A city with such an exceptionally rich culture and history always seems to have something more to show—as if it is hiding its landmarks and everything that once adorned it.
While the citizens of Sarajevo are familiar with the gates in the Vratnik area, many are unaware of those from the Austro-Hungarian period that once graced the main streets of the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Adnan Muftarević, a museum counselor and archaeologist, spoke about these gates for the Radiosarajevo.ba portal.
Before Sarajevo was set on fire by Prince Eugene of Savoy in 1697, there was no need for large ramparts to encircle the city, specifically the Old City of Vratnik. When Savoy set Sarajevo ablaze, a few soldiers and the local population managed to save themselves thanks to the White Bastion (Bijela tabija).
With the arrival of Ahmet Pasha Skopljak as the head of the Bosnian Eyalet, he decided to encircle and fortify the old city, a project that lasted ten years. At that time, the Old City had several bastions (tabije), which served that very purpose: to provide a safe shelter for soldiers and inhabitants from enemies in the event of future attacks.
Thus, today in Vratnik, we see the Širokac, Višegrad, and Ploča gates—ramparts that remain to this day as a memory of the Ottoman period. One of them, the Ploča gate, even houses a museum. While these gates are a daily sight for the residents of Vratnik, the museum built into the Ploča gate is visited by tourists every day.
However, what is even less known is the fact that Sarajevo was once adorned by two additional gates. Today, hundreds of citizens pass through one of those locations daily. Adnan Muftarević, a museum counselor at the Sarajevo Museum and an archaeologist, explained more about these gates.
With the arrival of Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina, different styles and influences began to blend in architecture and art. One of the gates was located at Marijin Dvor. Its shape was oriental, featuring nine windows. It was decorated with flags and covered with roof tiles, but its walls were made of wood, which tells us that its purpose was not the same as that of the Vratnik gates.
That gate was built in honor of the visit of Emperor Franz Joseph, who visited Sarajevo on May 30, 1910. He toured the Cathedral, the Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque, and several other landmarks of Sarajevo at the time.
Data providing more detail about the appearance of the gate—and revealing that it was built in honor of Emperor Franz Joseph—could be found in the Sarajevski list in 1910: “The main gate between the Hotel Kontinental and Marijin Dvor is covered in tiles. Below the roof, there are nine ordinary green windows with iron bars, and the imperial eagle is on both sides. Above the central main window, there is colorful ornamentation in white, red, and blue, while above both side entrances, the ornamentation gives the impression of being carved in stone.”
Another gate, which was temporary and about which little is known, was built in 1888. Muftarević pointed out that it is more difficult to determine the exact location of that gate because the environment where it stood was very specific. Near the gate, in one of the rare existing photos, an old Bosnian house and courtyard can be seen.
This gate was built in honor of Prince Rudolf of Habsburg. It was, as Muftarević explains, “somewhat in a pseudo-Moorish style.” Muftarević emphasized that these gates have not been researched enough and it is very possible that more of them existed.
The functions of these gates were different; their reason for construction was different. Their purpose was not to provide protection to the citizens, but to show guests arriving in Sarajevo how powerful, wealthy, and massive the Austro-Hungarian Empire was—just like the gates themselves.
Only photos of these two gates remain, while the gates in Vratnik still stand, demonstrating their massiveness even though they no longer serve to protect the population. It is an interesting fact that the gate built to honor Emperor Franz Joseph was located in Marijin Dvor, one of the busiest parts of the city. Although the area is now crowded with vehicles, public transport, and people, many of us are unaware that it was once adorned by these gates.
Museum counselor Muftarević highlighted that institutions responsible for the promotion of cultural-historical heritage often lack the funds to present and mark many significant sites or buildings—or at least their remains—in Sarajevo. The Commission to Preserve National Monuments has done a great deal of work in designating and marking national monuments, Muftarević explained, but added that promotion and marking are not the responsibility of institutions alone.
“All of us can work on promoting our city and our country. Of course, more attention and responsibility lie with the people who receive funding for it, but we know it is sometimes very difficult due to property-legal relations—whether someone is taking care of a site and who a certain facility belongs to—which makes it hard to create signs, markings, and legends in the open. This does not mean it cannot be done. Tourist guides, museum professionals, people from the Institute for the Protection of Monuments, architects, and conservators should all be involved, but we all know that you get what you pay for. I am not strictly for that; sometimes something can also be done ‘from the heart’,” said Adnan Muftarević, museum counselor at the Sarajevo Museum and archaeologist, for the Radiosarajevo.ba portal.
