bg Sarajevo

Prosvjeta Society Building

- Sime Milutinovića Sarajlije 1 -
The four-story building, which was built in the period between 1910 and 1911, was built for cultural activities. The building was erected according to the design of the architect and the sculptural composition on top of the building was created by the sculptor Mihovil Stević. It was built for the Serbian Educational and Cultural Society called Prosvjeta, which was founded by a group of Serbian intellectuals on December 20, 1901. It became one of the four national cultural societies founded during the period of Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the first ten years, the educational and cultural activities of the society were managed by five different presidents. After the assassination of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke and heir to the throne , Prosvjeta and all Serbian societies were closed. After the end of the , on November 11, 1918, the society was able to resume its work. A new work ban followed in 1941. when Bosnia and Herzegovina became part of the Independent State of Croatia. Education continued to work for a short time after the , only to be banned for a long time by the new authorities in Yugoslavia. After the collapse of the socialist system and immediately before the breakup of Yugoslavia, on June 28, 1990, the Prosvjeta society continued its activity.
An old colorized postcard that shows the building
The sculptural composition on top of the building, which is built in the styles of Art Nouveau and Neo-Baroque, consists of a woman with a laurel wreath and a torch, which symbolizes victory, strength, eternity, and remembrance. Around it you see the common people standing, an eagle, an Ionic , and a . If you look a bit further down, you can see a adorned with and an motif, which are used a lot more to decorate the building. An is placed on the corner, which is topped with a , which in its turn is topped with a balcony. This part of the building, which is supported by two , is embellished with , , two , cartouches, and . The loggia contains two and two columns that are crowned with Ionic capitals, which is also the case with the two columns that flanked the main entrance door. An is placed above this same door, which is adorned with even more guttae and volutes. Underneath the second floor windows, you can see a balcony that's either supported by three or five corbels, or a containing six . The cartouches that are placed between the second and third floors contain the Cyrillic letter П (P).
An old photo that shows the building on the right