Obelisk
Obelisk stands at Gjirokastra’s highest point, overlooking the city and the Drinos Valley in southern Albania. From this summit, you can see Varosh below, Palorto on the western hillside, and Dunavat higher southward. The monument also rises near the place where Gjirokastra’s first Albanian school opened in 1908. Its setting brings the old town’s districts, historic houses, and surrounding valley into one wide view.
During Ottoman rule, that school taught Albanian and used the emerging national alphabet when education in the language was forbidden. The seven-metre monument honours those efforts and connects them with Albanian education, language, and cultural identity. Muntaz Dhrami, Ksenofon Kostaqi, and Stefan Papamihali created the structure, also known as “Mëmëdheu ABC”. Nearby landmarks include the old bazaar, mosque, castle, and the former home of Eqerem Çabej.
One hundred twenty-four hewn stone blocks form the monument, with stone brought from Lekdush Progonat. Their resistance to weather helps preserve the stark, undecorated design.
- City
- Gjirokastra
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The myTuur app is free, and once you are standing at a spot its story starts by itself.
Spots like this one are the stops myTuur strings into tours through Gjirokastra. In the app, each story begins where you stand: walk up to a spot and it starts, read it on screen or listen as you go, then follow the route to the next one.
What is myTuur?
myTuur is a free city-guide app. Its tours are built from spots, and each spot carries a story that starts when you get there, to read or to listen to as you like.