Search Results

Msc thesis THE FORGOTTEN CULTURAL LANDSCAPE OF BAY OF KOTOR. VALORISATION OF MEDIEVAL PATH AND RUINS IN PRCANJ. POLITECNICO DI MILANO July 2018 ABSTRACT (eng) Throughout its history, the Bay of Kotor in Montenegro has been a land of fruitful and active cultural exchange over the entire Mediterranean. Its extraordinary and harmonious symbiosis between the human influence in the natural scenery, along with its numerous and diverse sites and monuments of high cultural value, which have deeply affected other Mediterranean cultures, gained the Bay a place in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites as the Natural and Culturo-Historical region of Kotor In 1979 . Since the last decade, the entire Bay of Kotor has been going through a very difficult time regarding administration issues, in particular as far as urban planning is concerned. Today, the overexpanded building industry, triggered by huge investments, is threatening to devastate the fragile cultural landscape of the Bay of Kotor. Because of that, UNESCO has expressed a few concerns about uncontrolled urbanisation, demanding that the area be placed on a list of endangered cultural sites. In this respect, my initial wish was to deal with a topic related to the management and protection of the cultural landscape of my hometown, Prcanj. My thesis investigates and defines the cultural landscape of the Bay of Kotor, providing a sustainable management and integrative approach towards cultural landscape protection. Furthermore, I focus on the case study about upper Prcanj’s cultural landscape with its old medieval pathway. The proposals of activation of this abandoned pathway is a new way of exploring the landscape itself, as well as trying to regenerate the abandoned historical monuments it is dotted by. The aim of this thesis is to point out the uncontrolled urbanisation that is influencing negatively the valuable landscape of the UNESCO Region of Kotor, and to remark that new ways of sustainable development should be introduced to preserve the site’s cultural heritage and value for the benefit of its citizens. Master thesis presentation - original booklet BY CLICKING ON THE LINK ABOVE YOU AGREE TO THE GENERAL TERMS OF USE AND PRIVACY POLICY OF THE WEBSITE: ,, THE ARCHIVE OF LANDSCAPES'' Tesi magistrale THE FORGOTTEN CULTURAL LANDSCAPE OF BAY OF KOTOR. VALORISATION OF MEDIEVAL PATH AND RUINS IN PRCANJ. POLITECNICO DI MILANO Luglio 2018 ABSTRACT (it) L’area costiera del Montenegro nota come le Bocche di Cattaro è sempre stata terra di fruttuosi e attivi scambi culturali con tutto il Mediterraneo. Per l’armoniosa simbiosi tra l’impronta umana e lo scenario naturale, insieme ai numerosi e vari siti e monumenti dal grande valore culturale che hanno profondamente influenzato le altre culture del Mediterraneo, la Regione naturale e storico-culturale delle Bocche di Cattaro è stata inserita nella lista UNESCO dei luoghi Patrimonio dell’umanità nel 1979. Negli ultimi dieci anni, l’intera area delle Bocche di Cattaro ha attraversato un periodo di grande difficoltà sul piano amministrativo, in particolare per quanto riguarda la pianificazione urbana. Oggi l’eccessiva espansione dell’industria edilizia, innescata da enormi investimenti, minaccia di devastare il fragile paesaggio e il patrimonio culturale della baia. Per questo motivo, l’UNESCO ha espresso le proprie preoccupazioni in merito all’urbanizzazione incontrollata, decidendo l’iscrizione dell’area in un elenco di siti culturali a rischio. Il mio iniziale desiderio è stato, a tal riguardo, di affrontare un argomento legato alla gestione e alla tutela del paesaggio culturale della mia città natale, Prčanj (Perzagno). La tesi intende indagare e definire il paesaggio culturale della baia di Cattaro, suggerendo una gestione sostenibile e un approccio integrato volto alla tutela del paesaggio culturale. Si propone qui, inoltre, un caso studio riguardante il paesaggio culturale della parte alta della città di Prčanj con la sua antica strada medievale. I modelli proposti, diretti alla riapertura di questo antico percorso ormai abbandonato, illustrano un nuovo modo di esplorare il paesaggio stesso e di rivalutare i preziosi ruderi di cui esso è costellato. La tesi ha pertanto lo scopo di evidenziare l’urbanizzazione incontrollata che sta influenzando negativamente il magnifico paesaggio del territorio di Cattaro, patrimonio UNESCO, e di rimarcare la necessità di introdurre nuove vie di sviluppo sostenibile per preservare il valore storico-culturale della regione a beneficio dei suoi cittadini. La tesi magistrale - presentazione originle (ENG) BY CLICKING ON THE LINK ABOVE YOU AGREE TO THE GENERAL TERMS OF USE AND PRIVACY POLICY OF THE WEBSITE: ,, THE ARCHIVE OF LANDSCAPES''

