Integrated Rehabilitation Project Plan
Survey of the architectural and
archeological heritage (IRPP/SAAH)
Regional Programme for Cultural and Naturale Heritage
in South-East Europe
Plan pour la mise en œuvre de Projets
de Réhabilitation Intégrée
Evaluation du patrimoine architectural et
archéologique(IRPP/SAAH)
Program Régional pour le patrimoine culturel et
naturel dans le Sud-Est de l’Europe
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Bosnia and Herzegovina |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword
Introduction
Heritage
Legislation
Management
Partnerships
Documentation
Cooperation with regional, local and religious communities
Sources
Bibliography
Prioritised Intervention List
Summary
Map
The Bridge of Mehmed-Pasha Sokolović
The Old Town of Stolac
The Fortress in Jajce
Historical urban site of Blagaj
Historical Necropolis Radimlja
The Fethija mosque
Architectural ensemble of the Old Soko mosque in Gračanica
The Church of St Nicholas
Historical site the Old Jewish Graveyard
Site and remnants of the architectural ensemble of Aladža Mosque in Foča
The Monastery of Plehan
Historical building Eminagića's konak
Historical building Šeranića's house
Historic building of the City hall (National Library)
Historical building City hall in Novi Grad
The Old Town of Bužim
Historical site of the Old Town Ljubuški
The Old Town of Prusac
The Greek Orthodox Monastery in Vozuća
Historical building of the City hall, Brčko
Foreword
On the initiative of the President of the European Commission, Professor Romano Prodi, and with the support of Commissioner Mrs Viviane Reding, the European Commission and the Council of Europe have undertaken to collaborate on a joint action entitled 'Integrated Rehabilitation Project Plan / Survey of the architectural and archaeological heritage (IRPP/SAAH)'. This Joint Action takes place within the Regional Programme for Cultural and Natural Heritage in South East Europe 2003-2005 (RPSEE) proposed by the Council of Europe to South Eastern European countries, both of which should be regarded as a contribution of the two Organisations towards the stability and development of democratic, peaceful and free civil societies in South East Europe. Furthermore, they should facilitate the region's compatibility in terms of cultural heritage protection and conservation standards and norms with those of the European Union.
The IRPP/SAAH is partially funded by a financial contribution from the Programme 'Culture 2000' of the European Commission (Directorate General for Education and Culture, DGEAC) and is administered through the Technical Co-operation and Consultancy Programme (Council of Europe, Directorate of Culture and Cultural and Natural Heritage, DGIV). Beneficiary countries of South East Europe are: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro (including the region of Kosovo/UNMIK) and "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia".
The first phase of the IRPP/SAAH aimed at elaborating Reports on the architectural and archaeological heritage situation, irrespective of religious or ethnic origin.
The Reports have been compiled by Dr John Bold (United Kingdom), Prof. George Lavas (Greece) and Mr Daniel Drocourt (France), Project Leaders appointed by the Council of Europe and the European Commission, in coordination and consultation with IRPP/SAAH Project Coordinators appointed by the competent authorities concerned. The material used for these reports has been collected through a 'questionnaire', filled out through an extensive consultation process involving several specialists, institutions and organisations representing the wider community.
The Report on the architectural and archaeological heritage in Bosnia and Herzegovina, presented hereafter, gives a general description of the situation. It contributes to the understanding of the legal and administrative mechanisms responsible for managing the protection, the conservation and the enhancement of heritage as well as its main features. It highlights the potential and weaknesses to be taken into account when considering the elaboration of integrated rehabilitation projects. The Report was prepared in December 2003 by Mirela Mulalic Handan, IRPP/SAAH Project Co-ordinator, in consultation with experts in the Commission to Preserve National Monuments and Mr Daniel Drocourt (France) Project Leader.
The Prioritised Intervention List, compiled in March 2004 by the Project Co-ordinator, identifies the historic buildings and sites that are of particular significance to the European heritage and urgently require conservation and/or restoration. It provides a snapshot of priorities from a specific standpoint and is by definition provisional reflecting a consensus of local regional and national views at a particular moment in time. It encompasses all the physical - natural and man-made - sociological, economic, cultural, ethnic and religious elements of the heritage.
