Mesi Bridge

History

Mesi Bridge was built over the Kiri River, 6 km to the north-east of the city of Shkodra. It is a cultural monument of the first category.

The bridge is a construction masterpiece, work of Albanian master builders, most of them masons from Dibra. It connects Shkodra with Drisht and Cukal area. It is the longest and best-preserved Ottoman bridge in Albania, built along the ancient trade route Shkodra- Kosovo, a route which date back to the pre Roman times.

It is the crest type, realized on 13 arches with different sizes, 108 m long, 3.4 m wide and a height of 15 m. The construction of the bridge was done in two phases. During the first phase the main arch 21.5 m long and 4 arches were built. The track way of this part is laid with stones, put in an upright position giving the arch of the bridge, the penance of a staircase.

Later on, because of floods, it was necessary to make it longer, adding five arches on the left and four on the right The construction was commissioned by Mehmet Pashe Bushati, the founder of the Pashalik, who ruled Shkodra from 1755 to 1775. According to the historians, the bridge dates to 1768.