City of Blagaj

Blagaj is a village-town in the south-eastern region of the Mostar basin, in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It stands at the edge of Bišće plain and is one of the most valuable mixed urban and rural structures in Bosnia and Herzegovina, distinguished from other similar structures in its urban layout. Blagaj is situated at the spring of the Buna river and a historical tekke (tekija or Dervish monastery). The Blagaj Tekija was built around 1520, with elements of Ottoman architecture and Mediterranean style, and is considered a national monument. Blagaj Tekke is a monastery built for the Dervish. Vrelo Bune, the source of the Buna river, is a strong karstic spring. The river flows west for approximately 9 kilometers (6 mi) and joins the Neretva near the village Buna. The historic site of the Blagaj Fort (also Stjepan-grad or Stipan-grad), on the hill above Blagaj, was the seat of Grand Duke of Bosnia, Stjepan Vukčić, and the birthplace of Bosnian queen Katarina Kosača-Kotromanić.