ROMAN BRIDGE
History
In the village of Kumanica on the 16th km southwest of Ivanjica in the direction of the Golija mountain near the old, neglected watermill-brook, there is an old stone bridge over the river Moravica. The old bridge over the upper course of the river is located on an old, neglected road passable exclusively for pedestrians and pack horses, which led from Ivanjica, through Medjurečje, through the village of Bratljevo, to Sandzak (Sjenica).
Today, this bridge is used only by pedestrians, and mountain roads branch off around it, one of which leads to the village of Ercege. It is impossible to determine who built this bridge in the village of Kumanica and when.
Cultural site details
The opening of this bridge is similar to the only preserved opening on the bridge over the river Uvac. Judging by his technique, it could be built at the same time as the bridges in Prizren, which means in the 15th century. In the tradition of this area, the bridge exists under the name "Roman Bridge", although there is nothing Roman in it. It is surrounded by greenery, which simply merges it with nature, so that it does not look like an imposed building, but an integral part of the landscape.
The width of the bridge is 2.40 meters, and the total length of the bridge with pillars is about 14 meters, the size of the arched opening is 6.72 meters, and the height is about 4 meters. It is built of crushed stone and large slabs of slate rock, which is found in large quantities on the banks of the Moravica. Due to different materials, it is assumed that the bridge was made in several periods, and according to the legend, 30,000 eggs were used as a binding material in the brigde.
Once the only connection to Sandzak, the old stone bridge on Moravica is today a tourist attraction and is used only by pedestrians. Numerous roads branch off from it, leading to the villages of Podgolje. The restoration of this bridge in the eighties of the last century was performed by the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments from Kraljevo.