Status of monument -> National monument

Published in the “Official Gazette of BiH”, no. 84/09.

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 12 to 18 May 2009 the Commission adopted a

D E C I S I O N

I

The natural and architectural ensemble of the Orthodox church of the Ascension in Požarnica with its old oak tree, Municipality Tuzla is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument).

The National Monument consists of the church of the Ascension, the remains of the old school building, the burial ground and an old oak tree.

The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot nos. 329, 330, 331 and 332 (new survey), municipality Kovačevo Selo, Municipality Tuzla, 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 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 protection measures are hereby stipulated:

Protection Level I pertains to the area designed as c.p. 331, c.m. Kovačevo Selo. The following protection measures shall apply in this area:

-       the church of the Ascension shall be conserved and restored, and missing parts shall be reconstructed in their original form, of the same size, using the same or the same type of materials and building methods wherever possible, based on documentation on their original form, with the approval of the 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 rehabilitation project shall provide for the methods of conservation, reconstruction, restoration, structural repair and consolidation to be used;

-       to ensure the protection of the church and to secure the conditions for its rehabilitation, the following urgent measures are hereby prescribed to prevent the further deterioration of the building:

-         the protection of the church from the elements, in particular the roof, the junctions of the walls with the tower, and the windows,

-         the identification, classification and proper protection of the fragments of the church remaining on the site since its destruction,

-         an examination and structural analysis of the walls and structure,

-         a detailed architectural survey of the building to document and analyze the structure, materials and building methods used, as the necessary basis for drawing up a rehabilitation project;

-       the following protection measures are hereby stipulated for the surviving frescoes:

-         the conservation and restoration of the surviving frescoes and parts of frescoes,

-         the future painting of the church shall correspond to the existing iconographic formula.

Protection Level II shall apply to the areas designated as

1) c.p. no. 329 (new survey), c.m. Kovačevo Selo. The following protection measures shall apply in this area:

-       all works are prohibited other than conservation and restoration works and routine maintenance works on the old school building;

-       no new burials shall be carried out at a distance of less than five metres from the existing graves in the burial ground;

2) part of c.p. no. 332, c.m. Kovačevo Selo. In this area:

-       the felling of the old oak tree is prohibited. Only necessary maintenance and essential tree surgery shall be permitted.

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 thereof.

VI

The Government of the Federation, the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning, 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 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, Martin Cherry, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, Dubravko Lovrenović, Ljiljana Ševo and Tina Wik.

No: 06.1-2-40/2009-35                           

13 May 2009

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.

On 3 March 2008 the Serbian Orthodox Parish of Tuzla submitted a proposal/petition to the Commission to Preserve National Monuments to designate the church of the Ascension in Požarnica 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.

Statement of Significance

Though badly damaged during the 1992-1995 war and partly restored since then, the church of the Ascension, built in 1896, has largely retained its original fabric, and provides important surviving evidence of the iconography and style of mural painting in the Orthodox churches of the late 19th century. Few Orthodox churches dating from the Austro-Hungarian period in Bosnia and Herzegovina are decorated with murals. The church occupies a prominent position in the Kovačica and Jošanica river valley, and is of great historical and traditional significance for the identity of the local community and parish. The roof of the nave, which is original, is of unusual design, with an arched, plastered ceiling creating the impression of a vault, concealing a double-truss system.

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:

-       Data on the current condition and use of the property, including a description and photographs, details of war damage, details of restoration and 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 village of Požarnica is on the slopes of Mt. Majevica, about 8 km to the east of Tuzla, on the main Tuzla to Bijeljina road, at the confluence of the rivers Kovačica and Jošanica.

The natural and architectural ensemble of the Orthodox church of the Ascension with its murals, the remains of the old school building, the burial ground and an old oak tree, is located on a site designated as cadastral plot nos. 329, 330, 331 and 332 (new survey), municipality Kovačevo Selo, Municipality Tuzla, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is the property of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Tuzla parish.

Historical information

            The reforms introduced in the Ottoman Empire in the mid 19th century made it easier for the Christians of Tuzla to obtain a permit (imperial firman) to build churches (the Tanzimat period – the 1839 Hatt-i Şerif of Gülhane prescribing equality for all faiths and freedom of religion in Turkey, and the 1856 Hatt-i Hümayun, the new constitutional law for the Bosnian vilayet, the provisions of which including granting the Christian church in Turkey the protection of international law).

