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Initiative for research
Commission to Preserve National Monuments, on its session which was held on 6th till 11th December 2003 made a decision designating the architectural ensemble – Old town part of Blagaj – in Blagaj near Mostar to constitute a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Since the measures of protection and rehabilitation defined in the Act on implementation of the decisions taken by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments in accordance with Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina „Official Gazzette of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina“ numbered 2/02 and 27/02, in accordance with its authorizations, the Government of the Federation of Bosnia in Herzegovina is in charge with providing legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures for full revitalization of the mentioned cultural treasure. With respect of these facts by the city of Mostar, and by way of Agency „Stari grad“ Mostar, an initiative was launched to perform earlier works and a positive professional advice for it was given by Institute for Protection of monuments within Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport (number: 07-40-4-779-1/09; Sarajevo, 23.02.2009) and a consent for that was given by the Federal Ministry of Physical Planning (number: UPI/03-13-2-61/09; Sarajevo; 05. 03. 2009). After implemented due process of law for selection of the contractor at the locality of the old town of Blagaj (cadastral plot number 1546, as well as parts of cadastral plot number 3768 – access pathway and 3025, 3768 i 3769 – Necropolis dedicated to Muslims dying heroic death in battle for faith) The National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina was selected, whose experts agreed about general dynamics of the performance of the works after the visit on the spot and getting insight into the condition of the cultural treasure, in addition to consultations with Federal Institute for Protection of Cultural-Historical and Natural Heritage.
Subject of investigation
Old town of Blagaj is located over the well of Buna river in Blagaj, 7 kilometres southward bound from Mostar, on the southwestern top of a cliff of a Blagaj hill and on 310 metres above sea level. Together with a small fortification dating back from Roman period, or a late ancient times (so-called Small city), which is located on the opposite, northeastern top, namely with pre-historic hill-fort located on the southeastern end of that hill, at the elevation called Orlovaca, old city of Blagaj closes land area in an elongated triangle-shaped form and it covers an approximate area of 2 hectares which, according to some interpretations (Andjelic 1981,54), could be rounded off in a fortification, i. e. settlement ensemble as early as pre-history. Such statement is primarily based on the fact that from the so-called Small city, on the northwestern side of the Blagaj hill, in the direction of the old city of Blagaj extends the rampart visible only in its remains, which used to connect the two mentioned fortifications. The same rampart, or remains of some other defensive system are not visible on the eastern, namely, southern side of the hill, between Blagaj and pre-historic hill-fort and one may be lead to think that the natural configuration of that part of the terrain constituted a completely satisfactory protection and that the rampart did not have to be built. In the space which is limited by the described forts are visible the remains of various objects, but no-one can not say anything reliable until archaeological excavations are carried out. According to Andjelic, double settlement (so-called Small city and old town of Blagaj)) survived at least till the half of the 10th century, the time in which in a book of Constantin Porphyrogenet De administrando imperio, originated between 948 and 952, in 33rd chapter (On Zahum people and the country they reside in now) it is stated: „Zahum people were called after the mountain which is called Hum, and in the language of Slavs Zahum people means anyway „the ones behind the hill“, since there is a big hill in this country with two cities, Bona and Hum, behind that hill runs a river called Bona, which means nice.“ In professional literature there are different views according to which the present old city of Blagaj has been identified with the Porfirogenet's city of Bona (compare with: Andjelic 1981, 49 – 51), that it was built in 10th century, when it was ruled by parentage of proconsuls and patricians Visevic family who inhabitated Zahumlje according to Porfirogenet (Rakovic 1998, 7), as well as that its today visible earliest construction phases may be dated as early as the other half of 4th century (Basler 1983, 30). However, it is a fact that the archaeological excavations so far (in 1965 and 2009) in the old city of Blagaj have not discovered archaeological material from the period before the late Middle Ages, namely, the end of 14th and 15th century, when this fortification, together with Bisce, in numerous written sources is directly mentioned as a residential place of Bosnian rulers namely, since 1404, as a property of a grand duke Sandalj Hranic, of his brother's son, duke Stjepan Vukcic Kosaca, as duke's son Vladislav. .The city fell into the hands of the Ottomans in 1465, and crew stayed in it as late as 1835. According to the available information the Ottomans carried out certain repairs / alterations on the old city of Blagaj in 1699 and 1827, and according to Celebija who in his travelogue dating from 1664 mentions an iron gate, 15 bleak houses, a mosque, two cisterns and two cannons, the city looked like: as if it just came out of the hands of a builder. (Celebija 1979, 459) Layout of the present state of this cultural treasure discloses its polygonal form adjusted to the terrain configuration. Internal surface of the space (around 1700 cubic metres) was enclosed with ramparts which, (when looked at) in a straight line from the half of the northern rampart, over the entrance portal, eastern rampart all the way to the tower number IV, are between 1,5 and 2 metres thick. In the remainder of the rampart mantle, in its southwestern, western and northwestern part, its thickness does not exceed 1,5 metres in any place. Parts of the eastern rampart namely the walls of tower with a gate (VII) and vestibule (VIII) have been preserved in the height of 12 up to maximum 14 m, whereas the height of rampart on the southern and western side, depending on the level of state of preservation, varies considerably and it has smaller values. Natural configuration which enables the access to the city only from the eastern side has conditioned that the eastern rampart, in the defensive aspect, constitutes the most important part of the fort. Strengthened by outer supports, with three towers, (I, II, III) which partly go out out the mantle line, that rampart has been additionally reinforced by the wall erected in front of the fort so that the outer space has been formed in