Historic urban area of Kreševo (BH_21)
Country or territory: Bosnia and Herzegovina
Name of organisation compiling the information: Commission to Preserve National Monuments
Contact name: Mirela Mulaluć Handan
Email address: mirela.m.handan@kons.gov.ba
Name and address of building(s) or site: Architectural ensemble of the historic urban area of Kreševo
Inventory reference number(s): 08.1-6-527/03-6
Building type(s): Historic urban ensemble
Main date(s): First mention of the urban area of Kreševo dates in the end of the 14th century
Current use(s): Currently in use
Significance
There is no reliable information on the period when Kreševo first came into being. The first reference to Kreševo mine dates from 1381, to the fortified town of Kreševo from 1430, and to Podkreševo (Sotto Crescevo, Sotto Chrisgneue), the present-day town of Kreševo, from 1434». (Raspudić, 1981, 10-20). Some scholars believe that along with Fojnica and Vareš, Kreševo was the best known iron-producing area in these parts in the pre-Roman age. Signs of iron ore mining and smelting have been found in several hill forts in the Kreševo area. In the Kreševo plain, traces of Roman architecture are frequently discovered in the course of ploughing the land. Until the ninth century the remains of a building believed to be Roman were still visible.
The development of mediaeval settlements in Bosnia gained momentum in the mid fourteenth century. Settlements advanced and increased in number rapidly, particularly in the second half of the century, when distinct regions are discernible within the Bosnian state. Within these regions, urban settlements came into being and developed alongside mines, market places and existing settlements around fortifications. Somewhat later, in 1365, the Kreševo mine came into being.
To the south of the modern town, on Kosa, the remains have been found of medium-sized mediaeval fortifications. Historical sources reveal that there was a royal court within the fort. The intensive mining activities in Podgrađe led to the development of a crafts, trade and mining town with its own separate administration, headed by a knez. The town had a church and a Franciscan monastery. Kreševo was referred to as a town in the first half of the fifteenth century.
In the mid fifteenth century, close to Fojnica, the Kreševo mine suddenly began to advance. At this time, too, people from Dubrovnik are recorded as gathering in the town, particularly from 1434 on. By 1450 there were a total of 61 of them in Kreševo
Like all mediaeval towns, Kreševo had two distinct urban areas, differing architcturally and functionally: the fort and the town below it. Above the river Kreševčica and present-day Kreševo stands a hill atop which stood the royal fortress of Kreševo. It is not clear whether the Bosnian rulers built the fort for their own purposes or whether they found some kind of fortifications there which they then adapted, but the latter seems more likely. The remains of an old fort used as a temporary residence by the Bosnian kings are still to be seen to this day. The town below the fort, Podkreševo, hereinafter Kreševo, grew up on the site of the present-day town. In the early fifteenth century it became an important commercial centre, as demonstrated by the presence of Dubrovnik merchants and a specific reference to a market (ad mercatum in Cressevo) in 1451. As a result of the widespread use of wood for residential and other buildings, there are no material remains that would make it possible to say more concerning the appearance of Kreševo at that time.
In the fifteenth century the Kreševo monastery was built, only to be demolished in 1521. There has been a monastery on the site of the present monastery since 1644, when it was built or renovated with the consent of the Ottoman authorities. There is also reference to a leprosery in Kreševo, which was probably alongside the monastery. The size of the population can be inferred from various data from the Ottoman period. In the 1468/69 population census conducted for various places in the Bosnian sandžak, Kreševo was listed as having 299 households and 25 bachelors, making a total of about 1,500 inhabitants.
Until the end of the Ottoman rule, the Kreševo mine remained an imperial possession (has/khas), and was also known for its production of iron ore and iron smelting. Kreševo was no longer mentioned as a market but with time grew into a kasabah or town.
In the eighteenth century, Kreševo was a small place. In 1737 the town had 1560 Catholics and about 240 Muslims. Everything in Kreševo revolved around iron during this century.