The episcopal see was transferred from Zvornik to Tuzla at the same time as was the seat of the Zvornik kajmekam(1), and the eparchy was renamed the eparchy of Zvornik and Tuzla(2).

The church of the Ascension in Požarnica was built in 1896, and consecrated on 26 October 1896 by Metropolitan Nikolaj (Mandić)(3).

A tombstone in the far north-eastern corner of the plot designated as c.p. no. 330, c.m. Kovačevo Selo, bears the carved epitaph:

“ОВДЕ ПОЧИВА                                   Here lies

    СТЕВАН ОТИЋ                                 Stevan Otić

ЗИДАР                                     Mason

   РОЂ. 1886 Г. ПОГИНУО                    Born 1886, killed

          КОД ГРАДЊЕ ТОРЊА               while building the tower

1910. ГОД.                                            in 1910.

            СПОМЕНИК ДИГОШЕ               This tombstone was erected

                        ДРУГОВИ.”                               by his colleagues.

When the church in Požarnica was dynamited in 1994, the church tower, choir gallery, iconostasis and apse of the church were destroyed, and the church plate, liturgical items, registers, archives and documents were removed and destroyed.

St Sava's hall and the parish hall (both on c.p. no. 332, c.m. Kovačevo Selo) were destroyed at the same time.

There is no reliable information on the date when the church tower was built, but the inscription on the tombstone suggests that it was built 14 years later than the church.

2. Description of the property

In terms of layout, the church in Požarnica belongs to the type of single-nave church with a parvis, nave and altar area, and a gallery leading to the staircase in the church tower.

The church lies with its long axis east-west, with the apse at the east end and the entrance at the west end. It measures 11.70 m wide x 26 m long on the outside(4). The side bearing walls are 80 cm thick and the end walls approx. 60 cm thick; they are built of solid fired brick, plastered inside and out, as are the walls of the church tower.

The tower is rectangular in plan, with sides of 2.80 and 3.70 m. The walls of the tower are approx. 40 cm thick. Inside, where there is a wooden staircase, the tower measures approx. 2.00 x 2.90 m. The tower has three stages and is topped by a dome on an octagonal drum; it measures approx. 26.80 m in overall height from ground level to the top of the dome. The first and second stages of the bell tower each have three windows, and the third has four; the drum has a window on each of its eight sides. All the windows on the tower are round-arched. The present tower was built in 2006-2007.

An arched passageway through the ground floor of the tower leads to the main entrance to the church, a round-arched portal measuring approx. 190 x 385 cm, at the west end of the church. There is also a side door midway along the south wall of the church.

Within an area measuring approx. 3.45 x 2.40 m on the inside formed by brick partition walls approx. 20 cm wide in the north-west corner of the church is a triple-flight staircase leading to the choir gallery, the floor of which was approx. 4.50 m above the floor of the parvis. The steps measured approx. 20 x 30 cm, and judging from their position and the way they were attached to the wall (the sockets for the beams still survive in the wall), were made of wood.

The corresponding area measuring approx. 3.45 x 2.40 m on the inside formed by brick partition walls approx. 20 cm wide in the south-west corner of the church was used for lighting candles(5).

Sockets in the west perimeter wall of the church at regular intervals of about 1 metre and at a height of approx. 4.30 m suggest that the bearing structure of the choir gallery consisted of wooden joists approx. 20 x 20 cm with a length of approx. 3.75 m, slotted into the wall on the west side and resting on a steel NP I girder on the east side.

The steel girder rested on two half-pillars of solid brick, approx. 30 x 50 cm in section, on the side walls of the church, and on two bearing pillars of solid brick, approx. 65 x 50 cm in section, set approx. 430 cm apart and each approx. 190 cm from the half-pillars.

The kind of brick products used to build the infill walls (brick products of various types and sizes), which differ from those used in the bearing pillars of the choir gallery, as well as the type of junction between the partition wall and the pillars, without bonding the bricks together(6), strongly suggest that the partition walls around the staircase and the candle-lighting area were a later addition.

The change of level effected by a stone step(7) on the floor of the church, about 6.85 m ease of the face of the west perimeter wall, which is approx. 2.90 m east of the face of the bearing pillars of the choir gallery, define the end of the parvis and beginning of the nave. A solea occupies the full width of the church and a depth of approx. 2.90 m as measured from the iconostasis or apsidal niche. The solea is 0.145 m above the level of the nave floor. Within the church, propped against the north wall, are the stone framents of the ambon that probably occupied the centre of the solea, in the axis of the royal doors of the iconostasis.

