{"id":12271,"date":"2026-08-19T23:29:01","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T22:29:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fondacijabassania.org\/en\/?p=12271"},"modified":"2026-08-19T23:29:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T22:29:20","slug":"national-monument-mandina-gradina-and-rascani-traces-of-life-through-the-centuries-in-duvanjsko-polje","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fondacijabassania.org\/en\/blog\/national-monument-mandina-gradina-and-rascani-traces-of-life-through-the-centuries-in-duvanjsko-polje\/","title":{"rendered":"National Monument Mandina Gradina and Ra\u0161\u0107ani \u2013 Traces of Life Through the Centuries in Duvanjsko Polje"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Mandina Gradina with Three Necropolises of Medieval Tombstones<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Mandina Gradina and the medieval necropolis of medieval tombstones in the field below the hillfort are located on the right side of the Tomislavgrad\u2013Blidinje road (coming from Tomislavgrad), opposite Mandino Selo, which sits at an elevation of 870 meters. This hillfort is the only one situated in the easternmost part of Duvanjsko Polje. Visually, it is exceptionally well-connected with the hillfort on Lib.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The National Monument, designated in 2021, consists of a prehistoric hillfort and necropolises with medieval tombstones arranged in three groups: two at the Mandina Gradina site and one in the field below Mandina Gradina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prehistoric hillfort and medieval necropolis, distributed across these three groups, bear witness to continuous life at this site from prehistory through the Middle Ages. Judging by the active Catholic, Orthodox, and Muslim cemeteries nearby, the site remains an important burial ground to this day, serving as an extraordinary example of the uninterrupted use of a site for sepulchral purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mandina Gradina is the only hillfort site situated in the lowland. Built on a natural elevation, it stands out from the system of 40 defensive fortifications across Duvanjsko Polje. It is oval in shape, oriented along its longer axis in an east\u2013west direction, and features several terraces at different levels. On the slope of Mandina Gradina itself, as well as on its extension, lies a medieval necropolis with medieval tombstones. The monuments are in the form of slabs, oriented in a northwest\u2013southeast direction. Sixteen medieval tombstones have been registered on the slope, out of a necropolis that once numbered 20. These monuments bear no decorations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the southeastern extension of Mandina Gradina, about 100 meters from this necropolis, lie three additional medieval tombstones. While some decorations have disappeared over time, motifs of a rosetta, a crescent moon, a cross, and decorative borders remain visible today. In the field to the northwest, facing toward Tomislavgrad, lies another necropolis containing 32 medieval tombstones, with no recorded decorations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RA\u0160\u0106ANI \u2013 Prehistoric Tumulus and Medieval Necropolis<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

South of the Ra\u0161\u0107ani\u2013Sr\u0111ani road, within today’s Orthodox cemetery, three medieval tombstones (one chest and two amorphous slabs) sit atop a large prehistoric tumulus measuring 35 meters in diameter and 4 meters in height. The medieval tombstones are damaged and undecorated. Additionally, two intriguing crosses\u2014or amorphous medieval tombstones\u2014featuring symbols of apples, suns, and human hands are located here. They are oriented in a northeast\u2013southwest direction.<\/p>\n\n\n

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