The Institute for the Protection and Scientific Study of Cultural Heritage of People’s Republic of Serbia was founded on 25th June 1947.

The first head office of the institution was at The Residence of Princess Ljubica in Belgrade, and the first director was Mr. Milorad Panic-Surep.

The name of the institution was changed in 1960 to The Republic Institute for the Protection of Monuments of Cultural Heritage.

In 1971, The Yugoslav Institute for the Protection of Monuments of Cultural Heritage was incorporated.

By the foundation and the beginning of the work of The Institute for the Protection of Monuments of Cultural Heritage the organizational care for the keeping, studying valorization, presentation and the entire affirmation of cultural heritage started to develop.

Soon after the cultural institution was founded, the network of institutions on the territory of Serbia started to be established. The newly founded institutions were to cover the care for the protection of the monuments on its territories.

The Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Serbia - Belgrade continued to work with the most important monuments of the Serbian cultural heritage both in Serbia and abroad.

After the foundation of the institute and upon making the first decisions of putting a number of cultural monuments under state’s protection, a need arose to organize the documents of research and performed works according to a specific system which is today a complex system that contains general, technical and photo documentation. The important field of work of the Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Serbia - Belgrade is the creation of that kind of documentation: the immovable cultural property of exceptional importance, the immovable cultural property the World cultural and natural heritage on the UNESCO’s list, as well as of all the immovable cultural properties on which this Institute performs complex preservation works.

The Central Catalogue of the immovable cultural properties of the Republic of Serbia includes according to the types: monuments of culture, archaeological sites, landmarks, and spatial cultural-historical units since 1981. This form of the Central Catalogue has been established after the Law on the protection of cultural heritage was enforced in 1977. According to that, the immovable cultural properties were divided into four types. According to the same law, the categorization of cultural properties was introduced into the legal system. They were divided according to the importance to the cultural properties of the great importance and the cultural properties of the exceptional importance The Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Serbia - Belgrade takes care of the unique application of criteria when proposing to declare the immovable cultural properties, as well when determining the immovable cultural properties of great importance and cultural properties of exceptional importance.

The documentation of the Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Serbia - Belgrade includes two specialized collections: plans (Serbian: planoteka) and photo documentation.

The plans (Serbian: planoteka) contain precious technical documentation about Serbia’s monument fund. It preserves technical drawings of recorded objects, and drawings of ideal reconstructions; reconstruction projects and documentation of performed works. The most important part of this documentation is microfilmed. A large collection of glass panels, black and white negatives of all formats and slides are preserved in the photo-documentation.

It was created by purchasing, receiving gifts and systematic recording during the field reconnaissance and conservation work. In the last few years, it has been complemented with the digitally recorded material. A special segment of the institutes's business activity is publishing.

The Republic Institute has a rich publishing sector. Since 1956, with the launch of the annual "Press Release" (Serbian: Saopštenja), the Institute has begun to systematically publish the outcomes of the research, preservation, and presentation of the cultural monuments. The Institute publishes a series of scientific monographs, special studies, medieval architecture selections, and drawings of frescoes as well as a series of other publications.

The Institute also deals with the issue of the conditions for the undertaking of the public works; the construction of infrastructure facilities in the protected areas as well as conditions for adaptations and extension.

The activities of the Institute include issuing conditions for undertaking public works, construction of infrastructure facilities in protected areas, as well as conditions for adaptation and extension of monumental facilities.

On the occasion of 70 years of the Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Serbia - Belgrade.