The iconostasis and apse were completely destroyed when the church was blown up. The outline of the iconostasis where it abutted against the walls suggest that it was located between the continuations of the east perimeter wall, and measured approx. 5.60 m wide x 4.70 cm high.

The east wall had a round-arched opening of approx. 500 cm wide and 760 cm high, with the arch radius of approx. 2.50 m. The heel of the arch was at a height of approx. 4.70 m above the floor of the solea.

The apsidal niche is approx. 710 cm wide and 420 cm deep on the inside, with its longer sides, forming the polygonal apse, from north to south respectively 222 cm, 277 cm, 300 cm, 280 cm and 225 cm in length. The outside walls of the apse are approx. 25 cm thick, and are of brick blocks, with the parapet of the wall, which is approx. 80 cm high, of concrete. At the junctions of the sections of the apse wall are vertical reinforced concrete ring beams, also featuring at the junction of the apse with the east perimeter wall of the church; above the apse windows(8) and on the crown of the apse wall are horizontal ring-beams at a height of approx. 6.45 m above the apse floor. At the same level of 6.45 m, above the apse arch, level with the junction between the apse and the east wall of the church (abutting onto the east wall), is a broken reinforced concrete ring beam linking the apse walls from north to south. The north-east and south-east apse walls each have a central round-arched window measuring 82 x 280 cm with a parapet of approx. 180 cm.

The original wall of the destroyed apse was approx. 65 cm thick, and was of solid brick. When inspected on 8 April 2009, traces of the junction block between the old apse wall of solid brick and the east wall of the church could be seen on the east façade. The top of the former apse wall was about 120-130 cm higher than the present level, and the apex of the apse roof was about 70 cm higher than now. Above the apse is a wooden roof frame clad with sheet copper. The present apse was built in 2006-2007.

The roof over the rectangular body of the church is gabled, with bearing timbers consisting of an interesting system of transverse wooden trusses formed by a combination of queen posts (14 x 14 cm timbers) resting on 12 x 18 cm struts, simple hanging posts and fixed wooden queen trusses. The roof framing consists of 16 x 20 cm beams.

The roof cladding consists of galvanized iron laid on one-inch roof boards attached to the 12 x 16 cm rafters.

The design of the ceiling is also of interest. The curve of a quarter barrel vault rises from the side walls of the church at a height of approx. 9.00 m above floor level and with a width of about 150 cm along the side walls, gradually merging into the flat surface of the central ceiling, measuring 6.90 x 17.60 m, at a height of approx. 10.50 m.

Up to a level of approx. 9.00 m, the side walls are approx. 80 cm thick, but the top 150 cm or so is thinner, at approx. 60 cm. The roof trusses rest on the crown of the side walls at a height of approx. 10.50 m. Below each roof truss are short upright wooden posts set on the inside of the crown of the walls, to which wooden centring in the form of a quarter circle are attached. The ceiling consists of a lining of 10-12 cm wide wooden boards attached to the centring and the tie beams in the central section of the underside of the ceiling, to which in turn reeds were nailed to form a base for the final plaster finish.

The floors of the parvis, the nave and the altar area were finished with hexagonal 2 cm thick clinker tiles with sides of approx. 21 cm; the gallery has a wooden floor.

The windows, with openings of 1.65 x 4.45 m and a parapet of 350 cm, through which light enters the church, are round-arched, and all have a splay towards the interior to increase the amount of light entering. The north and south walls each have three windows.

The façade of the church is articulated by pilaster strips of approx. 10 x 110 cm(9), set approx. 4.75 m apart and terminating below the roof cornice in striking arcaded friezes, a feature of Rascian architecture. The area between the pilaster strips is about 4.75 m long, and the frieze consists of eight linked arcades about 10 cm deep, 50 cm wide and 100 cm high, with the apex of the arcades about 30 cm from the edge of the roof cornice, giving a total height of the arcaded frieze from the foot of the arcade to the roof cornice of approx. 130 cm.

The façades of the church tower are articulated by shallow moulded string courses marking each of the stages of the tower, and where the topmost stage of the tower passes from a square to a rectangular plan below the drum, as well as the cornice of the dome.

Description of the murals

The murals and furnishings of the church of the Ascension in Požarnica were badly damaged during the 1992-1995 war. When the church was dynamited, much of the murals were blown off the walls. The surviving frescoes, exposed to the elements and left without maintenance, are in very poor condition. The surviving area of the murals on the walls measures 230 x 180 cm, with another 300 x 140 cm on the wall between the parvis and the nave. The murals were painted in tempera.