With the arrival of the Austro-Hungarians, Kreševo began to lag, and the population numbers decreased as people moved away. The changes to the social and economic life of Bosnia introduced by the Austro-Hungarian authorities had a major impact on the further development of Kreševo. The start of industrialisation gradually dismantled the old feudal guild system. The Austro-Hungarian authorities encouraged commercial activities, the first factories and industrial workshops were set up, and with time the old crafts lost their former importance and Kreševo began to lose its economic position.
The town’s lagging behind economically also led to a drop in the number of inhabitants, and by 1948 there were a mere 760 people living there, rising slightly to 853 in 1953.
General information
The basic feature of Kreševo that distinguishes it from other Bosnian settlements is that its mediaeval layout has survived. Kreševo did not have the division into čaršija and mahala with the čaršija as the commercial area and the mahala as the residential area. As a result of its isolated position, Kreševo did not undergo any transformation of its layout along the lines of Ottoman “own planning”. Although the central part of the settlement, the present day Fra Grge Martića street, was designated by the typical name of čaršija in the Ottoman period, it remained an area where people both lived and worked. Kreševo thus retained its mediaeval urban concept with production, trade and living quarters all in one place. The majority of the old buildings in Fra Grge Martića street have retained their combined residential and business use.
During the Ottoman imperial period, a separate residential quarter or mahala Muslemin, where Muslims lived, took shape. The mahala stands on the right bank of the Kreševčica, downstream from the Čaršija, and had its own mosque and mekteb.
In the administrative sense the older, main part of the settlement, mediaeval Podkreševo, was also divided into mahalas for easier administration. The mahalas consisted of commercial, public and residential buildings and did not constitute separate, readily identifiable ensembles, which meant they lacked the essential features of a mahala as a distinct residential quarter.
During the Austro-Hungarian period, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, with the erection of new public, commercial and residential buildings that did not conform to the traditional architecture, the existing urban and architectural fabric of the settlement was seriously damaged.
The extreme western part of Kreševo is the area in which the largest number of buildings have survived in their original form.
Fra Grge Martića street is the most valuable part of the area under consideration by virtue of its spatio-architectural and visual components: traces of the mediaeval urban model have survived, a number of old buildings with townscape features have survived, and the visual link with the fortress and the monastery has not been affected. Features underlining the aesthetic quality of the views are the spatial relationships between the buildings, the contrasting colour scheme of white walls and black roofs, the overhanging upper floors and steep hipped roofs. In the urban plan for Kreševo, this part of the settlement is designated as an architectural heritage zone. It covers an area of about 0.5 ha and consists of about ten outstanding buildings with their surrounding plots, but the conditions or guidelines for its preservation remain unspecified.
In Obala street fewer older buildings with townscape features have survived, but it is an area of secondary interest because of its views of the monastery and its church and the fortress and its immediate proximity to the river Kreševčica. In this street, very close to the old mill, is an old smithy with its traditional bellows. The owner, Mrdić, performs blacksmith's services from time to time.
Between these two areas, between Fra Grge Martića and Obala streets, a warehouse and other buildings have been erected that in size and appearance have spoiled the townscape.
West of the town centre are the two dominant buildings forming the vertical accents, visually speaking, for the entire area – the elevation with the fortress, and the monastery with its church. They are particularly visible from Fra Grge Martića and Obala streets and form a natural termination to the vista looking west.
Research and conservation and restoration works
None of the conservation and restoration works on residential buildings have been carried out under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority. The owners of the properties have carried out works on the buildings themselves.
2003: work is in hand to draw up a programme for the rehabilitation of the buildings in the historic urban area of Kreševo by the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of BiH using funds approved by the Federation Government.
The buildings earmarked for renovation by the Kreševo municipality are:
- the house of the Bilajac family, c.p. 325;
- the house of the Tukić family, c.p. 278;
- the house of the Šakotić family, c.p. 496/497;
- the house of the Zovko family, c.p. 253;
- the house of the Čizmić family, c.p. 607;
- the house of the Aždajić family, c.p. 605;
- water mill, Ban family and others, c.p. 552.