Town of Kotor - historical timeline CREDITS: ​ The background photo: Coats of arms of the Beskuca family. Prcanj, Montenegro. Photo by Bogdan Kusevic Credits of the Coats of Arms and flags: Internet open public domain (Wikipedia, etc.) Town of Kotor - historical timeline: (2018-2022) by Bogdan Kusevic.

2007-2017 The ruins of the Old Parish church of Prcanj cover photo: Old parish c hurch of Prcanj The most beautiful church on the upper medieval path of Prcanj is the Old Parish Church. Today, the major part of the church is in ruins because it suffered tremendous devastation during the earthquake which occured in 1979. The church ensemble consists of an old cemetery, a monumental stone wall towards the sea which was laid down as a foundation of the whole complex, a unique octagonal dome, and the church building together with the residence of the parish palace, which is now completely in ruins. This church was mentioned for the first time in the documents dated 1399 as Ecclesia Sctae Mariae de Parzana. It was reconstructed in 1672 and after that, an octagonal chapel with a dome was built in 1740. ​ READ MORE on heritage article ''Old Parish Church of Prcanj" ​ Next

2007-2017 Lukovic Street - Prcanj,Montenegro cover photo: Lukovic Street, Prcanj Lukovic Street was the core of the public life of the 16th and 17th century. It is named after the Lukovic family houses, which have exceptionally elegantly decorated stone balustrades; the palaces follows the sea line, merging into the street front, and making a unique and indivisible ambient unit in a functional and aesthetic domain. Opposed to the houses towards the sea, so-called ‘ponta’ were made over the time, for accessing sailboats with a plateau on which cargoes from ships were landed, as well as small ports for binding family boats. The coastal belt was an indivisible private space and made up a whole with the palaces. In the later period, around 1805, when this region was already under the Austro-Hungarian empire, the emperor had the first coastal road built along the sea for military needs, thus completely interrupting the continuity of family gardens from the sea to the houses. This act changed forever the character of space, dividing it into two parts, one made up of family ports for boats with berths along the sea, and another made up of a paved street of the Lukovic family. The seafront, including ponta and boat bindings, were private properties in the 19th century, characterized by traditional stone bindings, stone paving and stone sea-shores, with small gardens rich in Mediterranean vegetation. ​ READ MORE on heritage article ''Street of Lukovic family" Next

2007-2017 ​ Muo, the fisherman village (ita. Mulla) cover photo: Muo, summer seascape Muo is a settlement in the municipality of Kotor in Montenegro. According to the 2003 census, there were 677 inhabitants (according to the 1991 census, there were 740 inhabitants). Muo is an old fishing village that stretches 3 kilometres along the Bay of Kotor, on the south-eastern side of Vrmac hill, opposite Kotor and the southern part of Dobrota. It is 3 kilometres far from Kotor. Unlike other nearby settlements, whose development is mainly related to maritime affairs, the inhabitants of this village rely on fishing. Next

