Bosnia: Bridging the Divide

MOSTAR, Bosnia-Herzegovina – A rebuilt natural-stone bridge may help to bring cultures together in this war-torn area, thanks to a internationally funded multi-million-dollar project.
The Mostar Bridge, destroyed during a civil war in 1993, reopened on July 23. While most of the international media coverage concentrated on divers leaping off the span into the Neretva River some 70 feet below, the rebuilt structure itself made for a dramatic story.
The single-arch limestone bridge, designed by Ottoman architect Mimar Hajruddin and consisting of 456 stone blocks, originally opened in 1566. It held fast against the elements and wars – Nazi tanks rumbled across the structure during World War II – for more than 420 years, including constant erosion from humidity.
Preservation efforts kept the bridge sound, but the ethnic battles between the region’s Muslims and Croats took its toll on Nov. 9, 1993. In an action taken more for its symbolism than strategic value, artillery shelled the structure until it collapsed.
Efforts headed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to rebuild the bridge began in 1994. Eventually, a funding consortium that included the Council of Europe Development Bank, Croatia, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey provided more than $13 million through the World Bank; the city of Mostar provided $2 million.
The rebuilding effort included local stones from nearby quarries, along with traditional methods of construction with quoins, cramps and dowels. Work began in June 2001 and was completed this April.
The leaps off the bridge, incidentally, didn’t come from base jumpers seeking a new thrill. According to the BBC, the nine men taking the plunge off the Mostar Bridge revived an old tradition of young men proving their bravery.