I was in the capital of Kosovo – the city of Pristina – last month and saw some incredible 7,000 year old statues from the Neolithic period that quite frankly, looked like aliens.
At the Museum of Kosovo in Pristina, I browsed the strange Neolithic sculptures of alien like beings in glass cases. Oblong heads and huge eyes – they really are quite hypnotic. These figures were made by people of the so-called Vinca culture.
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These Neolithic humans hadn’t mastered metalwork yet – this was a late phase of the Stone Age. But despite that, the Vinca were surprisingly advanced. They may have had multi-storey buildings, sophisticated agriculture and even a written script. Eventually, they discovered how to work with copper.
These Neolithic alien-like figures were first discovered a century ago. At first, it wasn’t completely clear what they were – let alone their incredible age. Now we know these enigmatic figures came from one of the largest Stone Age communities in Europe.
In some ways not surprising that a relatively large population was there. The mighty river Danube flowed nearby that would have ensured both fertile land and fish to eat.
Unfortunately, the Museum of Kosovo suffered during the Balkans war in the 1990s. Most of his prehistoric exhibits were spirited off to the Serbian capital Belgrade and there’s not been much willing to hand them back.
I loved these figures and have one sitting on my desk – a replica of course!
You’ve visited Serbian province of Kosovo, not country.
“Most of his prehistoric exhibits were spirited off to the Serbian capital Belgrade and there’s not been much willing to hand them back.”
Why should the Serbs give back anything? All of the excavations and research was done by Serbian archeologists and scientists. Albanians contributed nothing.
Hi Theodorius – Obviously I understand the recent history of the Balkans and the continuing ethno-nationalist divisions. There are towns bitterly divided between Albanian and Serbian Kosovan populations. As of recent months, Serbia and Kosovo have been trying to improve relations and I know there are people on both sides who don’t like that. But, the overwhelming majority of European Union states recognise the integrity of Kosovo as do a majority of United Nations members. For my own part, I’m not pro or anti-Serb or Albanian – I’d rather not see a return to the 1990s. And the best way to avoid that is to allow peoples to have a right of self-determination. I know there are painful memories and terrible stories on all sides but either we find a peaceful way forward or we re-open hostilities. Which would we prefer?