Stari Most

There is a famous stone bridge.

It goes over a river. It connects two parts of a city. Long ago, a bridge made of wood was there. It swayed so much that people were afraid!

A new stone bridge was built instead. It was very wide. Later, the bridge was broken during a war. People worked hard to fix it. Now, the bridge is back. Every summer, people jump into the cold water from the top!

The Stari Most is a famous stone bridge.

It sits in the city of Mostar. It crosses the Neretva River. Long ago, a wooden bridge was there. It hung on chains. It swayed so much that people felt great fear.

In 1557, a leader named Suleiman the Magnificent ordered a new bridge. Mimar Hayruddin designed it. He was a student of a great architect. The stone bridge took many years to build. It was a very big arch. It was even the widest human-made arch in the world. Two towers protect the bridge. They are called the Halebija and Tara towers.

During a war in 1993, the bridge was destroyed. It fell into the river. After the war, many groups worked to fix it. They wanted it to look just like the old one. They used local limestone. The bridge reopened in 2004. Now, people visit the bridge to see it. Some people even dive from the top into the cold water!

The Stari Most is a famous stone bridge in Mostar.

It crosses the Neretva River in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This bridge is very important because it connects two parts of the city. The name Mostar actually comes from the bridge keepers. These people guarded the bridge during the Ottoman era. Today, the bridge is a beautiful piece of Balkan Islamic architecture. It is a hump-backed structure that is both wide and long.

The bridge works by using a single large stone arch. Instead of deep foundations, it uses abutments made of limestone. These abutments link to wing walls on the river cliffs. The arch springs from these walls to reach a high point. Two fortified towers protect the ends of the bridge. These are the Halebija tower on the northeast side. The Tara tower sits on the southwest side. These towers helped the bridge keepers watch over the path.

Long ago, the bridge was made of wood and hung on chains. An explorer named Katip Çelebi said it swayed very much. People felt great fear when they crossed it. To fix this, Suleiman the Magnificent ordered a stone bridge in 1557. A designer named Mimar Hayruddin created the plans. He was a student of the famous architect Mimar Sinan. The construction project took nine years to finish. It was completed between July 1566 and July 1567.

Building the stone bridge was a huge job. It cost about 300,000 Drams in silver coins. When it was finished, it was the widest human-made arch in the world. However, the bridge was later destroyed during a war. On 9 November 1993, the bridge collapsed after being hit by shells. Many people say this was done to destroy cultural heritage. After the war, many groups worked to rebuild it. They wanted it to look exactly like the original.

The new bridge reopened on 23 July 2004. It cost about 15.5 million US dollars to rebuild. Workers used local limestone called Tenelia for the stones. They even used divers to find old stones in the river. Today, the bridge is a place for famous traditions. Every summer, young men leap from the bridge into the cold river. It is even part of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series.

The Stari Most, or "Old Bridge," is a famous stone structure in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

It spans the Neretva River to connect two different parts of the city. The name of the city itself is actually derived from the "mostari," who were the bridge keepers. These individuals guarded the bridge during the Ottoman era. Today, the bridge is recognized as an exemplary piece of Balkan Islamic architecture. It serves as a vital symbol of connection for the local communities.

The physical design of the bridge relies on a single, massive stone arch. Instead of using traditional deep foundations, the structure utilizes limestone abutments. These abutments are linked to wing walls built along the river's cliffs. From these walls, the arch springs upward to reach its highest point. The bridge is hump-backed, wide, and long, dominating the river from a height of 24 meters. Two fortified towers provide protection at either end. The Halebija tower stands on the northeast, while the Tara tower sits on the southwest.

Before the stone arch existed, the crossing was quite different. An Ottoman geographer named Katip Çelebi described an older bridge made of wood and hung on chains. This wooden structure was unstable and swayed significantly. People crossing it often felt mortal fear due to the movement. To solve this, Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent commissioned a permanent stone replacement in 1557. The project was supervised by Karagoz Mehmet Bey, the Sultan's son-in-law. Mimar Hayruddin, a student of the famous architect Mimar Sinan, designed the new bridge. Construction took nine years to complete, finishing between July 1566 and July 1567.

Building the stone bridge was a massive undertaking of engineering and finance. The construction cost approximately 300,000 Drams, which were silver coins. Some legends suggest the mortar used to hold the stones together was made with egg whites. Upon its completion, the Stari Most was the widest human-made arch in the world. The 17th-century explorer Evliya Çelebi described the sight as being like a rainbow arching toward the sky. He noted that he had traveled through 16 countries but had never seen a bridge so high. This scale made the bridge a legendary landmark in the region.

Tragedy struck the bridge during the Croat–Bosniak War in the 1990s. The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina used the bridge as a military supply line. Because of this military use, the Croatian Defence Council (HVO) targeted it. On 9 November 1993, the bridge collapsed following intense shelling. Reports indicated that more than 60 shells hit the structure before it fell. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia later ruled that the bridge was a legitimate military target. However, many scholars argued the destruction was an act of "memoricide," intended to destroy shared cultural heritage.

Reconstruction efforts began after the war ended to restore the landmark. A large coalition led the project, including UNESCO, the World Bank, and the Aga Khan Trust for Culture. Experts decided to rebuild the bridge using the same materials and Ottoman techniques as the original. The project was completed in two distinct phases. First, Hungarian army engineers lifted submerged materials from the river to repurpose them. Second, a partnership of engineering companies led by the Turkish firm Er-Bu reconstructed the arch. They used Tenelia, a fine-grained limestone sourced from local quarries.

The reconstructed Stari Most officially reopened on 23 July 2004. The total cost for this massive restoration was estimated at 15.5 million US dollars. Today, the bridge is not just a historical monument but also a site for tradition and sport. Every summer, local young men participate in a tradition of leaping from the bridge into the cold Neretva River. This practice requires significant skill because the water is very cold. The event has grown into a formal diving competition held every summer.

In recent years, the bridge has gained international fame through modern competitions. Since 2015, it has been a featured stop in the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. This brings professional athletes from around the world to Mostar to dive from the historic heights. The bridge also appears frequently in popular culture, such as in music and theater. A Turkish rock song from 1996 was written about its destruction. Additionally, a play titled "Old Bridge" premiered in London in 2021 to explore the historical narratives of the site. The bridge continues to connect the past of the Ottoman Empire to the modern world.