The fountain
A bronze rider.
Robot8A — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Raki_Man — CC BY 3.0 · kallerna — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Mike Norton — CC BY 2.0 · kallerna — CC BY-SA 4.0
Macedonia Square is the main square of Skopje and the largest in the country, about 18,500 square metres of stone paving on the south bank of the Vardar, at the end of the Stone Bridge. It is where the city gathers: concerts, festivals and the winter holiday market are held here, and it was here that Kiro Gligorov, the country's first president, declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. The square was remodelled as part of the Skopje 2014 project, which filled the centre with statues, fountains and new buildings in classical style. Its centrepiece is a tall fountain topped by a bronze rider on horseback, and the surrounding streets and riverbanks are lined with more monuments, bridges and museum buildings from the same programme. The project divided opinion at home, and many visitors find it as curious as it is striking. The square is free and open at all hours, and the fountain is lit at night. It is the natural starting point for a walk across the bridge into the Old Bazaar.
A bronze rider.
Statues and new façades.
Gateway to the bazaar.
South bank of the Vardar at the Stone Bridge, central Skopje
Stone BridgeThe Stone Bridge is the symbol of Skopje: a 15th-century Ottoman bridge across t1 minute walk
Archaeological Museum of North MacedoniaThe Archaeological Museum of North Macedonia occupies one of the large columned 1 minute walk3.9
Daut Pasha HamamDaut Pasha Hamam is a 15th-century Ottoman bathhouse at the southern entrance to3 minutes walk4.5
Old BazaarThe Old Bazaar, the Čaršija, spreads over the east bank of the Vardar from the S6 minutes walk4.4
Kale FortressKale, from the Turkish word for fortress, crowns the highest point of Skopje's o7 minutes walk4.2A government project that remodelled the city centre with statues, fountains and classical-style buildings; Macedonia Square is at its heart.