Held up by history: Roman ruins provide building blocks for Serbian village

Jezda Ivanovic and his wife Verica stand in their yard next to a small pile of Roman bricks, in central Serbia's Stari Kostolac - on the outskirts of what was once a major Roman settlement and military garrison then known as Viminacium. Photo: AFP

Amid the devastation after World War I, Verica Ivanovic's grandfather used whatever construction materials he could find to build the family's home including, unbeknown to him, bricks from the Roman Empire.

The house and its ancient foundation are still used by the family in central Serbia's Stari Kostolac - on the outskirts of what was once a major Roman settlement and military garrison then known as Viminacium.