Necropolis of stećak tombstones in Radimlja near Stolac is one of the most famous localities of medieval tombstones in Herzegovina. The necropolis itself represents one of the most valuable monuments of the medieval in B&H and it has been proclaimed as the national monument, which has 133 tombstones preserved, as stated on the official website of the Municipality of Stolac.
Both domestic and foreign visitors are interested in this locality more and more every year, which was visited by almost 9,000 tourists this year.
Ante Vujnović, the director of Public Institution “Radimlja” from Stolac, emphasized that they have recorded huge increase in the number of visitors this year, adding that they are expecting the number of 11,000 visitors to be exceeded by the end of this year.
”As for the individual visits, we are having a lot of visitors from B&H, Croatia and Montenegro, as well as from Scandinavia, France and Italy. However, when it comes to the group visits we have a lot of guests from America, Slovenia, France, Czech Republic, Germany and visitors from Japan and China. They are fascinated by the fact that Radimlja is so clean and neatly mowed, and they are praising our staff for presenting the history of stećak tombstones this way,” said Vujnović.
Considering that culture of stećak have not came outside of the borders of B&H yet, tourists are interested the most in what stećak tombstones actually are, added Vujnović.
”Stećak tombstones are quite unknown for tourists, especially those who are coming from Eastern and Western countries, so it is up to us to explain them what they are all about,” said Vujnović.
It is expected that these stećak tombstones will be registered on UNESCO’s World Heritage List next year, which will definitely contribute to even bigger promotion of this as well as the other necropolis.
”This year, we are expecting experts from ICOMOS to arrive, and the UNESCO’s summit on which the decision should be made is scheduled for the next year. We live for that day and we are truly hoping for the positive decision, since it would most certainly contribute to the increase of number of our guests,” emphasized Vujnović.
The entrance ticket in necropolis Radimlja costs 4 BAM per person and for group visits the ticket is 2 BAM per person. Free parking and use of sanitary facilities are included in the price.
”Unfortunately, there are no restaurants before Stolac where our guests could refresh, but we have several refrigerators with juices and fresh water here in Radimlja. We set up several benches in the shade as well. We are also planning to open souvenir shop,” said Vujnović.
(Source: akta.ba)
