UNESCO Heritage & History
Dugo Polje Stećci Necropolis
Blidinje Nature Park · Herzegovina
QUICK INFORMATION
- CATEGORY
- UNESCO Heritage & History
- COUNTRY
- Bosnia & Herzegovina
- REGION
- Blidinje Nature Park · Herzegovina
- DURATION
- 1–2 days
ABOUT THIS ATTRACTION
Dugo Polje is a medieval necropolis of stećci — the distinctive carved stone tombstones of the medieval Bosnian world — set among the open pasture of the Blidinje plateau. It is one component of the UNESCO World Heritage serial property “Stećci Medieval Tombstone Graveyards,” inscribed in 2016 across a group of sites in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the neighbouring countries. The tombstones stand in the open landscape where pastoral life and medieval funerary heritage meet, and they give Blidinje its deepest cultural layer. For a visitor it is a place to read slowly: a field of old stone in a high mountain setting, not a museum gallery, and a site whose protection depends on the behaviour of the people who come to see it.
HISTORY & BACKGROUND
The story behind it
The stećci are medieval tombstones carved between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, shared across the medieval Bosnian kingdom and the surrounding lands, and decorated with relief ornament, crosses, figural scenes and inscriptions. The necropolis at Dugo Polje is one of the components of the serial World Heritage property “Stećci Medieval Tombstone Graveyards,” inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2016. The wider natural and architectural ensemble of Blidinje is included on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s UNESCO Tentative List, which is a step toward possible nomination and is not the same as inscription on the World Heritage List. The two statuses should not be confused: Dugo Polje is inscribed as part of the stećci serial property, while the wider Blidinje ensemble remains on the tentative list.
WHAT TO SEE
What to see here
The tombstones themselves — the carved stećci standing in the open pasture, some plain and some ornamented, the medieval funerary heritage of the plateau.
The landscape setting — the open Dugo Polje ground among mountain horizons, where the necropolis is read as part of the pasture rather than apart from it.
The serial World Heritage context — Dugo Polje as one component of the inscribed “Stećci Medieval Tombstone Graveyards” property.
WHY IT MATTERS
Why it matters
Dugo Polje is the cultural heart of Blidinje and its inscribed World Heritage component — the place where the plateau’s medieval funerary heritage is most clearly visible. For a visitor it is the sight that gives the park its human depth alongside the lake and the mountains.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before you go
MAP & LOCATION
Dugo Polje Stećci Necropolis
Dugo Polje Stećci Necropolis, Blidinje Nature Park, Herzegovina, Bosnia & Herzegovina
43.6631, 17.5424
MORE ATTRACTIONS
More to see in Blidinje Nature Park
FOOD & DRINK
Where to eat nearby
Small seasonal cafés and restaurants on the plateau near the lake and the main access roads — check current opening locally, as services are limited and seasonal
Nearby towns such as Posušje and Jablanica, on the approaches to the park, for a wider choice of everyday Bosnian cooking outside the plateau
HOTELS & STAYS
Where to stay nearby
Small accommodation in the wider Blidinje area for visitors with their own transport; check availability and booking directly with the operator
Nearby towns on the approaches to the park as a base for a day trip onto the plateau; check current options locally
NEARBY DESTINATIONS
Continue the journey
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INTERESTS
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PART OF
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