Radimlja necropolis is the best known site in Bosnia and Herzegovina containing stećci, the medieval tomb stones. It is located 3 km west of Stolac, along the Stolac – ÄŒapljina road, in Vidovo polje, near Paprati village.
The Stećci, are monumental medieval tombstones that lie scattered across Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the border parts of Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia, although almost exclusively following the borders of medieval Bosnian state. An estimated 60,000 are found within the borders of modern Bosnia and Herzegovina and the rest of 10,000 are found in the adjacent countries. Appearing in the 11th century, the Stećci reached their peak in the 14th and 15th century, before slowly disappearing during the Ottoman Empire. Stećci - tombstones belonging to the medieval Kingdom of Bosnia and the Bosnian Church (Bosnian heretics), which was part of the European rebellion against the Vatican. The Epitaph on the Stećci tombstones are written in old Bosnian Alphabet(the so called "BosanÄica" ) .
The Stećci have been nominated to the UNESCO Heritage List,
The Radimlja necropolis is among the most valuable monuments of the medieval period in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The characteristics underlining its value are: large number of samples, variety and representativeness of all basic forms, relatively high artistic quality of work, variety of plastic ornaments, reliefs and titles mentioning historical personalities, as well as its availability and location.
The necropolis includes 133 stećci, many with valuable ornamets on them. The characteristic motives of stećci of this necropolis are: architectural ornaments on all four sides of stećci, stylized crosses, human and animal figures, grapevine, hunting and weapon motives. The characteristic feature of this necropolis is a male figure with a raised arm and relatively big hand and fingers, as if indicating to the traveler that he or she will find welcoming and friendly people in this harsh and karstic Herzegovinian area.
