Roofing in Kosovo

Kosovo's best-documented historic buildings are the fortified stone tower houses known as kulla and the medieval Orthodox monasteries and churches, including the UNESCO-listed Visoki Dečani.

Climate and hazards

Kosovo has a continental climate, with cold winters and hot summers. The thick stone walls of traditional kullas insulated against these extremes, keeping interiors cool in summer and warm in winter. As part of Yugoslavia, Kosovo came under the first Yugoslav seismic code of 1964.

Roofing history

Medieval monasteries. Visoki Dečani was begun in 1327 under King Stefan Dečanski and established by about 1335. Its main architect was the Franciscan Vito of Kotor, and the church blends Serbo-Byzantine traditions with Romanesque influence, with outer walls of alternating white and pink marble. It became a World Heritage site on 2 July 2004 and was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2006. Byzantine-tradition domes were typically covered with lead or regional tiles.

Tower houses. Most surviving kullas in Kosovo date from the 18th or 19th century, and building continued into the early 20th century, especially in the Dukagjini region.

Traditional and vernacular roofs

The kulla is a two- or three-storey stone tower, square or rectangular, built from local stone, sometimes with decorative timber on the upper floors. Walls could be up to 1 m (3.3 ft) thick at ground level, thinning toward the roof, and narrow openings called frëngji served as light, ventilation and loopholes. The ground floor housed storage and livestock, and the upper floors living and guest rooms. Women and children lived in an adjoining annex, the çardak. Examples include Jashar Pasha's Tower in Gjakova, Haxhi Zeka's Tower in Peja and the Mazrekaj Tower in Junik.

Notable roofs

• Visoki Dečani Monastery (UNESCO, 1327-1335)
• Kullas of Junik, Gjakova and Peja

Local roofing terms

• kulla - tower house (from Arabic qalʿa, fort, via Persian and Turkish)
• frëngji - narrow wall openings
• çardak - annex

Sources and gaps

Descriptions of the roof coverings of Kosovar kullas, vernacular houses and modern buildings, data on current roofing materials, current regulations and information on domestic roofing manufacturers were not found in published sources.