Jovan Sterija Popović's house in Vršac

Jovan Sterija Popović (1806-1856) was born in Vršac, in Habsburg Monarchy (today it is in Serbia). His father Šterija was a Greek merchant. His maternal grandfather was known painter and poet Nikola Nešković, whom he would later write the biography of. Sterija attended grammar schools in Vršac, Sremski Karlovci, Temisoara and Budapest. He studied law at Kasmark. Jovan Sterija Popović is undoubtedly one of the most significant figures of Serbian literature. With good reason he has been given the name "the father of Serbian drama". Following the example of the great French and German tragedians, he described events from the history of the Serbian people. Sterija's comedies are artistically authentic pictures of one part of the Serbian society in Vojvodina, in the first half of the 19th century and they bring a very rich gallery of characters. Sterija's comedies have passed the framework of their time, got the everlasting value and became a part of the Serbian cultural inheritance. Diverse as a writer, Sterija also wrote satires, novels, dissertations about literature and language and reflexive poetry, published in the book "Davorje", which is considered one of the best books of reflexive poetry in the Serbian literature. Working in Serbia as minister of education, Sterija founded The Society of Serbian Letters (now Serbian Academy of Science and Art) and the National Museum of Serbia. He laid the foundation of the modern Serbian school system and he was the author of many textbooks. A documentary about his life was produced in Yugoslavia in 1956. He is included in The 100 most prominent Serbs.

Birthplace of Jovan Sterija Popović is located in Vršac, at the Square of St. Theodore of Vrsac 11. It was built in 1868 and represents an immovable cultural property as a cultural monument of great significance.

The present house was built on the site of an older family house from the 18th century, where Jovan Sterija Popovic was born. It has a ground floor with commercial space, the first floor with residential areas and part of the courtyard, which was later built. Sterija's brother Djordje Popović purposed the house in 1871 for the needs of young writers and scholarships for students as part of the Fund, which today serves this purpose. Since 2011, there is the exhibition dedicated to one of the most important comedians, with authentic furniture which the writer used, with documents and photographs.