TARA TOWER - OLD BRIDGE MUSEUM

This tower (Kula Tara) guards the eastern entrance to the Old Bridge and houses the museum dedicated to it (Muzej Stari Most). Although it looks rectangular when seen from the bridge, it is in fact semi-circular in shape, with a rounded surface at the back. It has five levels and rises to a height of about 20 m at the roof level with 3.5 m thick walls at the base. It was erected in 1676 on the site of a wooden tower dating back to the 11th century. Until the end of the Ottoman period, in 1878, it was used as a powder and ammunition storehouse. Damaged during the last war (cracked walls, destroyed floors...), it was restored as part of the reconstruction project of the Old Bridge. Since 2006, it houses the museum dedicated to the most famous monument of the country. The first part recounts the history of the bridge and includes some archaeological finds made during the construction. In the second part you can discover the foundations of the tower and the remains of the two previous wooden bridges from the Middle Ages. Finally, on the fourth floor, the third part recalls the destruction of the bridge in 1993 and the colossal construction work that followed until 2004. The result can be admired from the openings in the walls overlooking the Neretva, the Old Bridge and the Halebija Tower. At the foot of the Tara Tower, the bookshop of the Islamic Cultural Center offers a good number of books dedicated to the last war and to Mostar.