All these buildings are in Protection Zone I and subject to the measures stipulated in Clause III of this Decision.
- Hajji Hasan mosque
- 2000 – the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of BiH drew up a project to reconstruct the architectural ensemble of the mosque. The design concept did not wholly comply with the authentic appearance of the building before its destruction (See II/2 – Architecture, Hajji Hasan mosque).
- 2002-2003 – works carried out to reconstruct the Hajji Hasan mosque to the design project and under the expert supervision of the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of BiH.
Categories of Significance
- Of special national interest.
Categories of ownership or interest
- Of national interest.
Documentation and bibliographic references
- Commission to Preserve National Monuments
- Municipality Srebrenik
1934. Fra Kristić, Augustin. “Kreševska kuća” (Kreševo house), Napredak Croatian national calendar, 1934.
1939. Kristić, Augustin. “Iz stare Bosne, Najstarija kuća Bosne i Kreševa” (From old Bosnia, the oldest house in Bosnia and Kreševo), Napredak Croatian national calender, 1939.
1953. Kristić, Augustin. “Kreševska čaršija i Kreševska sermija” (Kreševo čaršija and Kreševo's artisans) Bulletin for the Institute for the Study of Folklore, Sarajevo. Sarajevo: 1953.
1954. Basler, Đuro. “Kreševo – Kiseljak – Fojnica”, Journal of the National Museum, n.s. A. IX. Sarajevo: 1954
1978. Kovačević-Kojić, Desanka. Gradska naselja srednjevjekovne bosanske države (Urban settlements of the mediaeval Bosnian state). Sarajevo: IP Veselin Masleša, 1978.
1981. Raspudić, Krunoslav. Čaršija u Kreševu – zaštita i obnova (Čaršija in Kreševo – preservation and renovation), master's dissertation, 1981.
1984. Bogdanović, Fra Marijan. Ljetopis Kreševskog samostana (1765-1817) – Izvještaj o pohodu bosansko vikarijata 1768 (Chronicle of the Kreševo monastery (1765-1817) – Report on visit of the Bosnian vicariat 1768). Sarajevo: SOUR Veselin Masleša, Cultural Heritage Series, 1984.
1998. Buzuk, Anto. «Čelik» Kreševo 1908-1998. Kreševo: «Čelik» d.d., 1998.
1998. Mujezinović, Mehmed. Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovine (Islamic epigraphics in BiH) Vol II. Sarajevo: Sarajevo-Publishing, 1998.
1999./2000. Buzuk, Anto. “Životopis i bibliografija radova Ivana Augustina Kristića” (Biography and bibliography of the works of Ivan Augustin Kristić), Bulletin of the Franciscan Theological College, Sarajevo, Vol. XXVII, no 1. Sarajevo: 1999./2000.
2000. Kreševo, Hadži Hasanova džamija sa grebljem (Kreševo, Hajji Hasan mosque and burial ground), Design concept for reconstruction. Sarajevo: Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of BiH, October 2000.
2003. Buzuk, Anto. Kulturno-povijesna baština Kreševa bez pomoći osuđena na propadanje (Cultural and historical heritage of Kreševo condemned to extinction without help), 2003.
2003. Buzuk, Anto. Kreševski metalci – kovači danas (Kreševo metal workers and smiths today), 2003.
2003. Decision of the Commission.
Condition
2. Poor
- The architectural ensemble is in very poor condition and at risk of partly collapsing.
Risk
- Long-term lack of maintenance, lack of planning measures, structural failure of some buildings and failure to take emergency protection measures.
Condition risk
- Immediate risk of further rapid deterioration or loss of fabric; solution agreed but not begun.
Technical assessment and costings
Protection Zone I relates to the area of the national monument (specified in the Decision of the Commission).
