they have never gone beyond one point, in house architecture, and the mosks at Constantinople (with the exception of their minarets) are mere imitations of Christian churches.

On the opposite side of the river is a tomb, built by the Vizir, to the memory of his favourite Circassian; from which a succession of gardens and houses continues to the town, a distance of half a mile.

Mostar is not a fortified city; and though, here and there, the remains of an insignificant wall may be traced, it appears never to have had any formidable defences; and, from its exposed position, one is not surprised that the Venetian troops, stationed on the Narenta in 1717, should have been enabled, by a sudden incursion, to burn the suburbs of Mostar.* The river is its chief protection, on the side of Dalmatia, and the passage of the bridge might be easily defended; but the round tower, at the palace gates, with embrasures for cannon, is intended against a popular tumult, rather than for the defence of the town.

Mostar has a population of 7300 souls, of whom 2000 are Turks, 3560 Greeks, and 1440 Roman Catholics. There are also 300 Gipsies, or Zingani, and three Jews.

It stands on both sides of the Narenta, the principal part being on the east bank, extending up a declivity, under a bluff point of the hills. On this side, are the bazaars, the palace, and the largest mosks.

* See the History, A.D. 1717.

The banks of the river are high and rocky, and are connected by a beautiful bridge, for which

Mostar has always been celebrated. It is of a single arch, ninety-five feet three inches in span*; and when the Narenta is low, about seventy feet from the water, or, to the top of the parapet, seventy-six feet. The river, at the season I visited it, being unusually high, it was only 44.9 from the water's surface; but even then, the beauty of its arch, and the lightness of its proportions, were not diminished, and I have seen none that can surpass it. The depth of the water was said to be about thirty-four feet, and in summer not more than ten.

The breadth of the arch is only 14-2, the road over it 13.2, and, with the two parapets, 14.10. On its north side is a raised conduit of stone, looking like a foot-way, which conveys water over the bridge to the eastern part of the city, and is supplied from a source, in the undulating valley to the west.

The bridge rises about ten feet in the centre; but this does not appear to have been so originally; and though the lightness of its appearance may have been

increased by lowering the two ends, the convenience of the bridge is much diminished, as it abuts on the east against a rising ground. On each bank is a tower, built to command it; and the passage may be closed by the gate of the guard-house at the west end, in case of need. Tradition pretends, that the towers are on Roman substructions, and that the one on the eastern side is the most ancient.

The building of the bridge is attributed to

Trajan, or, according to some, to Adrian; and report speaks of an inscription, that once existed upon it, with the name of one of those emperors. The Turks attribute its erection to Suleyman, the Magnificent; but the Vizir, in answer to my question respecting its date, said that "though they claim it as a work of that Sultan, the truth is, it was there long before his time, and was probably built by the Pagans." The Turks have entirely concealed the original masonry; not a block is to be seen of Roman time, and the smallness of the stones, the torus under the parapet, and the spandril projecting slightly over the arch, give it all the appearance of Turkish construction. But the grandeur of the work, the form of the arch, and tradition, all favour its Roman origin; and the fact of the town being called Mostar, shows that an "old bridge' already existed there, when it received that name; and Mostar was a city long before the Turkish invasion of the country.

Luccari says Mostar was built, in 1440, "by Radigost, major-domo of Stefano Cosaccia;" but it was doubtless of a much earlier date, and traces of a Roman road are said to exist, leading from it to Gliubuski. Some suppose Mostar to be the ancient Sarsenterum. It was formerly a bishop's see, which was afterwards transferred to Narona, and then in

city."

Most star signifies "old bridge;" as Stari grad is "old

† A singular adoption of the name of an old Pagan Slavonic Deity. See Vol. I., pp. 20, 21.

cluded in that of Macarska; and it had a convent of Franciscans, until about the beginning of the seventeenth century.*

On either pier of the abutment, at the east end of the bridge, is a Turkish inscription; one of which bears the date 1087 A. H., corresponding to 1659 A. D., the second year of Sultan Mahomet; probably referring to repairs made during his reign. The two inscriptions are: on the south side

on the north

them accurately

but it was difficult to copy them without a boat, which, at this season, could not approach the bridge.

Mostar seems to have been chosen by the Turks, as the chief town of Herzegóvina, immediately after the conquest of the country; and Rustum Pasha, who married Shems-kumr†, the daughter of Sultan Suleyman, was born there. The town is

*See Farlati, iv. pp. 195, 196.

Bartholomew, Bishop of Macarska, says that, in 1630, it had scarcely ten Christian houses, and those only for trading purposes. The Church of St. Stephen, at Citluk (or Gabella), was destroyed by the Turks in 1540, and rebuilt in 1614.

† A not uncommon Turkish name of women, meaning sun and moon." + Luccari.