MOSTAR, the chief town of Herzegovina., is built on both banks of the Narenta, about 35 miles from its mouth, and 40 miles south-west of Scraievo (Bosna Serai), the capital of Bosnia. Among the public buildings are a palace, two Greek churches, and forty mosques, in several cases with Roman or Byzantine tracery in their windows. The fine old bridge from which the town takes its name (Yost Star, Old Bridge) is probably Roman. The town has a good trade and manufactures excellent Damascus swords ; and the grapes and wine of 14lostar are celebrated throughout the south Slavonic countries. The population, 7300 in 1844, had increased to 10,848 by 1879.

Whether its ancient name was Saloniana, Sarsenterum, or Andretium, there is little doubt that Mostar, or, to use the older Slavonic name, Vitrinitcha, dates from the time of the Romans. It was enlarged in 1440 by Radivoi Gost, mayor of the palace to Stephen, first duke of St Sava. Immediately on their conquest of Herzegovina it was chosen by the Turks as their headquarters ; and it afterwards became the capital of the independent government of Ali Pasha and Stolac.

See Evans, Through Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1878 ; Wilkinson's Dalmatia and Montenegro, vol. ii. (view and plan at pp. 59-60); and Caix de Saint Aymour in Rev. des D. Mondes, February 1883.