Knjaževac - Little Venice in eastern Serbia.

The Gorge Ždrelo is located in the area of the village of Stogazovac, it is also known to the people as the meteors of Knjaževac. According to the geological map of the Republic of Serbia, it was cut into clay limestones and clays from the Lower Cretaceous period. The age of the rocks is estimated at about 100 million years. The length of the gorge is about 300 m. The Zubetinačka River flows through Ždrelo, which changes its name to the Stogazovačka River upon entering the village of Stogazovac.

The Gorge Ždrelo

Limestone rocks right next to the river rise to a height of 70-80 m and are specific formations. The highest cliffs are Lisičji kamen, which is also called the Momin kamen or the Devojački kamen (legend says that a girl jumped from this stone to her death during the Turkish rule in order to protect herself and not be disgraced) and the Zdravački kamen.

The top of this cliff can be reached by a path behind the church. From there is a beautiful view of the gorge and the village. The width of the gorge in the narrowest part, at the very bottom, is 2-3 m. This was the only passage before cutting the road through the gorge.

At the bottom of the gorge, in the riverbed, there is a spring which the locals call “God’s table”. The spring has a healing effect for eye diseases. A Roman altar was found next to the spring, which proves the existence of this spring in ancient times.

The Gorge Ždrelo

The bottom of the gorge is characterized by a large number of collapsed rock blocks. Blocks of rock contributed to the creation of large whirlpools, such as Sinji vir, Telči vir and Petkovski vir.

Given that it is a limestone terrain, caves are a frequent phenomenon. Vula’s cave is located on the left side of the gorge, a few meters above the road, near the exit of the gorge. Mark’s cave is located on the right side of the gorge, below the top of the Kulinje hill. It is difficult to access and many stories are related to this cave. According to tradition, this is the cave of Marko Kraljević, where he often stayed. In the ceiling of the cave there is a depression that Marko made with his head, suddenly waking up. At the bottom of the cave, the “prints” of his feet are visible, and in the inner wall there is a horseshoe-shaped depression that was “made” by Mark’s horse Šarac.

Gorge Ždrelo

Among the anthropogenic values of this gorge, the Vidovdan Church stands out, which according to tradition was built by Tsar Lazar himself, and because of this little church in Stogazovec, Vidovdan has been celebrated for centuries. In the gate of the church there is a wonderful shade formed by a dogwood forest.

At a distance of 400 m from the village, on the Kulinje hill, you can see the walls and foundations of the old town with a tower. Despite various researches, to this day, the origin of this city is not known, neither when it was built nor for what purposes, there are only guesses. It is assumed that it originates from the ancient – Byzantine era, during the reign of Justinian, who may have built it for defensive purposes. This city-fortress had 2 towers that were used to observe the enemy.