The Oldest Stone in the Country

Dry-stone construction in coastal Croatia is not limited to walls. Small buildings, either intended as rough shelters or for storage, are built entirely from dry stone. In Dalmatia, they have round roofs and are called bunja. In Istria, these small structures are built with conical roofs and are called kažun.

In addition to adding a picturesque mystique to the regional landscape, the dry-stone walls and structures of coastal Croatia require impressive technical know-how. They are composed entirely of stacked stones, assembled by expert craftsmen with knowledge of how to create stable, erect, tightly built walls made to withstand weather and time. Called suhozid or gromače in Croatian, the stone walls are assembled to fit together with the exactness of interlocking puzzle pieces.

With some walls and structures, the stones are cut to square or rectilinear shapes before being stacked. In countless others, stones have been incorporated as they’re found in their natural, non-uniform shapes. Particularly with these non-rectilinear stones, stonemasons must carefully choose and place each stone in relation to the other in order to achieve a straight, stable wall.

In other areas, the construction of dry-stone walls allowed for the cultivation of areas otherwise unsuited to agriculture. The stone walls were used to create terraces on steep, inaccessible land. The protected terraces enabled farmers to plant crops and prevent soil erosion.

On the Dalmatian island of Pag, known for its inhospitable terrain and extreme winds, the dry-stone walls were built by the island’s sheepherders. The walls served as a wind buffer and provided a barrier against which livestock could huddle during the most violent winds and storms.

Elsewhere, the dry-stone walls were, and continue to be used to protect crops. On the mainland, the best-known example of this practice is the Primošten vineyards. Here, small grids, the largest 2 by 6 meters, protect low-lying vines from the wind, and also keep the red soil from eroding.

Though the current dry-stone vineyard walls are thought to date to the 16th and 17th centuries, the practice of small walled vineyard plots may date to as early as the 8th century BCE. The Primošten vineyards are currently on the Tentative List for inclusion as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The 2018 UNESCO inscription has fueled a renewed interest in dry-stone construction. The annual lavender festival in Velo Grablje on the island of Hvar features a dry-stone building workshop. Dragodid, on the island of Vis, is a center for dry-stone study and preservation, with workshops and educational programs dedicated to the craft.