a kind of an improvised trench. Ends of the eastern rampart reinforced with additional towers (IX, IV) which prevent the access to the rampart segments which were less reinforced. On the opposite, western side of the fort dominates four-cornered tower (V) to whose top lead finely cut stone stairs and from where you can have a broad view over both to the entire Bisce field and to the access of the city from whose northern foot starts a pathway approximately 900 metres long which brings a chance guest to the entrance into fort by way of serpentines. Of numerous objects which are visible in the free space of the city, the palace (XV) remains are particularly noteworthy, dimensioning 13,20 x 7,80 and 11,90 x 8 m, whose walls around 1,3 metres have been preserved till the maximum height of 2,10 metres and which have been added to the southwestern rampart of the fort, as well as central structure (II) dimensioning 15 x 15 m into which a cistern with diameter 6 metres has been built. For the latter structure, same as for the structure XI, it has been assumed that it was erected in the Ottoman period, before or after a construction of a mosque (X) which Celebija happenned to find there, the same as it may be maintained for another two cisterns (XIII and XIV) which are placed southeast from central structure and palace. Partly preserved outer formwork of the walls was made of coarsely cut limestone and the structure of the walls shows diverse techniques as well as, very probably, construction phases. In the first phase of construction the stone was laid in horizontal layers (opis incertum) of up to 20 cm high that, thereafter, perhaps owing to addition of a partly demolished wall mass, the stone would be laid inversely – aslant, in a opis spicatum technique. According to Dj. Basler, the latter construction phase should be dated into 525 and 600 (compare: Basler 1983, 30). According to the same author, all the other, very numerous, alterations, repairs and additions which have been made since 7th as long as 18th or early 19th century are not possible to be discerned chronologically, because, though with different quality of workmanship they have been consequently accomplished in the same construction technique - opis incertum.
Aims of the researches
First phase of research
Aim of the first phase of the research was to establish the existence and the relationship and possibly cultural layers with help of setting up and excavating trial trenches on the surfaces which have not been treated archaeologically in the course of the previous excavations (in 1965) and to establish a stratigraphic sequence which could be compared to the results of the previous excavations. Based on the acquired results it has been planned to set down to prepare a more precise plan of the future archaeological excavations (if it is estimated to be necessary), to pinpoint a number of necessary seasons of research, as well as to prepare a comprehensive plan of archaeological, conservationist and restoration treatment of this cultural treasure.
Results of archaeological research
Trench 1
Dimensions and location
Trench 1 dimensioning 10,0 x 2,0 metres is positioned in a free space between the central building and eastern rampart so that it has an approximate orientation north / south. Aim of such a trench positioning is to determine the possible presence of the archaeologic layers and the stratigraphic sequence in the tested space. Among movable archaeological material discovered in this horizon as characteristic stand out the fragments of kitchen ceramics, metal objects and a minor remainder of a profiled slab, but especially broken pieces of at least two containers made in technique of maiolica, out of which the first one, because of its blue-green colour and blue dots painted in a thick, to the touch slightly protruded coat, may be classified into so-called zaffera in relievo group of maiolica whose production in Toscana, Umbria, Lazio and Romagna lasted between 1420 and 1480.
Trench 2
Dimensions and location
Trench dimensioning 10,0 x 2,0 metres has been set up vertically in relation to the southeastern rampart so that it has orientation southeast /northwest in the internal free space of the fort. Purpose of this trench is to test with it the fundamental zone of the southeastern rampart, characteristic stratigraphic units,namely to estimate the depth of soil layers at that part of the locality. Although fragments of coarse kitchen ceramic containers do not allow a reliable foundation for establishing a precise date, it has to be noticed that in essence that material matches similar material found in the other Bosnian medieval cities such as, for example, Bobovac or Visoko.
Trench 3
Dimensions and location
Trench 3 has two legs making a form of a letter L. Leg by the northern rampart is 10,0 m long, and it is oriented in the direction east-west, whereas in the north-south oriented leg has been set up vertically in relation to the northern rampart and it is 4,90 metres long. The purpose of this trench is to test with it the fundamental zone of the northern rampart, fundamental zone of the tower number V, characteristic stratigraphic units, namely the depth of the soil layers at that part of the locality. One should emphasize the numerous broken pieces of coloured glass with horizontal threads that is found very often in the localities dated in 14th and 15th century. Such dating may refer to the iron points of arrows used for crossbow (arrows), but the numerous broken pieces of kitchen ceramic containers, which is a regular archaeologic inventory on the other fortified cities from the period of the late Middle Ages.
Conclusion
General conclusion
With excavations in the trenches number 1, 2 and 3, the range of activities has been documented which was taking place on the treated area during various temporal periods. With research a medieval horizon has been clearly identified. Movable archaeological material from the mentioned layers suggests that the activities on them took place in the period of the first half of the 15th century, namely, till 1465 and till the establishment of the Ottoman authority at the locality. Movable archaeological material from the medieval horizon may be characterized as usual for the fortified cities of the late Middle Ages, first of all the ones which, like Bobovac or Visoko, for instance, has the residential character as well. With products of the local workshops (kitchen ceramics, various blacksmith products and the like) a special importance have exhibits of luxury tableware (glass and maiolica) which certainly constitute import from famous centres of middle and northern Italy. With these findings has been additionally stressed the connection of the Bosnian high dignitaries with contemporary cultural trends of the European Middle Ages. Although relatively modest areas have been treated with excavations, the results obtained show undoubtedly that the most intensive activity on the fort has been taking place in the period from 15th to 17th century.
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