Stari Most in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

© Ayhan Altun/Getty Image

The Old Bridge, reborn. Stari Most in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

For 427 years, the Mostar Bridge in what is now known as Bosnia and Herzegovina stood strong, despite the belief that its original mortar was composed of egg whites. The truth is, little is known about its 16th-century construction. All that remains in historical records are memories and legends and the name of the bridge’s builder, Mimar Hayruddin. He was charged by Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent to build an unprecedentedly wide arch - and was threatened with death if the structure failed.

Hayruddin is said to have been so unsure of his creation that he had made funeral preparations before the scaffolding was removed. Luckily the arch remained intact. Suspended nearly 80ft (24m) above the Neretva River, the highest point of the bridge’s arch rises an additional 39.5ft (12m). Upon its completion in 1566, it was the widest man-made arch ever built.

Also known as Stari Most, or ‘Old Bridge’, it was finally brought down in November 1993 after being hit by a barrage of shells during the Bosnian War. Considered a treasure of Bosnian Islamic architecture, its destruction by Croatian forces was condemned around the world. Due to its importance, plans to rebuild the bridge as accurately as possible began at the war’s end. The reconstructed bridge was unveiled to the public in 2004.