Introduction
The name Bosnia and Herzegovina is of relatively recent date, coming into official use after the 1878 Berlin Congress conferred on Austria-Hungary the mandate to occupy this former province of the Ottoman Empire.
Bosnia and Herzegovina has a rich architectural and archaeological heritage, which it has inherited from various human occupations since the Palaeolithic period. All the prehistoric periods are represented there: Palaeolithic and Mesolithic, Neolithic and Eneolithic - the Copper Age, the Iron Ages and the Bronze Age.
In the second half of the 5th century the region was ruled for forty years by the Ostrogoths, who left extensive evidence of their culture, recognisable in archaeological finds. This was followed by the period of Slav immigration and permanent settlement in the region in the second half of the 6th and the 7th century. At least a century before the earliest reference to the famous Bosnian ban Boric (1154-1163), Bosnia had already become a distinct early feudal state, extending between the source of the river Bosnia and the Vranduk pass to the north, and the upper Drina and Borova Glava running east-west. At this time, Bosnia and Hum (later Herzegovina) were each evolving politically along their own lines, but by the early decades of the 14th century they had become part of a single polity. Mediaeval Bosnia reached its peak of political development in 1377 when Tvrtko I. Kotromanić was proclaimed king. As an independent political entity, maintaining contacts with many of the states of Europe of the day, and with its own schismatic Bosnian Church independent in jurisdiction from both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, the Bosnian Kingdom lasted until 1463, when most of the country was conquered by the Ottoman Empire. The most striking economic and cultural feature of this period is the emergence of towns and cities and of links between them. Almost every town and city in Bosnia and Herzegovina dates back to this period, either based on a village, a crossroads, or built on an entirely new site. Widespread urbanisation was made possible thanks to establishing the institutions of the vakuf or perpetual endowment, which determined how towns would evolve and funded their development. The basic layout was that of the oriental town, with its division into a business quarter known as the čarsija and residential quarters called mahalas, but always based on the previous Bosnian inheritance. Numerous religious and public edifices were built, as well as residential buildings.
The Ottoman rule was replaced by the Austro-Hungarian administration in 1878, lasting until 1918 when Bosnia and Herzegovina became part of the state of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later to become the Kingdom of Yugoslavia). In 1945, Bosnia and Herzegovina became one of the republics of the newly formed socialist Yugoslavia, and in 1992 it gained international recognition.
From prehistoric times to the modern day, Bosnia and Herzegovina abounds in cultural riches of various provenances: prehistoric, Greek, Illyrio-Roman, Gothic, early Slav, mediaeval, Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, and Yugoslav, as evidenced by no fewer than 8,800 monuments (excluding the movable heritage), of which 2,267 are enlisted.
The architectural heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina was systematically destroyed during the 1992-1995 war, and it has become difficult to protect monuments from further damage. The heritage is also threatened by illegal construction, inexpert reconstruction and an obvious lack of maintenance.
Heritage
The inventory of the architectural heritage drawn up by the Statistics Institute of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina provides details of the situation at 31 December 1986. The 1986 inventory included 727 registered properties, 507 of which are individual monuments and 220 are complexes or ensembles. 46 of the registered monuments are part of registered ensembles. On the basis of the inventory data, the area under protection was 272 hectares or 0.31 % of the total inhabited area of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The inventory included 162 religious buildings, 52 residential buildings and ensembles and 36 commercial and civil engineering properties, most of which were military buildings and ensembles.
The 2002 Spatial Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina refers to the fact that the country has 8,800 immovable properties of cultural interest, of which 2,267 have been enlisted as national monuments.
The classification criteria used by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments (hereafter: Commission) for designation of properties as national monuments varies according to the object that may belong to different categories. Among the property of cultural interest, there is movable cultural property (individual items or collections), immovable cultural property (monuments or ensembles), and sites. Immovable property can be residential (urban, rural, castles, etc.), religious (churches, mosques, monasteries etc.), educational (medresas, mektebs, schools, etc), administrative, public (inns and caravanserais, hospitals, hamams - public baths, etc), commercial, infrastructural (water supplies, bridges, etc), military (fortresses, towers, etc), funerary (necropolises) agricultural and industrial and so on. The sites are urban, rural, archaeological, historic, industrial, cultural and natural sites related to certain rituals or traditions, natural, scientific or mixed.
