The Stećci Graveyards

The stećci are medieval tombstones found across Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro. Over 70,000 survive, scattered across highland meadows, forest clearings, and roadsides. Some weigh more than 30 tonnes. UNESCO inscribed 28 sites across four countries in 2016.

The Carvings

The stones carry carved images: warriors with raised swords, deer, vine scrolls, spirals, hunting scenes, and round dances. Some show the deceased lying in state. Others depict figures raising their right hands in a gesture that has never been conclusively interpreted. The carvings follow no single artistic tradition. They are too varied for a single workshop and too consistent for random production.

The Question of Religion

The stećci were long attributed to the Bosnian Church, a medieval Christian institution that both Rome and Constantinople condemned as heretical. Some scholars argued they were Bogomil tombstones, connecting them to the dualist heresy that spread from Bulgaria. More recent research has shown that stećci were erected by Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and members of the Bosnian Church alike. They belong to no single confession. They are a regional tradition that crossed religious lines.

The Graveyards Today

The necropolises sit in some of the most striking landscapes in southeastern Europe: highland karst, river valleys, and mountain passes. Many are unmarked by roads or signs. The inscriptions, where they survive, are in medieval Bosnian Cyrillic. Most say little more than the name of the deceased and a curse on anyone who disturbs the grave.