Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and Serbia support the nomination of stećci for UNESCO World Heritage List

Minister of Civil Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina Adil Osmanović and ambassadors of Croatia and Serbia to BiH Ivan Del Vecchio and Stanimir Vukićević, as well as representative of the Embassy of Montenegro Predrag Arsović, expressed their unreserved support for the nomination of stećci, medieval tombstones, for inscription on the World Cultural Heritage List at today's meeting, it was announced from the relevant ministry, reports the Patria News Agency. 

Activities were agreed upon at the meeting to best present the significance of stećci by the session of the World Heritage Committee, which will be held in Istanbul from July 10 to 20, when the nomination of stećci is expected to be considered.

Special attention should be paid to the exhibition that will be organized on June 1 in Paris, and the intention is also to organize a series of cultural events in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and Serbia, which would emphasize the justification for inscribing stećci, medieval tombstones, on the World Cultural Heritage List.

It was emphasized once again at the meeting that stećci, in addition to their universal value recognized in the opinion of ICOMOS, also have great value for connecting and strengthening cooperation among the countries of the region.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and Serbia launched activities in 2009 on the joint preparation and implementation of the project "Nomination of stećci - medieval tombstones - for inscription on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List". The nominated necropolises are an integral part of a unique cultural phenomenon and are representative examples of stećci.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has the largest number of stećci, around 60,000, Croatia has around 4,400, Montenegro around 3,500, and Serbia around 4,100 stećci, according to the statement.