Bosnia and Herzegovina's architectural heritage was systematically destroyed during the 1992-1995 war. According to the as yet incomplete data gathered by the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina by November 1995, 2,771 architectural heritage properties were demolished or damaged, 713 of them were totally destroyed and 554 were burned down and are unusable. This data is based partly on on-site inspections, partly on reports from individual organisations, religious communities, etc. The numbers in the reports, although incomplete, indicate the extensive state of devastation of the heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Monuments from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century, followed by those of the Austro-Hungarian period, suffered the
worst destruction.
The urban nuclei of Sarajevo, Mostar and Jajce were devastated, along with many individual buildings that the Spatial Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina had assessed as heritage of international significance. The centres of Stolac, Banja Luka and Foca were also destroyed. The centres of Trebinje, Tesanj, Maglaj, Bihac, Travnik, Derventa and Livno were very badly damaged. Thus, out of a total of 60 valuable urban nuclei, 49 were destroyed or very badly damaged. All nine valuable urban-rural ensembles were seriously damaged, with Počitelj, Blagaj, Prusac, Jelec, Jezero and Kraljeva Sutjeska suffering the worst damage.
Out of the fifty-eight most valuable mosques and tekkes, twenty-two were totally demolished, including thirteen Category one buildings. All the other tekkes and mosques were damaged. Out of the forty most valuable churches and Orthodox and Catholic monasteries dating from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century, five were destroyed and four damaged (destroyed: the Orthodox monastery of Zitomislici, the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Mother of God in the Bjelusine district of Mostar, the Orthodox Church of the Transfiguration of Christ in the village Klepci near Capljina, the Orthodox Church of St Nicholas in the village of Trijebanj and the Catholic monastery in Plehan near Derventa). The Catholic Church of St John in Podmilacje, an important pilgrimage site from the XVth century with the main Church building from 1910 was also completely destroyed. The two synagogues in Sarajevo dating from the Ottoman period (the Old Sephardi synagogue and the New Ashkenazi synagogue) were partly damaged.
Many cemetreies and funerial monuments also suffered major damage, and some of those listed as Category one were totally destroyed, such as the cemetrey of the Sinan-beg mosque in Cajnice, the Sinan-beg turbe (mausoleum) in Cajnice, the turbe of members of the Sinan-beg family in Cajnice, the turbe of Ibrahim in Foca, the turbe of Hasan Sheikh Kaimibaba in Zvornik, three turbes alongside the Ferhad-pasa mosque in Banja Luka, the Halilpasa turbe in Banja Luka, the Sephardi graveyard in Sarajevo, the old Orthodox graveyard in Bjelusine (Mostar) and the chapel of the Orthodox graveyard in Kosevo (Sarajevo) was damaged.
The Old Bridge in Mostar, a monument of international importance, was destroyed; the Mehmed-pasa Sokolovic bridge in Višegrad was damaged and its pillars are endangered since no steps have been taken to protect it following the construction of a hydroelectric power station and dam on the Drina upstream from the bridge.
Sixteen Category one buildings dating from the Austro-Hungarian period were damaged and four destroyed (the Vijecnica, or town hall, housing the National and University Library, and the Post Office in Sarajevo and the Baths and the Neretva Hotel in Mostar).
The heritage, which was either damaged or destroyed during the war and faces further damage due to lack of maintenance and the inability to carry out repairs, is under the
greatest threat.
Pursuant to its authority regulated by Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Commission to Preserve National Monuments issues decisions designating property as National Monuments, applying the Criteria on the Designation of National Monuments. Until March 2004, the Commission has designated 157 properties as national monuments. The Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted in 2000, listed 777 individual properties. The Commission issues decisions on designation as a National Monument for each of the individual properties on the Provisional List. The procedure for designating a property as a national monument is initiated by a petition or motion, which may be filed by any person or legal entity. 858 petitions were submitted in the period July 2002-October 2003.
