Status of monument -> National monument
Pursuant to Article V para. 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Article 39 para. 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, at a session held from 3 to 9 May 2005 the Commission adopted a
D E C I S I O N
I
The architectural ensemble of the Jeni (Hasan-aga) mosque in Travnik is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument).
The National Monument consists of the mosque, harem with turbe and burial ground, and movable property consisting of 20 levhas.
The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 748 (new survey), corresponding to c.p. nos. IV/213, 214, 498 (old survey), Land Register entry no. 1554, cadastral municipality Travnik, Municipality Travnik, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The provisions relating to protection measures set forth by the Law on the Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established pursuant to Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of the Federation of BiH nos. 2/02, 27/02 and 6/04) shall apply to the National Monument.
II
The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the Government of the Federation) shall be responsible for ensuring and providing the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary to protect, conserve, and display the National Monument.
The Commission to Preserve National Monuments (hereinafter: the Commission) shall determine the technical requirements and secure the funds for preparing and setting up signboards with the basic data on the monument and the Decision to proclaim the property a National Monument.
III
To ensure the on-going protection of the National Monument, the following protection zones are hereby established:
Protection Zone I consists of the area defined in Clause 1 para. 3 of this Decision. The following protection measures shall apply in this zone:
- all works are prohibited other than conservation and restoration works on the National Monument, with the approval of the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning (hereinafter: the relevant ministry) and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the heritage protection authority),
- research works shall be conducted as part of conservation and restoration works for the purpose of identifying the extent of damage to the walls and the causes thereof, and the necessary protection measures,
- no protection works, regardless of their type or extent, shall be permitted except with the approval of the relevant ministry,
- all movable property shall be kept in suitable conditions and presented within the mosque.
Protection Zone II consists of the adjacent plots, being c.p. nos. 740, 741, 742, 744, 745, 746, 750, 756, 758, c.m. Travnik. In this protection zone the following measures shall apply:
- the adaptation of existing buildings shall be permitted and the interpolation of new residential buildings may be allowed, subject to observing the conditions of a maximum height of two storeys (ground floor and one upper floor with a height of 6.5 m to the roof cornice), maximum dimensions of 12 x 10 m, with hipped roofs with a minimum pitch of 40o, using original materials and roof cladding,
- the construction of industrial buildings and facilities, major infrastructure, and potential polluters as defined by law is prohibited.
IV
The removal of the movable heritage items referred to in Clause 1 para. 2 of this Decision (hereinafter: the movable heritage) from Bosnia and Herzegovina is prohibited.
By way of exception to the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Clause, the temporary removal from Bosnia and Herzegovina of the movable heritage for the purposes of display or conservation shall be permitted if it is established that conservation works cannot be carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Permission for temporary removal of the movable heritage from Bosnia and Herzeovina under the conditions stipulated in the preceding paragraph shall be issued by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, if it is determined beyond doubt that it will not jeopardize the property in question or the National Monument in any way.
In granting permission for the temporary removal of the movable heritage from Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Commission shall stipulate all the conditions under which the removal may take place, the date by which the items shall be returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the responsibility of individual authorities and institutions for ensuring that these conditions are met, and shall notify the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the relevant security service, the customs authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the general public accordingly.
V
All executive and area development planning acts not in accordance with the provisions of this Decision are hereby revoked.
VI
Everyone, and in particular the competent authorities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Canton, and urban and municipal authorities, shall refrain from any action that might damage the National Monument or jeopardize the preservation thereof.
VII
The Government of the Federation, the relevant ministry, the Federation heritage protection authority, and the Municipal Authorities in charge of urban planning and land registry affairs, shall be notified of this Decision in order to carry out the measures stipulated in Articles II to V of this Decision, and the Authorized Municipal Court shall be notified for the purposes of registration in the Land Register.
VIII
The elucidation and accompanying documentation form an integral part of this Decision, which may be viewed by interested parties on the premises or by accessing the website of the Commission (http://www.aneks8komisija.com.ba)
IX
Pursuant to Art. V para 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, decisions of the Commission are final.
X
On the date of adoption of this Decision, the National Monument shall be deleted from the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of BiH no. 33/02, Official Gazette of Republika Srpska no. 79/02, Official Gazette of the Federation of BiH no. 59/02, and Official Gazette of Brčko District BiH no. 4/03), where it featured under serial no. 641.
XI
This Decision shall enter into force on the date of its adoption and shall be published in the Official Gazette of BiH.
