Stari Ras

Serbia, Serbia

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Stari Ras is an archaeological site in southwestern Serbia near Novi Pazar, recognized as one of the earliest capitals of the medieval Serbian state of Raška from the 9th to 14th centuries. Strategically positioned along the Raška River gorge at the crossroads of trade routes linking Zeta, Bosnia, and Kosovo, it began as a Slavic settlement under Bulgarian and Byzantine control before Stefan Nemanja established it as a political and cultural hub with fortifications, churches like Naprelj and the Latin Church in Postenje, and the nearby Cave Monastery of St. Archangels. Damaged in conflicts including civil wars around 1233 and later Ottoman devastation, its ruins including the Gradina citadel with five donjon towers were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 alongside Sopoćani Monastery for their Byzantine-influenced architecture and role in early Serbian identity.