2007-2017 Our Lady's Temple cover photo: The dome of Our Lady's Temple in Prcanj Concert dedicated to Darinka Matić Marović in Our Lady's Temple in Prcanj . Academic Choir Collegium Musicum from Belgrade. August 16, 2022. - recorded by Bogdan Kusevic 00:00 / 00:00 Most notable peace of sacral architecture in Prcanj is Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was built in the Venetian late baroque style. The church is situated the the area of UNESCO Natural and culturo-historical region of Kotor. Our Lady Church in Prcanj was projected by the famous Venetian architect Bernardino Maccaruzzi in 1789. The construction of the church started the same year but finished in 1913. The construction of the church was founded by the donation of twelve influential families from Prcanj, as well as donations of Austro-Hungarian government. The church at the time of construction was the biggest one in the South Adriatic region.Thes dome of the church is slightly lower that the dome of Dubrovnik Cathedral. The monumental staircase rising 25m above the sea is the highest artistic staircase of the East Adriatic. The church hosts numerous peace of art: icons, painting, reliefs of Venetian and EX Yugoslavian articts such as Milunovic, Rosandic, Lubarda, Mestrovic etc. Next

2007-2017 Dobrota town of sea captains cover photo: Dobrota, seen from a family pier During the time of Venetian rule, Dobrota was an autonomous town, together with Kotor, Prčanj and Perast. The prominent families of Dobrota who marked the social and economic history of their homeland were Dabčevići, Dabinovići, Ivanovići, Kamenarovići, Radimiri, Tripkovići and others. Dobrota relied on maritime trade and at the beginning of the 19th century it was one of the leading maritime centres in Boka and the east coast, counting 35 ships with a total weight of 5,172 tonnes and having 443 registered crew members. Dobrota families became very powerful and all aspects of social and cultural life moved from Kotor to Dobrota. However, Napoleon’s conquest caused crisis in maritime trade. The naval blockade occurred, the ships were wrecked by the French and the English army and the old trade links were interrupted. The Austrian authorities did not bring much improvement, and the first attempts of recovery occurred after 1850. Next