This Decision has been adopted by the following members of the Commission: Zeynep Ahunbay, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, Dubravko Lovrenović, Ljiljana Ševo and Tina Wik.
No: 07.2-02-296/04-5
4 May 2005
Sarajevo
Chair of the Commission
Ljiljana Ševo
E l u c i d a t i o n
I – INTRODUCTION
Pursuant to Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Law on the Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established pursuant to Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a “National Monument” is an item of public property proclaimed by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments to be a National Monument pursuant to Articles V and VI of Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina and property entered on the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of BiH no. 33/02) until the Commission reaches a final decision on its status, as to which there is no time limit and regardless of whether a petition for the property in question has been submitted or not.
The Commission to Preserve National Monuments issued a decision to add the Jeni (Hasan-aga) mosque in Travnik to the Provisional List of National Monuments under serial no. 641.
Pursuant to the provisions of the law, the Commission proceeded to carry out the procedure for reaching a final decision to designate the Property as a National Monument, pursuant to Article V of Annex 8 and Article 35 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.
II – PROCEDURE PRIOR TO DECISION
In the procedure preceding the adoption of a final decision to proclaim the property a national monument, the following documentation was inspected:
- Documentation on the location and current owner and user of the property
- Details of legal protection of the property to date
- Data on the current condition and use of the property, including a description and photographs, data of war damage, data on restoration or other works on the property, etc.
- Historical, architectural and other documentary material on the property, as set out in the bibliography forming part of this Decision.
The findings based on the review of the above documentation and the condition of the site are as follows:
1. Details of the property
Location
The architectural ensemble of the Jeni (Hasan-aga) mosque is in Travnik, in Varoš Mahala, which is some 300 m. to the south-west of the architectural ensemble of the Old Fort.
The structures constituting the architectural ensemble of the Jeni mosque stand on c.p. no. 748 (new survey), corresponding to c.p. no. IV/213, 214, 498 (old survey), c.m. Travnik, Municipality Travnik, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Historical information
The development of Travnik as an urban settlement is associated with the period of Turkish rule in Bosnia. The town originated with the mediaeval fort on an elevation and its outskirts, a varoš (town).
There are no references to the mediaeval fort of Travnik in historical documents, but the form of the upper fortress, in which there is a court or palace, and the toponym “Varoš” below the fortress suggest that there was already a settlement outside the fortress walls in the mediaeval period (Kovačević-Kojić, 1978, pp. 138, 264).
The earliest reference to Travnik dates from 1463, when Sultan Mehmed II Fatih, the Conqueror, spent a short time there while preparations were being made on the Jajce fort, but the Travnik fort certainly dates from at the latest the first half of the 15th century (Mujezinović, 1998, p. 325).
Travnik occupied a prominent place in the Turkish administrative division of Bosnia's towns, as evidenced by the fact that the town was the seat of a kadiluk for a long time (it is assumed to have become this prior to 1557), and from 1699 to 1850 (with two short breaks) it was also the capital of the Bosnian pashaluk (Simić, 1989, p. 122).
In 1699 the vizier's residence was transferred from Sarajevo to Travnik following the disastrous fire of 1697 caused by the attack by Eugene of Savoy, when the vizier's residence in Sarajevo was among the buildings burned down. The residence of Bosnia's governors remained in Travnik until 19 June 1850, when Sarajevo again became the capital of the Bosnian pashaluk.
Between 1699 and 1850, the authority of the central Turkish government waned, leaving it powerless to quell the increasingly frequent outbreaks of resistance among Bosnia's feudals, for which the number of times the viziers were replaced is striking evidence. Over the 134 years during which Travnik was the capital of the pashaluk, the vizier was replaced ninety times. The transfer of the vizier's residence had a favourable impact on the development of Travnik, which also made its mark on its material culture – the town grew, new mahalas were built, there was an increase in the population inflow, and a new, upper čaršija – crafts and trades centre – was formed. It was a time of development in trade and commerce and a time when many public edifices were built.
As far as is known, sixteen mosques were built in Travnik. The Jeni mosque (jeni = new in Turkish(1)) is the second-oldest mosque to be built in Travnik. The oldest is the mosque in the fortress, built in the name of Sultan Mehmed el-Fatih, although in his work Vezirski grad Travnik (Travnik, capital city of the vizier), M. Mandić states that the Jeni mosque is in fact the oldest (Mandić, p. 58) (2)
The Jeni mosque has the features of the classic period of Ottoman architecture, when many such mosques were built in Bosnia and Herzegovina, among them the Čekrekčija mosque in Sarajevo (1526), the Aladža mosque in Foča (1550), the Karađozbeg mosque in Mostar (1557), the Kuršumlija mosque in Maglaj (1560), the Ali pasha mosque in Sarajevo (1561) and the Ferhadija in Sarajevo (1562).
