Last modified: 2007-03-31 by ivan sache
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![[Flag of Demir Kapija]](../images/m/mk-demk.gif)
Municipal flag of Demir Kapija - Image by Mello Luchtenberg & António Martins, 2 October 2006
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The municipality of Demir Kapija (4,545 inhabitants; 311.06 sq. km) is
made of the town of Demir Kapija and the 14 settlements of Barovo, Besvica, Bistrenci, Dračica, Dren, Iverli, Klisura, Košarka, Koprišnica, Korešnica, Prždevo, Strmaševo, Čelevec and Čiflik.
Demir Kapija was called in the Classical times Stenas (gorge). In the
Middle Ages it was known under the Slav name of Prosek, while today's
name comes from Turkish, meaning "The Iron Gate", referring to the
gorge of river Vardar. Due to its strategic location between
continental Europe and the Aegean plains, the place has been fortified
since the Neolithic.
The Demir Kapija gorge is officially listed as a "monument of nature". Quoting the Natural Heritage of the Republic of Macedonia website:
This is the longest gorge of Vardar River (19 km). It cuts through the belt of lime and eruptive rocks that separate the Tikves Gorge on northwest from Gevgelia-Valandovo one on southeast. The entry of the gorge is particularly imposing, a kanyon of about 0,9 km. length, with various karstic forms on its sides - caves and crevices, slopes of steep cliffs, etc. Among the nine caves, Bela Voda is the longest with its canal's length of 955 m. Demir Kapija Gorge is one of the richest ornithological reserves in Europe by the presence of rare vulture birds: griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus), Egyptian vulture (Neophron percnopterus), golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), harrier eagle (Circaetus gallicus), foxy buzzard (Buteo rufinus), various falcons (Falco peregrinus, Falco naumanni), as well as other rare bird species. Different species of mammals, reptiles and insects are also found in Demir Kapija Gorge, as are rare and endemic plants (Colladonia macedonica, Lilium heldreichii, Lilium martagon, Kitaibelia vitifolia etc.).
Ivan Sache, 2 October 2006
The municipal flag of Demir Kapija, as shown on the Macedonian Ministry of Local
Self-Government website (page no longer online), is in proportion 3:5, yellow with the municipal emblem shifted to the hoist.
The emblem shows the Iron Gates with the river Vardar and the
railway, lit by the Macedonian sun. A red scroll stretching over the basis of
the shield bears the city name.
Ivan Sache, 2 October 2006