The ruins of the Sbutega Palace – Glavati, Prcanj , Montenegro Historical and architectural analysis About a hundred meters away from the sea and about fifty meters above sea level, in a depression known as Pecarevo or Glavati, in the settlement of Prcanj in Montenegro, there is a building, now in ruins, which apparently used to be the residence of a noble family. There is little known about this palace, due to the lack of historical archives and any carved symbol, coat of arms or inscription on the facade. However, the building techniques, layout and architectural concept as well as materials and processing techniques demonstrate that it originates from the 14th century. The residence is located not far from the Church of St. Anna in the Glavati - Prcanj area, which is believed to date from the same period. In the fourteenth century this area was ruled by the Nemanjic Dynasty, then by the Kingdom of Hungary, and later by the Bosnian king Tvrtko I. In that time, there were no settlements along the coast, except for fortified cities such as Kotor, and they existed only on higher elevations in the hills as rural settlements that relied on local agriculture. The pirate raids, and then attacks by Turks and tribes from the inland, were frequent enough to influence the character of the residential architecture in the hinterland that was subordinated to the defense against the robbers’ raids. ​ The palace, i.e. its remains, as photographed in February 2018, consist of four walls of the main body of the palace and one annex from the upper western side, apparently the former stable. The front facade of the wall towards Kotor has been breached in the middle and to the ground, and the only thing that was kept is the niche on the lower right side to the former door. On the opposite side, there is a Roman-Gothic simple arch without profiling, made of unevenly placed stone thresholds, then the niche immediately next to the door and two window panes, the larger of which is very damaged. The Romano-Gothic portal above the entrance door, although damaged, provides the most reliable confirmation of the character of the palace and its dating. The door was made of solid wood and nailed with four pegs each in the stone parapet, whose recesses in the stone are still visible today. On top of that, there was a large beam used to barricade the door that was inserted in the middle of the door and in the recess in the wall to additionally secure the portal from robbers. The small niches next to the door had a very practical use as that was the convenient space where the vendors could deliver the groceries, such as dried meat and fish, without opening the main entrance, so the hosts did not run the risk of being robbed or attacked. Another small niche on the outside was most likely bricked up in later centuries. The single-pitch roof was inclined towards the sea. It is very rare today in this area as all the roofs are dual pitched. Judging by the roof of the nearby Church of St. Anna, made of stone, and looking at the other very old residential buildings, it can be concluded that the roof of the palace in the original phase was also made of the stone slabs and that was the autochthonous stone. ​Based on the analysis from the site conducted in February 2018, two stages of construction of the Sbutega Palace were observed. The first one would include a large and high ground floor and a low attic, with three window panes on the lower sea side, presumably for surveillance and defense against potential robbers. On the ground floor, facing the sea, there were two window panes, the larger one with approximate dimensions of 100/80 cm and a small one with dimensions of 40/40 cm. On the house front, facing Kotor, there was an entrance door with a portal like the one on the opposite side of the palace. The doors were placed symmetrically, because of the belief that if a devil entered the house, it would follow the straight line and leave it without harming the household members. Small deviations from the right angle when building the walls prove the tradition to avoid building the 'squares', as the devil crouches in the 'square'. The ceilings from that period were made of wood and leaned on stone consoles that were spheroidal on the bottom side and had a shape of an acanthus flower. In the attic, there were two windows facing Kotor and the two ones facing Prcanj, one of which was larger. The exit to the courtyard towards the hill was through a narrow door, that is walled up now, but once served as an exit to an outbuilding, most likely a stable. The second phase of the construction brought radical changes in the interior. Namely, the high ground floor was divided into two floors in order to expand the accommodation capacity due to the increase of the family, at the expense of walling up of three windows and the upper door towards the hill with stone consoles holding the beams. The changes are also visible on the Roman-Gothic portal, as it had to be walled up to the arch in order to lower the ceilings, which is still visible today. In the second phase of the palace development, the ceilings were lowered, leaving about 200 cm of free space to the beams. The processing of stone windows without separate parapet openings on all window panes, and their presence only on openings of larger dimensions suggests a staged, successive development of the palace and frequent renovations. The palace in its base has dimensions of 9.5m by 6m, which is more than the average size of the house in this region and shows the owner`s wealth. The Church of St. Anne, which, judging by the analogies, comes from the same period can be considered to have been a family chapel. The location of Glavati is of the great importance for the entire area of ​​Prcanj, due to its historical as well as natural and environmental value. Saint Anna's Valley is a region with all the characteristics of a cultural landscape. The stone walls, sloping along the Sbutega estate, with terraces still used for olive growing, then the old medieval path across Prcanj that once connected Prcanj with Kotor, Stoliv and Lepetani are the real sources for learning about the way of life in the past. The presence of several layers of architecture, both Romano-Gothic in the hills and Renaissance-Baroque on the coast, as well as Austro-Hungarian road construction on the coast, and the indigenous way of processing the landscape with canalized streams and terraced gardens, represents an exceptional argument for the valorization of this valley as a cultural landscape of great importance for UNESCO's Natural, Cultural-Historical Region of ​​Kotor. Activating this palace for cultural purposes, and according to the opinion of the residents, valorizing it for the purpose of a summer camp for the students of architecture who will work on the regeneration of the landscape and the maintenance of medieval paths and monuments, and receive a certificate for the authentic construction of Boka Kotorska under the mentorship of restorers, would be of great importance for the entire area of ​​Kotor. Finally, it would also provide an insight into the great potential of sustainable development, as well as the mutual benefits to both, the workshop participants and the property owners, who would be paid a fee, in addition to the service of free maintenance of the property. Thus, the entire area would gain greater recognition and importance and become a model of the approach to the regeneration of the cultural landscape of the entire area of ​​Kotor. ​Unfortunately, the construction in this area started with infrastructure works and has already destroyed a whole section of gardens with terraces and a walled stream, and threatens to devalue the entire area, which is a unique enclave of cultural landscape stretching from the sea all the way to the hills. The valley of St. Anna - Glavati is an immensely valuable area that bears witness to the historical development of rural agglomerations along the coast of Boka Kotorska. Because of its valuable authentic landscape, as well as its historical, landscape and natural value, creating an HIA study on the impact on the cultural heritage during current spatial interventions must be a matter of urgency in order to preserve its exceptional universal value, which it possesses as part of the area of ​​Kotor protected by UNESCO. ​ ​ ​ HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Kusevic, B. (2017). The ruins of the Sbutega Palace – Glavati, Prcanj , Historical and architectural analysis ‘‘The Archive of Landscapes”. [date]. ​ BIBLIOGRAPHY . ​ BACKGROUND PHOTO. David Rumsey Historical Map Collection | The Collection; (1693) Disegno Topografico del Canale di Cattaro, Montenegro; Coronelli, Vincenzo (1650-1718).

