Višegrad Bridge and the Stone Han

Over the course of five years (1567-71), an impressive structure in two parts is erected at Višegrad on orders and at the expense of the Ottoman Grand Vezir Mehmed Pasha. The first part is a monumental bridge consisting of eleven-stone arches. The roadbed is 15 meters above the "green boisterous waters" of the Drina River. The bridge is 250 paces long and 10 paces wide, except at its center, where it splays out to double that width in a section called the kapia. The kapia becomes the town's cultural meeting place. On the right side of the kapia is a stone sofa for seating, backed by the protective parapet. In the center of the parapet stands a 13-verse tarih (inscription) praising the builder.

Once the bridge is built, the city develops at both ends. Generations grow up playing around the bridge and learning...