Stari Most in Mostar

Stari most ( “Old Bridge” ) is the most popular tourist attraction in Mostar.
The bridge crosses river Neretva, which is one of the most beautiful rivers in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Stari most is the symbol of the city and it splits the city into 2 halves. Both halves of the city have different dominant ethnicities and therefore, specific buildings and culture that belongs to that ethnicity. In 2005. Stari most got included as one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites.

History of Stari most

The building of Stari most was ordered by Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1557. The bridge was made to replace the old wooden bridge which was very unstable. The building of the bridge lasted for 9 years and it was finally completed in 1567. The proof for this is the inscription on the bridge which says “Year finished 974.”, which in the Islamic calendar is equal to 1567. The bridge was built by famous Ottoman builder named Mimar Hajrudin.

Stari most was destroyed in 9.11.1993. in the battle between Bosnia and Croatia. Eleven years later, it was finally renewed, even though it has a little different construction than the original one.

Leaps from the Old Bridge

The Old bridge is big tourist attraction through the whole year, but it is specially visited at the end of July when bravest people from all around the world come to jump from the Old Bridge. Leaps from the bridge are the tradition which started in 1664, but the formal competition was established in 1968. Jumps from this bridge are considered as extreme challenge and that’s why Red Bull organized a competition in 2017.