The Municipality of Herceg Novi will continue its activities to obtain the conditions for the Forte Mare fortress to be inscribed on the List of World Cultural Heritage, it was announced after today's meeting between the President of the Municipality Stevan Katić and Dragica Ponorac, Ambassador of Montenegro to France, Monaco and Andorra and Permanent Representative of our country to UNESCO - in.
"At the last session, the World Heritage Committee in Krakow did not include Forte Mare on this prestigious list. The report states the exact guidelines that should be followed in order for the new fortress to be on the UNESCO list, and which mainly relate to the problems of the existence of commercial facilities", the local administration announced.
The inclusion of the Venetian defensive fortress Forte Mare on the World Cultural Heritage List is important from the point of view of the preservation of the fortifications, it is an automatic impulse for the development of tourism and an exceptional promotion for Herceg Novi, the participants of the meeting agreed.
It was confirmed that in that part, the continuation of good communication between the local administration and the Ministry of Culture, which existed on this topic in the previous period, is necessary.
Ambassador Ponorac pointed out that it is very important that we now show with our actions that we care, that we have a good will to work and that we all together take advantage of the great opportunity that is being offered to us.
She announced that immediately after her return to Franskuska, she would meet with the representatives of the International Council for Monuments and Monumental Areas (ICOMOS), whose expert commission carried out the evaluation. They should provide expert proposals, which will serve as guidelines for planning and implementing concrete activities for the Municipality and the Ministry.
The construction of the Forte mare fortress was started by Herceg Stjepan Vukčić Kosača in the first half of the 15th century.
During the Turkish era, the fortress got its present dimensions, and the Turks extended and renovated it on several occasions. It is assumed that the most extensive works were carried out after 1542, because from that time it is mentioned as a strong tower or as the tower of Abbas Pasha. After conquering Herceg Novi, the Venetians rebuilt the tower, adapting it to the defense and armament of the time. They named the tower Forte mare (Fortress of the Sea or Fortress of the Sea), which name has been retained to this day. With the arrival of Austria-Hungary on the territory of Boka, the fortress fits into the fortification system for the defense of the entrance to the Bay of Kotor.
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