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

Zar mountain has ski trail with length of 1600m is one of the longest ski slopes in the Beskid Mountains. Ski resort has artificial snow system, slopes are prepared every day. Lighting and sound system allows to ski to the late hours.

BASE: 2624ft
SUMMIT: 3736ft
VERTICAL DROP: 1204ft

NO. OF. LIFTS: 7
Gondolas: 0
Chairs: 1
Surface: 6

BASE: 2493ft
SUMMIT: 2788ft
VERTICAL DROP: 295ft

NO. OF. LIFTS: 2
Gondolas: 0
Chairs: 0
Surface: 2

BASE: 2575ft
SUMMIT: 2788ft
VERTICAL DROP: 213ft

NO. OF. LIFTS: 2
Gondolas: 0
Chairs: 0
Surface: 2

BASE: 2395ft
SUMMIT: 3267ft
VERTICAL DROP: 872ft

NO. OF. LIFTS: 3
Gondolas: 0
Chairs: 0
Surface: 3

4 ski tows, 7 runs, a cross-country trail and a toboggan-run, ice-skating and curling guarantee fun and relaxation for the young and the old. Without means of transport directly from your front door onto the slope.