On Heritage Budget, Replica ‘Stone’ Houses Commemorate Kosovo War

"Nobody asked about this stone house," he told BIRN. "The village needs a better functioning health centre, or investment to create new jobs."

But while the house in Nerja's village is still to be built, dozens of others have already been erected across Kosovo with money earmarked for the restoration and protection of cultural heritage. And not everyone is impressed.

"It's unprofessional and mediocre," said Sali Shoshi, director of Cultural Heritage Without Borders in Kosovo, which works to preserve cultural heritage endangered by conflict.

"What have been built so far are new buildings, mostly replicas of kulla and which represent nothing in terms of the importance and identity of a certain place."

Stone house, built from brick

Brick house of Basri Canolli in Marec village, near capitl of Pristina. Photo: BIRN

Traditional kullas in Kosovo date mainly to the 18th and 19th centuries when the former Serbian province, independent since 2008, was part of the Ottoman Empire.

Designed as fortifications for families, they traditionally feature three stories - a ground-floor stable, first-floor living room and store and an upper floor for men called an 'oda'. Many of Kosovo's original kullas were destroyed during the 1998-99 war, which ended in 11 weeks of NATO air strikes to drive out Serbian forces accused of atrocities.

But while the law regarding cultural heritage foresees public money being spent on officially designated heritage sites that need restoration, there is no provision for the construction of new monuments.

Kosovo's culture ministry says the replica kullas are a way to mark the events of the late 1990s and the Kosovo Albanian fight to throw off Serbian oppression. Some are dedicated to...