- conduct an analysis of the current state and consolidation of the buildings;
- new construction, demolition, repairs, alterations and extensions or other building works are prohibited other than works of rehabilitation, conservation and display of buildings to a design project approved by the Federal ministry responsible for regional planning (hereinafter: the Ministry) and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of BiH (hereinafter: the heritage protection authority);
- during the rehabilitation and adaptation of buildings their traditional appearance must be retained or restored (horizontal and vertical dimensions, number, size and arrangement of doors and windows, architectural details and paint colours, form and pitch of roof – hipped roofs with wooden rafters and a minimum pitch of 40 degrees), using original materials (stone and whitewashed plastered walls, shingles or dark grey tiles for the roof cladding) and applying original methods of treatment of materials and binders and building techniques when building them in;
- alter individual elements on buildings that are the result of later interventions and are not consistent with the townscape (replacing gabled roofs with hipped roofs, removing balconies and loggias, replacing ground floor picture windows with smaller ones measuring 40 x 60cm, ensuring they are of the regulation size and arrangement, replacing iron, aluminium and plastic window and door frames with wood, respecting traditional colour scheme of white walls and dark woodwork);
- interior alterations to existing buildings designed to adapt them to modern living and working conditions and alterations to the interior arrangement and fittings, the introduction of installations, fitting of bathrooms and modern furnishings shall be permitted; where chimneys are a new feature they shall be built as far as possible to harmonize with the surroundings;
- all methods used and the extent of intervention must be plain to see;
- all buildings subject to rehabilitation works must respect the regulatory line and structural line of adjacent buildings at ground floor level. Upper floors may project beyond the structural line to the extent of one third of the width of the street or no more than one metre;
- restore single-storey buildings in the čaršija area to their original purpose or introduce new uses appropriate to the central urban area – small-scale catering and services, traditional crafts, and cultural and educational uses;
- changes of use for the ground floor of residential buildings shall be permitted for service, catering, retail or cultural purposes and for traditional non-polluting crafts. At least 50% of the buildings should be reserved exclusively for residential purposes.
The following measures shall apply to individual buildings of townscape value:
The Augustin Kristić house, the houses of the Šakotić, Martinčević, Čizmić, Tukić, Bilajac, Zovko, Aždajić, Marković, Ahbabović, Jurić families:
- the original use of the buildings – residential buildings of mahala type and combined residential-business premises of the čaršija type – must be retained;
- design projects for the rehabilitation of these buildings shall be drawn up, and conservation works carried out on the surviving original parts of the buildings, making good damage and mandatorily preserving the authentic interior and interior fittings wherever possible;
- for the Šakotić family house, reconstruct missing parts using original materials and building techniques as far as possible.
Mill building:
- draw up a design project for rehabilitation designed to restore the building to its original use;
- carry out conservation works on surviving parts of the building, make good damage, and reconstruct missing parts.
Infrastructure and street furniture:
- traffic regulation – ban heavy vehicle and bus traffic in Protection Zone I;
- close Fra Grge Martića street to all traffic other than priority vehicles and delivery vehicles and turn it into a pedestrian zone, diverting light traffic to Obala street;
- provide a public parking area outside Protection Zone I;
- landscape the central pedestrial zone (paving, street lighting, street furniture) in a way that is not detrimental to the townscape value of the ensemble;
- draw up a project for the rehabilitation of the old roads network and carry out conservation and repairs to side streets;
- advertising billboards, posters and signs that block views and spoil the townscape are prohibited;
- the erection of other infrastructure facilities such as high-voltage pylons, transformers/substations etc. is prohibited.
Green areas:
- existing high vegetation must be preserved;
- the river bed and banks of the Kreševčica shall be regulated and landscaped;
- a project shall be drawn up to landscape and plant courtyards and public areas using indigenous plant species.
Protection Zone II consists of a strip 100 m from the outer limits of the area defined as Protection Zone I.
