (Grborezi, Mediaeval Necropolis), Sarajevo, 1964.

1994.    Periša, Darko, Livno u prethistorijsko doba Livanjski kraj u povijesti (Livno in Prehistoric Times, the Livno Region in History), Split-Livno, 19-26

1994.    Zaninović, Marin, Livanjsko polje u antici kao primjer delmatske zajednice, Livanjski kraj u povijesti (Livno Plain in Antiquity as an Example of a Dalmatae Community, the Livno Region in History), Split- Livno1994, 45-55.

1994.    Zelenika, Anđelko, Stećci livanjskog kraja, Livanjski kraj u povijesti (Stećak Tombstones of the Livno Region, the Livno Region in History), Split-Livno, 1994, 89-100

1999.    Milošević, Ante, Predgovor (Foreword), Archaeological collection of the Franciscan Museum in Livno, Split, 1999, 7-8

1999.    Petrinec, Maja, Kasnoantičko razdoblje (Late Antiquity), Archaeological collection of the Franciscan Museum in Livno, Split , 1999, 29-31

1999.    Petrinec, Maja, Srednjovjekovno razdoblje (Mediaeval Period), Archaeological collection of the Franciscan Museum in Livno, Split , 1999, 32-38

(1) The historic site of the old Fort in Livno (Bistrički grad) was designated as a national monument at the 15th session of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, held from 6 to 10 July 2004.

(2) Nahija, county, a smaller administrative unit than a kadiluk. Two or more nahijas constituted a judicial entity or district known as a kadiluk. Škaljić, Abdulah, Turcizmi u srpskohrvatskom jeziku (Turkish Loan Words in Serbo-Croatian), Svjetlost, Sarajevo, p.489, 1989.

(3) Timar, a feudal holding or fief, a spahiluk in the Ottoman Empire yielding an annual income of 20.000 akči. Škaljić, Abdulah, Turcizmi u srpskohrvatskom jeziku, Svjetlost, Sarajevo, p.617, 1989.

(4) Belt buckles

(5) A gradište is a type of early Slav settlement typical of low-lying, marshy areas, with typical earth-built architecture in the form of a raised circular central area surrounded by a fosse and earthworks fortified with palisades. The first such settlement found in BiH is in Mahovljani, and dates from the 9th to the 12th/13th century.