About the palace of ,,Tre Sorelle'' Prcanj, Bay of Kotor, Montenegro The Palace of the Three Sisters is the best-preserved example of Gothic profane architecture outside the urban historical cities in Montenegro. It is situated in the town of Prcanj in Montenegro, on the waterfront of the Bay of Kotor. At the time when the palace was built, Prcanj was a very attractive place where wealthy noble families from Kotor resided. It is not clear when exactly it was built due to the lack of archival material, but it is sure that it existed here in 1500s when it was mentioned in the archive in Kotor as Villa Trium Sororum. Historians date the palace to the beginning of the 15th century. In 1688, the entire area was already known as Le Tre Sorelle at the map of Disegno Topografico del Canale di Cattaro, Montenegro; Coronelli, Vincenzo (1650-1718). Its architectonic concept is quite unique. However, the attractive architectural design of the palace has been questioned by the researchers arguing that its present shape could not be the original one. This conclusion is based on non-identical styles of building techniques and the fact that the middle section is slightly inclined, suggesting that the concept of the palace has drastically changed over time. The palace is divided into three sections like a castle with towers which have three roofs and three windows on every level. The Gothic vaults and Gothic windows with the emblem of the noble family “Buca” from Kotor, the existence of a family chapel of St. Jeronimo on its right side and the unique architectonic concept has placed this palace on the top level of national protection. In spite of this, nothing has been done so far for improvement of management and protection of this palace and today it is standing without windows and is left on the ravages of time. The palace is a private property, and a housing purpose is assigned to it in its management plan, which has been done completely unjustly, disregarding its historical value and the connection it has had in the collective memory of the indigenous population over the past 500 years. During the last decade, it has been subjected to non-professional restoration. In the course of this process, one of the sealed window was opened, which resulted in ruining the gothic plastics and spoiling the relation of the local people to the Story of Three Sisters and the windows that were sealed up when they passed away. ​ ​ ​ HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Kusevic, B. (2017). About the palace of "Tre Sorelle" from Prcanj . ‘‘The Archive of Landscapes”. [date]. ​ BACKGROUND PHOTO David Rumsey Historical Map Collection | The Collection; (1693) Disegno Topografico del Canale di Cattaro, Montenegro; Coronelli, Vincenzo (1650-1718). Story of "Three Sisters"

2007-2017 Perast (ita. Perasto) cover photo: Perast, the town of sea captains Perast was at its peak in the 18th century under the Venetian Republic, when it had as many as four active shipyards, a fleet of around one hundred ships, and 1,643 residents. The 1,500 citizens of Perast were allowed to trade with large ships and to sell goods without tax on the Venetian market, which made them wealthy. The example of the wealth of people from Perast at the end of the 18th century is the fact that they managed to collect 50,000 Venetian gold coins (about 200 kg of gold) to pay the famous Venetian constructor Giuseppe Beati to build for them the highest campanile (55 m) on the East-Adriatic coast. There are two small islands near Perast: St George Island with the small church from the 12th century and the artificial island called Gospa od Skrpjela (in Venetian: Madonna dello Scarpello) which has a very interesting story. Namely, the locals had been throwing rocks and sinking old shipwrecks for 200 years from the reef whose top was 1 meter above the water's surface, thus creating a plateau of 3,030 square meters, on which they then built a church. Next