Legislation
The main legislation reference texts for the protection of the heritage are:
- The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Dayton Peace Agreement), Annex 8 - Agreement on the Commission to Preserve National Monuments; 1995.
- The Decision of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, 2001 (Bosnia and Herzegovina [BiH] Official Gazette, nos. 1/02 and 10/02)
- The Rules on the Activities of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments with respect to International Co-operation, 2002 (Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, no. 29/02).
- The Criteria for the Designation of Property as National Monuments, 2002/2003 (Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, nos. 33/02 and 15/03; Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina [FBiH], no. 59/02; Official Gazette of Republika Srpska [RS], no. 79/02).
- The Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments Established Pursuant to Appendix 8 of the Dayton Agreement), 2002, adopted by the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, nos. 2102 and 27/02)
- The Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments Established Pursuant to Appendix 8 of the Dayton Agreement), 2002, adopted by the Republika Srpska (Official Gazette of Republika Srpska no. 9/02).
- The Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments Established Pursuant to Appendix 8 of the Dayton Agreement), 2002, adopted by the District of Brčko (Official Gazette of the District of Brčko, no. 2/02).
- The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Law on Spatial Planning, 2002, (Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, no. 52/02)
- The Republika Srpska Law on Spatial Planning, 2002 (Republika Srpska Official Gazette, no. 79/02).
Other laws currently in force:
- In Republika Srpska: the Law on Cultural Property, of 1995 (Republika Srpska Official Gazette, no.11/95).
- The Criminal Code of Republika Srpska
- In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: the Law on the Protection and Preservation of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage, of 1985, as amended in 1987, 1993 and 1994, in force and implemented in the cantons that do not have their own rules. (Only three cantons have adopted the heritage laws:
- Sarajevo, Zapadnohercegovački and Zenicko-Dobojski.).
- Criminal Code of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The legislation is currently being revised. The Law on the Protection and Preservation
of Cultural Monuments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the aim of which is to establish the legal framework at the state level, has been in preparation.
A number of specific aspects are dealt with in the following legal instruments:
- the Law on the Protection and Preservation of the Historical, Cultural and Natural Heritage, of 1985 (contains definitions of monuments and sites)
- the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Annex 8, Article 6 (contains a definition of what is eligible to be designated as a national monument)
- Article 6 on the eligibility of movable or immovable property to be classified as national monuments, because of their considerable importance for a group of people with a common cultural, historical, religious or ethnic heritage, such as architectural or artistic or historic monuments, archaeological sites, groups of buildings and cemetreies.
- The Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments (2002), which defines monuments, the rehabilitation of monuments and co-operation between the bodies responsible.
The laws and regulations are published in the official gazettes in the local language (Bosnian, Serb, Croatian), and are available on the web page of the Commission. The legal
framework and regulations are also available on the web page of the Commission in English.
With a view to improving relations between the heritage protection and town planning organisations, the proposal of the Federal Ministry for Spatial Planning should ensure a
unified methodology, as specified in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Law on Spatial Planning, 2002 (the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, no. 52/02). According to this law, spatial planning must be coordinated by means of special regulations on the protection of the cultural, historical and natural heritage. It also requires a list of the buildings and areas of architectural and natural heritage designated as national monuments by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments. Similar decisions are applied in Republika Srpska. The Law on Spatial Planning also regulates that the cultural and historical heritage must come under special protection. The protected sites are determined by the Commission in its decisions and by regional and town plans and are governed by regulatory plans. In response to the Council of Europe's recommendations on measures to assess and protect the cultural heritage, the Bosnia and Herzegovina Spatial Plan includes a list of the most valuable archaeological and architectural heritage assets and classifies them into four categories.
Under the Law on the Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments and Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, responsibility for enforcing the Commission's decisions lies with the Entity governments and the ministries responsible for regional planning. All executive and planning acts not in accordance with the provisions of the decisions should be revoked. The authorities in charge of urban planning and land registry matters are notified of the decisions in order to carry out the measures stipulated in them, and the competent municipal courts are informed for the purposes of registration in the Land Register.
