
Rospi Ćuprija (
Serbian Cyrillic
The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...
: Роспи Ћуприја) is an
urban neighborhood of
Belgrade
Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
, the capital of
Serbia
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, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of
Palilula. The name comes from
Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish (, ; ) was the standardized register of the Turkish language in the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed extensively, in all aspects, from Arabic and Persian. It was written in the Ottoman Turkish alphabet. ...
''(o)rospı(lı) köprü'' 'bridge of whores' because the high-ranking Turkish officer's harem women suspected of disloyalty (marital or otherwise) were murdered on the banks of the river.
Location
Rospi Ćuprija is located on the western bank of the ''Mirijevski potok'' stream and the right bank of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
's arm of ''Rukavac'' which separates it from the former island (now a peninsula) of
Ada Huja. It occupies the western section of the Field of Višnjica and borders the neighborhoods of
Karaburma on the west (''Mirijevo Boulevard''),
Ćalije
Ćalije ( sr-cyr, Ћалије) is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem ...
on the south and
Višnjička Banja on the east (the road of ''Slanački put'').
History
Antiquity
The oldest settlement known by name on the territory of modern Belgrade was found near the Rospi Ćuprija. Remains of the
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foot ...
(and later
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
) settlement of
Singidunum
Singidunum ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Сингидунум, Singidunum) was an ancient city which later evolved into modern Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. The name is of Celtic origin, going back to the time when the Celtic tribe Scordisci settled the a ...
were found near Rospi Ćuprija and neighboring Karaburma, including
necropolis
A necropolis (: necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'' ().
The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distan ...
rich in
artefacts and parts of ''dunum'', fortress. These remains represent a limited archaeological evidence as there were almost no traces left of the Celtic town, except for them. The necropolises contained valuable artistic artifacts which belonged to the warriors of the
Scordisci
The Scordisci (; ) were an Iron Age cultural group who emerged after the Celtic settlement of Southeast Europe, and who were centered in the territory of present-day Serbia, at the confluence of the Savus (Sava), Dravus (Drava), Margus (Morav ...
tribe. An apparent Celtic cultural influences have been woven into the spiritual culture of the Singidunum inhabitants, and later mixed with Roman classical cultural elements.
Though it is today generally considered that the old Celtic fortress was located where the modern
Belgrade Fortress
The Belgrade Fortress ( sr-Cyrl, Београдска тврђава, Beogradska tvrđava, Hungarian: Nándorfehérvár), consists of the old citadel (Upper and Lower Town) and Kalemegdan Park (Large and Little Kalemegdan) on the confluence of th ...
is, it can't be confirmed as there are no records of where the Celts settled. Some historians suggested that it was rather close to the necropolises in Karaburma and Rospi Ćuprija. Celtic settlements belonged to the
La Tène culture
The La Tène culture (; ) was a Iron Age Europe, European Iron Age culture. It developed and flourished during the late Iron Age (from about 450 BC to the Roman Republic, Roman conquest in the 1st century BC), succeeding the early Iron Age ...
.
In the area bounded by the modern Karaburma, Rospi Ćuprija and, at that time island,
Ada Huja, Romans cultivated
grapevines
''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 81 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus consists of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, bot ...
and used thermal springs for
public bathhouses.
Characteristics
With an elevation of only 66 meters above the sea level, Rospi Ćuprija is the lowest point of the city of Belgrade proper.
Rospi Ćuprija is a partially residential area, but is best known for the series of
brickworks
A brickworks, also known as a brick factory, is a factory for the manufacturing of bricks, from clay or shale. Usually a brickworks is located on a clay bedrock (the most common material from which bricks are made), often with a clay pit, quar ...
that occupy extensive areas of the northern ridge of the Field of Višnjica (''Polet'', ''Trudbenik'', ''Jedinstvo'', ''Kozara'', ''Balkan'', ''Rekord''). It had a population of 4,661 in 2002.
References
* ''Beograd - plan grada''; M@gic M@p, 2006;
Neighborhoods of Belgrade
Palilula, Belgrade
{{BelgradeRS-geo-stub