Stecci Medieval Tombstones

ZelenkaBlazek's picture

Location

Dalmatia, Dubrovnik
Croatia
43° 29' 4.9272" N, 17° 12' 15.318" E
HR
General info: 

Some real oddities that are present in Croatia, (and also in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia) are the Stecci. These medieval tombstones are unique in the world and are closely following the borders of the medieval Bosnian Kingdom. There are a total of 70,000 Stecci spread in the area between the above mentioned countries and several thousand of them are in Croatia. The decorative motifs featured on the tombstones are enigmatic, spirals, rosettes and crescent moons being part of the recurrent motifs on the monuments.

Stecci contain epitaphs written in Cyrillic Bosnian and the oldest one dates back from the 12th century. Larger numbers of Stecci can be seen in both Imotski and Dugopolije, border areas of Croatia. Stećci have been nominated to the UNESCO World Heritage List as Joint Cultural Heritage by the four countries in 2009.

Getting there: 

Most of them are located in the areas of Dalmatia and Dubrovnik. An easily accessible location is Cista Provo, only half an hour away from Split.

Costs: 

Free for all

Interesting places nearby

The mid-size Swiss ski resort Scuol – Motta Naluns is surrounded by the peaks of the Lower Engadin and the Silvretta. It has slopes from 1,250 to 2,783 m above sea level, and is a snow sports area where you can avoid long queues.

The mountain slopes in the Swiss ski resort Sedrun Oberalp are open and wide. You will find picturesque mountain lodges here, spread all over the Cuolm Val.

Sunny, well prepared slopes and a modern lift-facility promise pure joy for beginners and professional skiers in the Olympia-region of Seefeld.

If you spend your winter vacation in the ski area Seefeld Rosshütte, you may choose between several very well groomed and award winning pistes.

The skiing area Leutasch is located in the Olympia-region Seefeld. Whoever is on skiing vacation in Seefeld-Leutasch, will get very well prepared slopes in all difficulties.

Val Gardena is one of the most important ski areas in the Dolomites.