Management
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Dayton Peace Agreement) defines in separate appendices the obligations at the different administrative levels (state level: the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina; the Entity levels: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska and the District of Brčko). Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina relates to the heritage and the importance of its restoration for the implementation of a stable peace.
Responsibility for the management of the religious heritage lies with the owners of the heritage (Islamic, Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Jewish community), the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, the governments of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska and Brčko District and their ministries of spatial planning, the ministries of culture, and the institutions for heritage protection that are part of the Entities' ministries of
culture.
The Commission to Preserve National Monuments is an institution of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina set up in accordance with Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Decision of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Commission to Preserve National Monuments (Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette nos. 1/02 and 10/02) in 2001 appointing five members of the Commission, three national experts and two foreign experts (Sweden and Turkey) serving a term of five years. One of the local experts works in full capacity in the Commision. The three national members of the Commission rotate in the post of the Chairperson every six months. The Commission's decisions are final and are enforced in accordance with the Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments Established Persuant to Annex 8 (Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette no. 2/02 and 27/02, Republika Srpska Official Gazette no. 9/02, and Brcko District Official Gazzete no. 2/02), which provides national monuments with the highest degree of protection.
The Commission has drawn up standard forms of petition by type of property and has lodged them with all the municipalities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the institutions dealing with the protection of the cultural and historical heritage, religious communities and other institutions. The petition may also be submitted through the on-line form published on the official web page of the Commission. Within one year, starting from the date when a petition is submitted, the Commission should make a decision on a property. In the absence of a specific request, the Commission also issues decisions on designation as a National Monument for each of the individual properties on the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of Bosnia and Herzegovina no. 33/02).
The Commission monitors and considers the present situation and activities relating to national monuments endangered by illegal construction, inexpert reconstruction, lack of maintenance or other forms of destruction. In specific cases, it notifies the relevant Entity or other authorities that a monument is endangered and proposes measures for its protection in accordance with the law, including the filing of criminal charges with the relevant authorities under the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The Commission provides a list of the endangered monuments, and recommends priorities for protection to the responsible
governments.
The Commission is also authorised to engage in international co-operation on the protection of the historic and cultural heritage.
The three regional governments (Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Government of Republika Srpska and the Government of District Brčko) are responsible for ensuring and providing the financial, administrative, technical, scientific and legal resources necessary to protect, preserve, present and restore the national monument. The Governments must provide the resources for drawing up the necessary technical documentation for the restoration of the national monument and for implementing its provisions. The institutions for the protection of the heritage at Entities' level are financed from the Entities' budgets via the Entities' ministries responsible for culture. In response to the Commission's decisions on designating properties as national monuments, the relevant ministries of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republika Srpska and the Brčko District should earmark funds for work on monuments, including endangered national monuments, both private and state-owned.
Responsibility for the enforcement of the Commission's decisions lies with the Entity/Regional governments and the ministries responsible for regional planning. The institutions for the protection of the cultural, historical and natural heritage at the level of the Entities in Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina are responsible for the implementation of the laws, and the Department for Education's Commission to Protect Heritage at the level of the Brcko District. In addition, in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina there are regional institutions in Tuzla and Mostar and a regional institution in the Canton of Sarajevo.
The Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments lays down the responsibilities of, and relationship between the departments, organisatons or institutes responsible for heritage management:
- Everyone, in particular the competent authorities of the Entities, Brčko District, cantons, and urban and municipal authorities, must refrain from any action that might endanger the national monument or jeopardize its protection and restoration.
- Entity ministries responsible for spatial planning issue permits for the protection, display and restoration of national monuments. The institutions responsible for the protection of the heritage provide expertise on restoration projects and expert supervision of restoration work.
- The Entity governments, spatial planning ministry, heritage protection institutes and municipal authorities in charge of urban planning and land registry matters, are notified of the Commission's decisions in order to carry out the legal measures regulated and the competent municipal court is notified for the purposes of registration in the Land Register.