Though badly damaged, five murals have survived on the wall separating the apse from the nave. The span of the arch is accentuated by an inscription in Cyrillic: СВAТЪ, СВAТЪ, СВAТЪ, ГОСПОДЪ САВАШДЪ.

The middle of the wall is occupied by a circular mural with eucharistic motifs and the Eye of God. Three vertical bands each with one motif appear to float in the composition, with the Eye of God at the top of the middle band, in a triangle, combining two meanings: the Eye of God symbolizes God's all-seeing omnipresence, and the equilateral triangle denotes the Trinity, with its three components forming a single entity – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit forming the one divine nature(10). Below is a painted cross with IC/XC/NI/KA inscribed above the arms, denoting Jesus Christ Victorious (Ιēsoũs Khristōs Nika). The golden chalice from which the wine that is the blood of Christ is at the very bottom of the composition. The right-hand vertical depicts a vine with ripe fruits, symbolizing the renewal of the covenant between God and his people, between the Old and the New Testament – first with Moses, in the Old Testament, and then with Jesus Christ, in the New. To the left and three ears of wheat, the symbol of abundance and prosperity, as well as of the bread of the Eucharist, the body of Christ.

On either side, beside the arch, are two arched frescoes, with the figures of archangels at the top – Gabriel to the left, and Michael to the right.

The composition with the Archangel Gabriel creates an impression of ease and lightness on account of the white clouds on which the archangel is descending to announce the birth of Jesus to the Virgin. The archangel is portrayed in profile, left hand raised aloft to announce the birth of the Son of God, and holding a spray of white lilies (symbol of the Virgin's purity) in his right hand. Though the church dates from the end of the 19th century, the artist has harked back to the mediaeval tradition in his treatment of the figure of the Archangel Gabriel, particularly in the flat halo, typical of Romanesque art, and the full, sharply-delineated folds of the drapery (a feature of Gothic art).

All that survives of the right-hand mural is the top part. However, the garments (military armour, boots and a red cloak) and the surviving detail of the right hand holding a flaming sword aloft, suggest that it portrays the Archangel Michael, captain of the heavenly host.

To the right on the lower part of the wall is a fresco with the figure of St Sava, Archbishop of Serbia. The fine figure of the saint occupies the foreground in close-up, in a plain setting. The treatment of the background, with the pinkish soil and blue sky, is also intended to denote the importance of the figure portrayed. This relationship between the figure of the saint and the background dictated the concentration on the dynamic figure of the saint (his crown, head, garments etc.), against the static background. The treatment of the light, the source of which is in the top left-hand corner, falling as if hesitantly on the drapes and behind the figure of St Sava, suggests the temporal nature of the composition, caught in a moment of transience, for the shadow will move in the very next instant. The masculine face of St Sava is painted with meticulous care. The beard and the long, wavy, shoulder-length hair accentuate the saint's clear blue eyes and narrow nose. His elaborate vestments, consisting of a long pink robe and white below-the-knee(11) half conceal his hands, with their long, elegant fingers, and reveal only the tips of his shoes. St Sava is holding a cross aloft in his right hand and an open book with a text in his left. Only a few letters have survived, making it impossible to identify the text.

Opposite this composition, on the left, is a painting of a female saint (martyr?). The surface layer of the composition is badly damaged – the painted decoration has fallen away to the left of the saint – and the part of the wall where the saint's face would have been has caved in, making it impossible to identify her with certainty. The simple space without any details, a scene of nature or an interior, is dominated by the figure of the saint in the middle of the composition, in close-up. The figure of the middle-aged woman is completely concealed by the long black robe, falling in monotone folds from head to toe. The saint is clasping a model of a church in her left hand and holding a long cross aloft in her right.

The south wall has four frescoes between the windows from the apse to the entrance.

The composition with the figure of St John the Baptist portrays him as an ascetic, a heavy sheepskin covering his emaciated body. Unusually, he is portrayed wearing sandals instead of barefoot. His left foot is advancing slightly towards the observer, accentuating the parched soil underfoot. The composition is in wide frame, but instead of the usual desert scene, the background is dominated by a green landscape. In the middle ground, to the left of the saint, is a tree-stump with an axe lodged in it, symbolizing St John the Baptist and his preaching in the wilderness of Judaea. “And now also the axe is laid unto the roof of the trees; therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” (Mt. 3:10 and Lk 3:9) Like the Archangel Gabriel, his right hand is raised aloft, forefinger pointing, announcing the coming of the Messiah. This is corroborated by the inscription on the scroll attached to the arms of the long cross the Baptist is holding in his left hand: ПОКАЈТЕСЕ/ЈЕР СЕ/ ПРИБЛИЖИ/ЦАРСТВО/НЕБЕСКО [“Repent ye, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Mt. 3:2.]

