"Novo Brdo" Novo Brdo by bchurchill

The problem with travelling to locations that are under the auspices of a transitional interantionally monitored governance is not safety, but rather the lack of appropriate and effective infrastructure. The system and means of getting people education void of absurd medieval notions is not present. Case in point:
The site of the castle at Novo Brdo is one of Kosovo's greatest archeological treasures. It represents over 1300 years of history shared between people. It would would seem to the Western mind that the majority of the residents would have a great deal of knowledge of such an important historical sight. Things are quite to the contrary. After interviewing numerous individuals in the vicinity of the castle I could glean no viable information.
The University of Prishtina has an Archeology professor that could finally shed some light on the situation. He advised that the castle was built as a byzantium outpost in the ninth century to watch over a gold mine that lies adjacent to the castle. The way that the construction of Novo Brdo was described was that of a boom town fueled by incredible amounts of gold. The mine was said to be the largest producer of gold in Europe at the time. The population exploded to over 25,000. Behind the primary residence of the Byzantine Magistrate, a church was consructed, the ruins are still located on the site. After the Ottoman Empire siezed power in the region, the castle was updated and a mosque was constructed. This mosque is still a functioning religious structure today.