The main weakness in heritage management is the absence of adequate documentation, most of which was destroyed during the war. In addition, the state of the heritage changed during the 1992-1995 war. Absence of a Law for protection of the heritage at the state level contributes to a non-systematic and non-synchronized process of the protection. The main obstacles are however the disparity between the very large number of endangered properties and the funds available for the protection and restoration of cultural heritage. Other weaknesses are illegal construction, inexpert reconstruction, lack of maintenance or other forms of destruction. Furthermore, the religious communities that own properties are very often reluctant to co-operate with the heritage protection institutions and fail to act in accordance with the professional advice given by the latter. There is no official comprehensive strategy for the future management of monuments at the state level but one should be in place following the adoption of the state level Law on the Protection and Preservation of Cultural Monuments in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The institutions responsible for the protection of the cultural heritage also suffer from insufficient numbers of qualified staff and are poorly equipped. In general, owing to a shortage of funds it has not been possible to provide conditions necessary to carry out a survey and evaluation of present heritage conditions at any level.
Another problem is the weakness of the postwar legislative arrangements when it comes to preventing illegal construction, inexpert reconstruction, lack of maintenance or other forms of destruction. Funds should be made available in the budgets of the administrative authorities at all levels (local and state) for the removal of illegal constructions that endanger the cultural heritage. As part of this priority, it is essential to include certain regulations on the cultural heritage in sectorial laws (housing, urban planning, traffic, education, etc.).
Partnerships
After it was set up, the Commission established regular co-operation with the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Entities, the District of Brcko, the towns and cities, the cantons and the municipalities, institutions for protection of the heritage, museums, universities, archives, libraries, religious communities and NGOs, concerning heritage matters. In the last two years, it has been possible to finance a number of restoration projects from the budget of the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Government of the Canton of Sarajevo and the Government of the Canton of Zenica-Doboj.
In 2003, the Government of Republika Srpska did not establish a budget line for heritage. However, some projects financed by religious communities, private foundations and NGOs have been carried out on the territory of Republika Srpska.
The Commission is authorised by the Rules on the Activities of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments with respect to International Co-operation, a Decision by the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to take the initiative of including projects in international agreements, to participate in opening negotiations, implementing such agreements and engaging in international co-operation on the preservation of national monuments. It must represent the interests of Bosnia and Herzegovina when it comes to signing and implementing international conventions, the resolution of disputes concerning interests shared by Bosnia and Herzegovina and other states and international organisations to place national monuments on UNESCO's World Heritage List and the World Monuments' Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites, co-operation with Interpol, other international organisations and countries in the case of the disappearance of movable national property, procedural issues relating to the export of movable national property and the question of guarantees for their safekeeping in the event of their temporary export, fund-raising by means of donations for the Commission's work and the preservation of national monuments and the employment of foreign experts to assist the Commission.
The international bodies working in the country and able to finance restoration projects are the NGOs: Cultural Heritage without Borders (Sweden), Crossroads and SIDA (Sweden), the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (Geneva), World Monuments Found (New York), UNESCO, IRCICA, the governments of Turkey, Italy, Sweden, Croatia, the Council of Europe, the Council of Europe Development Bank, the European Commission and the World Bank.
Documentation
The institutions involved in the protection of cultural and historic monuments have their own archives, but in most cases these are not in electronic form, and in some cases access to them is difficult without specific references. In some regions of the country, the maps are not up to date and it is not possible to link land registry data with information on owners. In addition, in some parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina books containing ownership information were destroyed during World War II and the 1992-1995 war.
There is a national inventory of buildings and sites. The Statistical Institute of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina held a census of immovable heritage in 1986. The Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina (that ceased to exist in 2003) conducted the inventory which had been exposed to a partial devastation during the war. The Spatial Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina was drawn up in the period of 1987-2000. The purpose of the inventory is to ensure protection and registration as a national monument. It does not follow the Council of Europe's Core Data Standard. It includes both ordinary buildings and major monuments and is an ongoing activity.
The Commission has prepared a proposal for an electronic archive of the heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is designed to be a single documentation centre and will include national, Entity, cantonal and municipal institutions. When data is entered into the archive, institutions involved with the cultural and historical heritage will be consulted. Part of the cultural and historical heritage has been covered at various levels by different institutional bodies.