The composition with Prince Lazar is on two planes. The foreground portrays the saint as an elderly but manly figure with a luxuriant grey beard and hair. The pallor of his face is countered by the gold halo and imperial crown set with numerous precious stones. The movement of his arm to the space below the imperial purple cloak hanging on the door reveals a long blue robe. The vertical gold band and border of the robe are decorated with circles with inscribed crosses. The background is indicated by a dark room from which a curtain falls in thin folds to the base of the composition. The shadows in the composition, arrayed evenly around the figure of the saint, suggest that the light comes from where the observer is standing.

The care with which it is painted and the harmonious proportions of the composition with the figure of St Stefan of Dečani render it an exceptionally fine example of the art of the mural. The composition is in broad plan, depicting an interior with accurate proportions. The harmony between the spatial plans and the figure of the saint adds to the clarity of the composition, the symmetry of which is dictated by the vertical band on the royal robe, composed of green tear-drops on a gold ground. To the left, on a table covered by a long white table cloth, a model of the Dečani monastery where St Stefan was buried after dying a martyr's death cuts across the plane. St Stefan's left arm is leaning on the table, holding a long cross, as his right forefinger points to the model of Dečani. The slight displacement of the left foot suggests movement, also indicated by the folds on the royal robe. His garments are treated with particular care. The saint's serious face emerges from his wavy grey hair and beard, and his head is crowned by a gold halo and an elaborate royal crown.

One third of the composition of St George slaying the dragon has survived. The foreground begins in the bottom left corner with the dragon, jaws agape. Already vanquished, the helpless beast is lying on the ground, its bat-like wings outspread. The end of the battle between the dragon and the saint is accentuated by the tip of the spear, pointing upwards. St George's powerful body, wearing armour and a chlamys, is trampling the body of the beast. The Renaissance-style perspective reveals a palace in the background, to the right of St George, and a scene of nature with trees.

There are another four compositions on the north wall. The first mural, by the wall separating the apse from the nave, features a saint or ecclesiastical dignitary; in the absence of an inscription it is hard to identify who this may be. In the middle are St Basil of Ostrog and St Ignatius Theophorus, the God-bearer. The damage to the saint's face and the inscription above the last fresco make it impossible to identify.

The composition with the figure of St Nicholas of Myra is in close-up with a landscape. The harsh, featureless landscape with a lowering pale blue sky only sketchily indicates the background of the composition. The middle ground, however, consists of a horizontal band consisting of the sea and a church with two blue bell towers (left). To the right, a cruciform, masted boat is sailing the clear blue sea. Turning towards the observer with slow, measured step, the figure of the saint occupies the foreground of the composition. The meaning of the figure is supplemented by the many details of his ecclesiastical vestments, particularly the purple robe decorated with gold flowers, and the blue medallion on his chest, his bishop's crozier with the volutes turned to the cross in the middle, the crown, and so on. To the left, a white handkerchief with a gold border, depicting a shepherd between two angels, hangs from the figure's garments.

The scene in which St Basil of Ostrog is portrayed is simplified to the utmost. The stern, serious figure of the saint occupies the full height of the centre, creating the balance of the composition and enhanced by the absolute stillness revealed by the position of the feet. There is further symmetry in the modelling of the saint's figure around a vertical line from the cross on the crown and the large blue precious stone below it, through the strongly-marked straight line of the nose to the chain with a blue medallion. The saint is wearing elaborate gold robes with a regular pattern of small red and blue squares. Heis holding a book in his left hand and giving a blessing with his right.

In the composition with St Ignatius Theophorus, the artist has played with light and shadow. Light shines on the figure of the saint, creating shadows on the face, robes and background of the composition. The way the shadows lie suggests that the source of light is from the top left-hand corer. As in the previous composition, the figure of the saint dominates the foreground, wearing elaborate garments consisting of a long pink robe and a turquoise cloak with a gold border. His serious face, with an expression of concentration, is framed in a gold halo and crown. The long, elegant fingers of the right hand are arranged in the gesture of benediction(12), and his left hand is holding an icon with the figure of Jesus Christ. This iconography is the result of the tradition that when Jesus was preaching about the Kingdom of Heaven, he called the young Ignatius over and told the assembled crowd: “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter the kingdom of heaven... Whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.” (Mt. 18:3-5). St Ignatius received the epithet Theophorus for two reasons: first, because he was carried in Jesus' arms, and second because he bore the name of God in his heart and on his lips.