- the maximum permitted height of buildings is ground floor and one upper storey or 6.5 m to the height of the roof structure with maximum horizontal dimensions of 10 x 10 m, with the use of traditional materials (stone and whitewashed plastered walls, shingles or dark grey tiles for roof cladding, pitched roofs, wooden rafters, minimum pitch 40 deg.); It will be important to maintain the integrity of the townscape by ensuring the appropriateness of proportions and colour schemes.all buildings subject to rehabilitation works must respect the regulatory line and structural line of adjacent buildings at ground floor level. Upper floors may project beyond the structural line to the extent of one third of the width of the street or no more than one metre;
- the construction of industrial buildings and facilities and those the operation of which could endanger the national monument, quarries and the siting of environmental polluters are prohibited;
- infrastructure works shall be permitted solely with the approval of the Ministry and to the terms and conditions set by and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority;
- in the contact zone a programme for the biological rehabilitation of the deciduous woodlands to the north and west of the cultivated area shall be drawn up.
Technical assessment and costing proposala have not been carried out.
A Management Plan with conservation plan, maintenance plan, preservation of traditional crafts and use and information management should be drawn up (approx. cost 110.000 EUR)
Ownership
- Various – mainly private and owned by religious communities.
Occupation
- Occupied.
Management
The provisions relating to protection and rehabilitation 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 and 27/02) shall apply to the National Monument.
The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is responsible for ensuring and providing the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary to protect, conserve, display and rehabilitate the National Monument. The Government is responsible for drawing up a programme for the lasting preservation of the historic urban heart of Kreševo. The Government is responsible for providing the resources for drawing up and implementing the necessary urban planning executive documentation for the historic urban heart of Kreševo. The development plans for the historic heart of Kreševo should provide for the preservation and development of traditional crafts and the production of wrought iron items.
The Ministry of Regional Planning of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is responsible for the implementation of legally-prescribed protection measures. It is responsible for issuing planning approvals and permits for all works and construction in the protected area on the basis of planning and technical documentation approved by an authorised professional institution.
The Institute for the Protection of Monuments of the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport is also involved in these activities by verifying whether the conditions set out in the technical documentation have been met. The Institute is responsible for expert supervision, as prescribed by the Decision of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, and for the implementation of projects or parts thereof financed by the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Decisions designating national monuments are forwarded to the authorities responsible for town planning and cadastral affairs in order to implement the measures prescribed by these decisions, and to the competent municipal court for entry in the Land Register.
Kreševo Municipality is responsible, through its various departments and the buildings and planning inspectorate of the Federal Inspectorate Authority, for overseeing and controlling on-site activities. The Municipality is required to append all its plans and documents pertaining to the protected area of the national monuments to the decisions issued by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments. The Municipality is required to refrain from all activities detrimental to the national monuments, and to co-operate with the Commission to Preserve National Monuments and the Entity institutions in the process of implementing the Commission’s decisions.
Pursuant to the Decision of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Commission to Preserve National Monuments is authorised to perform activities of international co-operation in the field of heritage. The Commission is responsible for the implementation of the project in accordance with the Rules for the implementation of donor funds earmarked for the renovation or protection of the endangered cultural and historical heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
A non-governmental organization known as Ljubitelji starina is active in Kreševo, focusing on raising awareness of the importance of the heritage and preserving traditional crafts.
Summary
Kreševo town nestles in a narrow, elongated valley by the minor river Kreševka, and the area alongside the Kiseljak road, in Polje, is also now increasingly becoming urbanized. Kreševo’s natural isolated location, as well as its wealth of ores and minerals, dictated its development over the years, both throughout its existence. Kreševo thus retained its mediaeval urban concept with production, trade and living quarters all in one place.
The site is severely threatened by inappropriate interventions, uncontrolled development, lack of maintenance and management, and resources. Taking into consideration its poor condition, and complexity and diversity from the monumental point of view, the Historic Urban Area of Kreševo needs a management plan incl. conservation plan which would more clearly determine its future.
The priority level of intervention is HIGH.
NOTE:
Condition
- Poor.
Condition risk
- Immediate risk of further rapid detorioration or loss of fabric, solution agreed but not begun.
Sign. and date
Amra Šarančić, architect,
Mirela Mulalić Handan, architect
2010
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