Staff is competent. There are experts at the local level and they originate from different ethnic communities. Access is available to planning information that could influence the prioritisation of buildings and sites. It is also possible to access expertise to assess damage and the costs of repairs. There is adequate photographic equipment.
The bodies holding the materials compiled are the Commission itself, together with various local, Entity, national and international institutions and bodies involved directly or indirectly with the cultural and historical heritage in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At state and local level, these institutions and bodies include the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport; the Ministry of Regional Planning and the Environment; the Finance Ministries of both Entities, the Ministry of Transport and Communications of both Entities, and other institutions responsible for heritage issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, such as museums, archives, galleries and universities, as well as NGOs.
Cooperation with regional, local and religious communities
In the procedure for designating a given property as a national monument, the Commission has drawn up standard forms based on the type of property and has sent them to all the municipalities, the institutions involved with the protection of the cultural and historical heritage, religious communities and other institutions. Properties belonging to the heritage of all the ethnic and religious groups have been designated as national monuments. Owners and political criteria are irrelevant for designation of property as a national monument (The Criteria for the Designation of Property as National Monuments, 2002/2003 - Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, nos. 33/02 and 15/03; Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, no. 59/02; Official Gazette of Republika Srpska, no. 79/02).
Priority is given to endangered monuments and monuments of great importance for the preservation of the identity of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina defines that designations of national monuments are based upon their cultural, historical, religious and ethnic importance. The designation rules also regulate other criteria, including those of a symbolic nature (ontological, sacred, traditional, rituals or traditions, significance for the identity of a group of people). The Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina has issued a formal decision on the appointment of the members of the Commission, which consists of two foreign experts (from Sweden and Turkey) and three national experts, one from each of the constituent ethnic groups. Annex 8 also states that the officials and bodies of the parties must fully co-operate with the Commission. The High Representative is authorised to impose decisions to revoke the appointment of representatives of the authorities who prevent the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement, including Annex 8.
Sources
Commission to Preserve National Monuments
Republican Statistics Institute of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo
Republic Institute of Cultural, -Historical and Natural Heritage of Republika Srpska, Banja Luka
Cantonal Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical Heritage, Sarajevo
City Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage, Mostar Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage, Tuzla National Museum Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo Museum of Literature and Theatre Art Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo Museum of Sarajevo, Sarajevo
Franciscan Museum Gorica, Livno Museum of Herzegovina, Mostar Museum of City Zenica, Zenica Territorial Museum Visoko, Visoko Museum of East Bosnia, Tuzla Bihać Museum
History Archive, Sarajevo Archive of Federation, Sarajevo Archive of Herzegovina, Mostar; History Archive, Tuzla Galleries
Libraries Municipalities Cadastral Offices Geodetic Institutes Religious Communities
Federal Ministry for Spatial Arrangement and Environment
Ministry for Spatial Arrangement, Construction and Ecology of Republika Srpska
Government of Brčko District - Department of Urbanism, Property Relations and Economical Development
Federal Ministry of Education and Sciences
Ministry of Sciences and Technologies Republika Srpska Government of Brčko District - Department of Education Ministry of Education and Culture Republika Srpska Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport
Government of Brčko District - Department of Health, Public Security and Services Faculties for architecture and urban planning Various organisations dealing with heritage
The Report is based upon the work of the experts of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments:
Members of the Commission: Zeynep Ahunbay
Amra Hadžimuhamedović
Dubravko Lovrenovic
Ljiljana Sevo
Tina Wik
Members of the Secretariat of the Commission:
Jasna Burnazovic
Lidija Fekeza
Mirzah Foco
Mirela Mulalic Handan
Selma Imsirovic
Sanja Jelin
Slobodanka Lalic
Alisa Marjanovic
Branka Mekic
Orjana Mujkic
Emir Softic
Amra Sarancic
And in cooperation with:
Federal Ministry for Spatial Arrangement and Environment
Federal Ministry for Education and Sciences
Federal Ministry for Culture and Sport
Ministry for Spatial Arrangement, Construction and Ecology of Republika Srpska
Ministry for Education and Culture Republika Srpska
Ministry for Sciences and Technologies Republika Srpska
Government of Brčko District - Department of Urbanism, Property Relations and Economical Development
Institute for Protection of Monuments within the Federal Ministry for Culture and Sport, Sarajevo
Republic Institute of Cultural-Historical and Natural Heritage of Republika Srpska, Banja Luka Cantonal Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical Heritage, Sarajevo City
Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage,
Mostar Institute for Protection of Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage, Tuzla
Bibliography
Spatial plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Phase B - Valorisation, Department of Architecture and Spatial Planning of the Faculty of Architecture, Sarajevo, 1980.