The figure of the saint on the fourth composition has been completely destroyed. He was wearing a long yellow robe with a red cloak over it, and holding a closed book.

To the very east, in the ceiling of the name, two murals with the Evangelists St John and St Matthew have survived.

The collapse of the roof structure destroyed much of the mural of St John. The darkness of the background, painted brown, sets off the brilliant white cloud on which the evangelist is seated, descending with the forefinger of his right hand raised. He was probably holding a scroll with a text from his gospel in his left hand. His attribute, the eagle, is depicted in the middle of the left-hand side of the composition.

The middle of the composition of St Matthew has been lost with the collapse of the roof structure at that point, taking part of the mural with it. Yellow and red drapery alternate in folds, accentuating the volume of the evangelist, who is portrayed seated on the white cloud that dominates the composition. To the right, a youthful angel is peering from the cloud, studying the text on the sheet held by the apostle: КЊИГА/РОДСТВА/ИСУСА/ХРИСТА/CИНА [The lineage of Jesus Christ the Son].

These two murals and the condition of the surviving roof frame with the remains of painted decoration are sufficient to allow for its reconstruction: it is very likely that the western part, over the entrance, bore figures of the Evangelists St Mark and St Luke.

The figures of St Paraskeva (right) and St Nedelja the Great Martyr (left) are painted on the entrance wall in the narthex.

When modelling the composition with St Paraskeva, the artist used various colours to differentiate the various areas: brown for the foreground, green for the middle ground, and blue for the background. This chromatic contrast was countered by the predominant black of the saint's garments, dominating the foreground.

Unlike this composition, with its faithful depiction of a landscape, the area in which the figure of St Nedelja the Great Martyr is portrayed consists of the interaction of the horizontal line of the soil, in pink, and the vertical, in green. This interplay of horizontal and vertical is complemented by the chromatic harmony between the saint's long red cloak, tied at the neck, and the green robe beneath it.

The walls separating the parvis (narthex) from the nave are decorated with two murals of rectangular format.

Two male figures are stepping towards the observer from the leafy landscape in the background of the composition. Although the inscription over their heads has been completely destroyed, it seems likely that they are the brothers SS Cyril and Methodius. They are portrayed in the identical stance, right hand holding a cross aloft and left hand below the breast, but are distinguished by their different garments and characterization of the face. The face of the older brother is framed by thin, precisely modelled eyebrows, a thick beard and his hair. His lean body is accentuated by a long red robe with a yellow cloak over it. The younger brother is turning almost imperceptibly towards the older. Large blue eyes dominate his youthful face, and his unruly brown hair and golden halo echo the lines of the face. His garments, resembling his brother's, consist of a long green robe and blue cloak.

All that survives is the lower part (1/8 of the fresco) on the left hand side, with two pairs of feet.

The ruins of the old school building, measuring approx. 11 x 13.50 m, are in the northernmost part of the churchyard, about 20 m north of the church, on plot no. c.p. 329, c.m. Kovačevo Selo. The school was built in 1874, but had not been in use since the end of World War II. The ground floor survived, built of hewn and rubble stone. Over the years certain interventions had been carried out by building on in brick and, on the south wall, concrete. The remains of the building are overgrown with rank vegetation.

About 24 m west of the church, on plot no. c.p. 322, c.m. Kovačevo Selo, is the St Sava hall, destroyed in 1994 and rebuilt in 2003. It has a footprint of 7.05 x 15.60 m, and consists of a basement and ground floor, with a gabled roof. The building is not subject to the protection measures prescribed by this Decision.

About 20 m south-west of the church, on plot no. c.p. 332, c.m. Kovačevo Selo, the parish hall was built in 1975, destroyed in 1994 and rebuilt in 2008. It has a footprint of aprox. 9.90 x 10.20 m, and consists of a ground and first floor, with a gabled roof.

About 70 m south of the church, on plot no. c.p. 332, c.m. Kovačevo Selo, is an ancient oak tree, with a circumference at chest height of about 505 cm, and a crown of about 25 metres in width.

About 30 m north-east of the church, on plot no. c.p. 330, c.m. Kovačevo Selo, is a group of about ten graves. The oldest tombstones date from the early 20th century, and some of the graves are the last resting place of victims of Fascist terror in World War II.

