Velika and Mala Crljivica - Stećci Medieval Tombstone Graveyards
Cista Velika, Croatia
25.09.2025
Nestled in the picturesque landscape near **Cista Velika** in Croatia, the necropolises of **Velika Crljivica** and **Mala Crljivica** stand as profound testaments to a rich and enigmatic medieval past. These sites are integral components of the transnational UNESCO World Heritage inscription "Stećci Medieval Tombstones Graveyards," showcasing a unique cultural phenomenon that flourished across parts of Southeast Europe from the 12th to the 16th centuries.
A Glimpse into Medieval Times
The **Stećci**, as these monumental tombstones are known, are not merely funerary markers; they are extraordinary works of art and historical records carved in stone. The necropolis at **Velika Crljivica** is particularly significant for its impressive collection of over 80 well-preserved **Stećci**, making it one of the most important sites of its kind in Croatia. These stone behemoths range from simple slabs to elaborate chests and sarcophagi, bearing witness to the skilled craftsmanship and the spiritual beliefs of the communities that created them during the **Middle Ages**.
The Enigmatic Stećci
Unlike many other medieval European funerary traditions, the **Stećci** embody a distinct local style and iconography. While often associated with the **Bosnian Church**, a heterodox Christian community, archaeological evidence and inscriptions suggest they were erected by adherents of various Christian denominations, including Catholics and Orthodox Christians. Their sheer size and intricate decorations reflect a unique blend of pagan and Christian symbolism, offering invaluable insights into the social structures, religious practices, and artistic expressions of the period.
Symbolism Carved in Stone
The surfaces of these ancient monuments at **Velika Crljivica** and **Mala Crljivica** are adorned with a diverse array of motifs. Common designs include crosses of various forms, crescent moons, stars, and spirals, alongside depictions of human figures, hunting scenes, and ritual dances. These carvings often tell stories or convey spiritual messages, serving as a silent narrative of the lives and beliefs of the people interred beneath them. The preservation of these sites near **Cista Velika** allows us to connect with a distinctive and enduring cultural heritage, offering a poignant reminder of the region's complex and fascinating history.
Further Reading
This serial property combines 28 sites, located in Bosnia and Herzegovina, western Serbia, western Montenegro and central and southern Croatia, representing these cemeteries and regionally distinctive medieval tombstones, or stećci. The cemeteries, which date from the 12th to 16th centuries CE, are laid out in rows, as was the common custom in Europe from the Middle Ages. The stećci are mostly carved from limestone. They feature a wide range of decorative motifs and inscriptions that represent iconographic continuities within medieval Europe as well as locally distinctive traditions.
Stećak (plural stećci; Serbian Cyrillic: стећак, стећци) is the name for monumental medieval tombstones that lie scattered across Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the border parts of Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia. An estimated 60,000 are found within the borders of modern Bosnia and Herzegovina and the rest of 10,000 are found in what are today Croatia (4,400), Montenegro (3,500), and Serbia (2,100), at more than 3,300 odd sites with over 90% in poor condition. They are cut in a variety of recognizable stećak forms, with a certain percentage being richly decorated and some individual stećci also containing inscriptions in form of epitaphs.
Appearing in the mid 12th century, with the first phase in the 13th century, the custom of cutting and using stećci tombstones reached its peak in the 14th and 15th century, before being discontinued in the very early 16th century during the Ottoman conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina. They were a common tradition amongst Bosnian, Catholic and Orthodox Church followers alike, and were used by both Slavic and the Vlach populations.
On the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, all found individual and stećci grouped in necropolises are considered immovable heritage and most are already inscribed on one of the lists of the Commission to preserve National Monuments, whether on the List of National Monuments, Tentative List, or into List of Petitions. Stećci are also inscribed into World Heritage List by UNESCO since 2016, with a selection of some 4,000 individual monoliths, grouped in necropolises at 28 locations, of which 20 in Bosnia and Herzegovina, two in Croatia, three in Montenegro, and three in Serbia. One of the best preserved collections of these tombstones is Radimlja, west of Stolac in Bosnia and Herzegovina, while the Zgošća Stećak is one of the most representative individual examples of stećak found, in terms of its size, artistic processing and ornamentation.