The Historico-Cultural and Natural Heritage, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, Spatial Planning Strategy- Phase one, Federal Ministry of Spatial Planning and the Environment, 1996. Destruction as Part of the Heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina - with special focus on the period 1991-1995, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, MA dissertation, Sarajevo, 1998.
Development of Planned Space Utilisation within Postwar Reconstruction/Development Trends, First Consultative Conference of Urban Planners in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bihać, 1998.
General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Annex 8 - Agreement on the Commission to Preserve National Monuments; 1995.
Decision of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, 2001 (Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, nos. 1/02 and 10/02).
Rules on the Activities of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments with respect to International Co-operation, 2002 (Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, no. 29/02).
Criteria for the designation of property as a national monument, 2002/2003 (Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, nos. 33/02 and 15/03; Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, no. 59/02; RS Official Gazette, no. 79/02).
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments (set up in accordance with Appendix 8), 2002 (Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, nos. 2/02 and 27/02.
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Law on Spatial Planning, 2002 (Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Official Gazette, no. 52/02).
Republika Srpska Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve Monuments (set up in accordance with Appendix 8), 2002 (Republika Srpska Official Gazette, no. 9/02)
Republika Srpska Law on Spatial Planning, 2002 (Republika Srpska Official Gazette, no. 79/02).
District of Brčko Law on the Implementation of Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments (set up in accordance with Appendix 8), 2002 (Official Gazette of District of Brčko, no. 2/02).
Heritage at Risk, catalogue, Commission to Preserve National Monuments, Sarajevo, 2003. Documentation of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.
Technical Co-operation and Consultancy Programme related to the integrated preservation of the cultural heritage; Specific Action Plan for Bosnia-Herzegovina, Preliminary Phase, Cultural Heritage Committee, Strasbourg 1999.
Prioritised Intervention List
Summary
The Prioritised Intervention List for Bosnia and Herzegovina comprises 20 monuments and sites:
1. Bridge of Mehmed pasha Sokolovic in Visegrad
2. Old Town of Stolac
3. Fortress in Jajce
4. Historical urban site of Blagaj
5. Historical site of Radimlja with necropolis
6. Fethija Mosque
7. Old Soko Mosque
8. Greek Orthodox Church of St. Nicolas
9. Old Jewish graveyard in Sarajevo
10. Site and remains of the architectural ensemble of the Aladza Mosque
11. Site and remains of the architectural ensemble of the Catholic Monastery Plehan
12. Historic building Eminagica Konak in Tesanj
13. Seranica's House
14. City Hall in Sarajevo
15. City Hall in Novi Grad
16. Old Town Buzim
17. Old Town Ljubuski
18. Old Town Prusac
19. Architectural ensemble of the Greek Orthodox Monastery in Vozuca
20. City Hall in Brcko
These include a broad range of archaeological and historical sites and building types:
7 historical buildings: city halls, a bridge, a church and a heritage house.
3 historical sites including 2 necropolises and a fortress.
5 architectural ensembles or remains including 2 mosques, 1 Orthodox church and 2 monastic sites.
5 historic urban ensembles.
The significance of these has been assessed as follows:
International importance (1)
Outstanding national importance (19)
Preliminary costings have not been prepared. However, the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina has planned financial means for projects and for the protection of the old towns of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The totality of the sites and buildings have been assessed as being of high priority for intervention.
It is believed that this selection of monuments, chosen for further technical assessment and costings offers a range of buildings and sites representative of the rich heritage of Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
European Commission - Council of Europe Joint Programme: Integrated Rehabilitation Project Plan / Survey of the Architectural and Archaeological Heritage (IRPP/SAAH) - Bosnia and Herzegovina - March 2004
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