3. Research and conservation and restoration works

There is no available information concerning any conservation or restoration works.

4. Current condition of the property

The building was devastated in 1994 when explosive devices were planted inside the church, one by the tower and the other in the apse. Part of the devastation has been described in Section 2, Description of the property. The roof is in very poor condition and leaking badly. The ceiling and roof timbers were largely destroyed or badly damaged. The choir gallery was completely destroyed, as was the staircase. The gable wall of the building at the junction with the tower no longer exists, nor does the part of the roof over this junction, making this currently the most vulnerable part of the building. All the window frames have been devastated, with the grid panels and glazing destroyed.

There are cracks in the east perimeter wall around the apse.

The interior of the building has been largely destroyed, and the plaster has cracked or fallen away entirely from the inside walls. The floors have also been destroyed. None of the church furnishings remain, all having been completely destroyed.

Current condition of the surviving murals

The surviving murals are in very poor condition.

5. Legal status to date

According to the Institute for the Protection of Monuments of the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport, the church of the Ascension in Požarnica, Tuzla, was neither listed nor protected by the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of BiH(13).

6. Specific risks

Given the shortcomings of the reconstruction works on the apse and tower, it is feared that the remains of the wall paintings may be destroyed during continued repair works on the interior of the church. The rehabilitation works to date have been carried out without suitable project documentation and without any prior conservation and restoration examinations and guidelines.

If the works covered by the cost estimate for repair works on the church of the Ascension in Požarnica, drawn up in 2007-2008 by Gars of Crno Blato, Tuzla, were to be carried out, they would constitute a specific risk to the church. The cost estimate is not part of an appropriate rehabilitation project, which must be based on the findings of surveys and examinations of the building, a valorization, and conservation-restoration and investigative guidelines (see Clause III of the enacting clauses of this Decision)(14).

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:

For the church

A.         Time frame

B.         Historical value

E.         Symbolic value

E.i.       ontological value

E.ii.      religious value

E.iii.      traditional value

E.iv.     relation to rituals or ceremonies

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

F.         Townscape/landscape value

F.i.       relation to other elements of the site

F.ii.       meaning in the townscape

G.         Authenticity

G.iii.     use and function

G.vi.     spirit and feeling

G.vii.    other internal and external factors

The following documents form an integral part of this Decision:

-       Copy of cadastral plan, scale 1:2500, c.p. nos. 329, 330, 331 and 332 (new survey), c.m. Kovačevo Selo, Municipality Tuzla, Plan no. 4, issued on 19 May 2008 by the Department of Geodetics and Proprietary Affairs, Municipality Tuzla, Tuzla Canton, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

-       Identification of plot no. c.p. 331, c.m. Kovačevo Selo (new survey), corresponding to c.p. no. 1096/2, c.m. Požarnica; issued on 19 May 2008 by the Department of Geodetics and Proprietary Affairs, Municipality Tuzla, Tuzla Canton, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

-       Excerpt from title deed no. 176 (for c.p. no. 331, property of the Serbian Orthodox Parish of Tuzla), c.m. Kovačevo Selo, issued on 19 May 2008 by the Department of Geodetics and Proprietary Affairs, Municipality Tuzla, Tuzla Canton, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

-       Land Register entry no. 378, plot no. 1096/2, issued by the Land Register office of the Municipal Court in Tuzla on 21 May 2008;

-       Photographic documentation:

-         Photographs of the natural and architectural ensemble of the Orthodox church of the Ascension in Požarnica with its old oak tree, taken on 8 and 22 April 2009 by art historian Aleksandra Bunčić and architect Emir Softić using Canon PowerShot S3IS and Canon PowerShot A450 digital cameras.

Bibliography

During the procedure to designate the natural and architectural ensemble of the church of the Ascension in Požarnica with its old oak tree as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina the following works were consulted:

1977     Srpska pravoslavna eparhija zvorničko-tuzlanska, Šematizam (Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of Zvornik and Tuzla, Schematism). Tuzla: 1977

1984     Brkić, Nemanja. Tehnologija slikarstva, vajarstva i ikonografija (The Techniques of Painting, Sculpture and Iconography). Belgrade: University of Art, 1984

2005     Jovanović, Zoran M. Azbučnik pravoslavne ikonografije i graditeljstva (ABC of Orthodox Iconography and Architecture). Belgrade: Museum of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Dina, 2005

2006     Badurina, Anđelko (ed.). Leksikon ikonografije, liturgike i simbolike zapadnog kršćanstva (Lexicon of the Iconography, Liturgy and Symbolism of Western Christianity). Zagreb: Kršćanska sadašnjost, 2006

2007     Cost estimate for repairs to the church of the Ascension in Požarnica, carried out in 2007-2008 by Gars of Crno Blato, Tuzla.

