[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_custom_heading text=”Petnica” font_size=”36″ font_family=”” font_weight=”400″][vc_column_text]The village of Petnica (7 km away from Valjevo) is very old. The first families moved to it at the beginning of the 15th century.
The river Banja flows through the village, which springs from the Petnička cave, and the stream Pocibrava, which divides the village into two parts – the hilly (southern) and the flatter (northern) part. In 1990, a protective dam was built on Pocibrava, intended for protection against torrents, and thus a small lake of 2 ha was obtained. On the shores of the lake, migratory birds and wetlands have already formed their habitats, while for many fishermen it has become a favorite “hunting ground”.
From Valjevo to the village of Petnica is reached by an asphalt road that leads near the Sports and Recreation Center Petnica, which has four swimming pools and courts for basketball, football, volleyball and mini golf. The pools are supplied with warm groundwater.
Petnička Cave is located 1 km from the village. The oldest testimonies about the life of people in western Serbia were found in the cave and its immediate surroundings. The research of this archeological site began in the last century, when the first research was done by Josif Pančić and Jovan Cvijić. In addition to archeological, it has great speleological and paleontological value. The cave consists of about 600m long channels and numerous chambers. It is divided into two parts – the Upper and the Lower Cave. The lower one is much smaller than the upper one, but it has a more passable entrance. The Banja abyss springs from it. The upper cave, on the other hand, is of larger dimensions and represents a combination of chambers and canals. Its most spacious room (the so-called Concert Hall) has natural lighting that comes from two openings (“views”) on the ceiling. All these features, as well as suitable climatic factors, provided ideal conditions for safe shelter for people and life for rare animal and plant species.
Archaeological-anthropological research conducted in 1969 confirmed that the archeological site in front of the entrance to the Petnička Cave is the first complete Neolithic habitat in Serbia, 6,000 years old.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_widget_sidebar sidebar_id=”sidebar-page”][/vc_column][/vc_row]