Documentation from the archives of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Tuzla.

(1) A senior representative of the Ottoman authorities.

(2) The following is an account of the origins of the original Zvornik eparchy: “At the time of the Turkish conquest, when the Srebrenik metropolitanate ceased to be, the area that fell to the Turks probably belonged to the Arilje metropolitanate, while the area that remained under Hungarian rule became part of the Srem eparchy.  When they fell to the Turks in the late 15th and early decades of the 16th century, north-eastern Bosnia and Mačva became part of the new Zvornik eparchy, which covered the same territory as the Zvornik sanjak and was based in Zvornik, as was the seat of the sanjak. The areas between the rivers Bosna, Sava and Spreča and Mt Majevica were part of the eparchy, along with the whole of the Drina valley on the right bank of the river Drina, and the Brvenik kadiluk, joined in 1528-1533 by Mačva.” (Srpska pravoslavna eparhija zvorničko-tuzlanska, Šematizam, Tuzla: 1977, 19)

(3) Srpska pravoslavna eparhija zvorničko-tuzlanska, Šematizam, Tuzla: 1977, 214

(4) 2.80 +18.80 + 4.45 m (length of the south side of the church tower + length of the rectangular body of the church + the apse) = 26 metres 

(5) The sooty deposits on the inside of the perimeter walls and the bearing structure of the ventilators in the grid panel of the outside windows, suggest that this was what this room was used for.

(6) When the explosive device that blew up the tower and gallery detonated, the plaster fell away from the junction of the bearing pillars and the partition walls, revealing these differences (op. E. Softić).

(7) The rise is approx. 14.5 cm high and the stone tread is approx. 34 cm wide; the pieces composing the step are approx. 75-80 cm wide. The front of the step has a rounded bullnose approx. 6 cm in depth. The floor of the nave is thus approx. 14.5 cm lower than that of the parvis.

(8) At a height of approx. 4.60 m from the apse floor.

(9) Since the pilaster strip is 10 cm thick, it makes a not insignificant contribution to reinforcing the bearing walls, which are 90 cm thick at each pilaster strip (80 cm wall + 10 cm pilaster strip).

(10) Anđelko Badurina (ed.), Leksikon ikonografije, liturgike i simbolike zapadnog kršćanstva, Zagreb: Kršćanska sadašnost, 2006, 605.

(11) Translator's note: a word is missing here in the original. The fact that the garment the name of which is missing is white suggests perhaps an alb or sticharion. The illustration accompanying the text is not clear enough to assist in identifying the garment in question.

(12) The hand raised in benediction is depicted with the forefinger straight and the middle finger slightly bent, denoting IC (Jesus), the forefinger representing the I and the bent middle finger the C; the thumb and ring finger forming a cross and the bent little finger represent an X and a C, making XC (Christos). This is why the Creator, in his divine wisdom, gave us just five fingers, no more and no fewer but just the number required to denote the name of Christ. Nemanja Brkić, Tehnologija slikarstva, vajarstva i ikonografija, Belgrade: University of Art, 1984, 294.

(13) Letter from the Institute for the Protection of Monuments of the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport ref. 07-40-4-1896-1/08 of 21.05.2008 to the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.

(14) The cost estimate for repair works on the church of the Ascension in Požarnica, drawn up in 2007-2008 by Gars of Crno Blato, Tuzla, provides for:

-       repair works to build the gallery and gable (west) wall of the church, entailing demolishing the masonry substructure below the choir gallery, cutting into the wall to install horizontal and vertical reinforced concrete ring beams, constructing the reinforced concrete ceiling of the choir gallery, demolishing the damaged gable walls and making new ones of brick laid in lime cement mortar, and making new foundations for the masonry substructure of the choir gallery;

-       repairs to the altar area (installing reinforced concrete reinforcements around the opening in the east perimeter wall; laying foundations);

-       repairs to the roof (dismantling the roof cladding, roof timbers and ceiling structure; laying a reinforced concrete perimeter ring beam; installing a new timber roof frame resting on a primary grid of steel girders; cladding of sheet metal painted with aluminium paint imitating tiles; making a new plasterboard ceiling).