The Jeni mosque was built in 956 AH (1459), as noted on the inscription above the entrance door, in which the year the mosque was built is given in abjad(3) in the verses of the chronogram:
The inscription reads:
This gathering-place was built by Hasan-aga as a good deed,
for the love of God, to be used as a place of prayer.
He [the benefactor] seeks God’s pleasure,
does good deeds, and helps Muslims.
God has inspired us with its chronogram:
“Noble gathering-place of the faithful.”
The inscription is incised on a stone plaque measuring 0.49 x 0.94 m. The title of aga suggests that the founder of the mosque was an official of the state, probably serving in the fortress, where he was dizdar (fortress commander), although there is no reliable information to that effect.
Among the Catholic inhabitants of Travnik there was a tradition that the Jeni mosque was formerly the church of St Catherine, the foundations of which remained beneath the mosque. The first record in writing of this tradition was compiled in 1858 by the Croatian author Ivan Kukuljević Sakcinski (Kukuljević, p. 98), and later taken up by V. Klaić, A. Knežević, J. Petrović, M. Mandić, S. Alečković and M. Udovičić. (Sujoldžić, p. 26.)
These scholars note that a stone plaque was found in the mosque portico with letters in the Latin script incised on the top, which led them to conclude that there had previously been a place of worship of some kind on the same site. According to Mandić (Mandić, p. 58), on 7 August 1908 Dr K. Patsch found a Roman tombstone in the forecourt of the mosque; the tombstone was made of limestone and was badly eroded, so that all he could make out was M(ARCO) FLAVIO. . . This tombstone was previously in the burial ground below the mosque (Wissenschaftliche Mitteilungen aus B.-H. XII.Bd., Wien 1912, p. 166). M. Udovičić also refers to a wall-mounted inscription in Bosnian Cyrillic script by the left-hand doorjamb of the mosque.
The earliest reference to the mosque is by the travel chronicler Evliya Çelebi in 1660, who recorded the last two verses of the chronogram in his travelogue.
The mosque was allegedly used for a time as an ammunitions depot; it was used for this purpose for the last time in 1857 (Kukuljević, p. 98).
In 1903 the minaret roof (ćullah) was damaged by a major fire (Sujoldžić, p. 25).
During World War I the lead roof cladding was stripped from the mosque and replaced by roofing felt (Alečković, p. 4), following which the entire building suffered from the effects of damp penetration.
There was a portico outside the main entrance to the building, with sofas roofed over with three stone domes of which the structure rested on four stone pillars. The entire sofa area was paved with stone slabs. The portico was damaged by damp after the lead sheet cladding was removed and rain began to penetrate into the structure, as a result of which the entire portico was removed and an annex built onto the mosque where the portico formerly stood; this annex now houses a tekke. The activities of the tekke are associated with the name of Mufti Shaikh Husnija Numanagić, a member of the Naqshbandiyyah order, on whose initiative the tekke was built in 1928. Until that time dhikr had been performed in the Jeni mosque itself, according to Naqshbandiyyah rules(4) (Ćehajić, p. 61). The mosque was also a tekke.
The mosque harem contains the turbe of Abdulah pasha Defterdarija with a nišan tombstone bearing an epitaph giving the date of his death – the last day of Rabi’ al-Awwal 1199 AH (10 February 1785)(5). Abdulah pasha was appointed as Bosnian valiya (wali, governor) in October 1780. He arrived in Travnik on 11 December that year and remained in post until his death.
One story about him is that he poisoned himself because he had to cede some Bosnian territories to the Austrians, on the orders of the Porte, following a conflict with Austria(6).
Bašeskija, a chronicler and contemporary of Abdulah pasha, also writes of the pasha’s death in his Chronicles(7).
The mosque harem contains about fifty pairs of tombstones, including a number of old nišans. The nišan of Salih pasha Kulenović, the first recorded member of the family, who was killed by Abdulah pasha Muhsinović whose turbe is in the centre of the town, is the oldest nišan with a epitaph in this harem, and dates from 1722.
The other nišans with epitaphs date from 1760, 1775 and later. The harem also contains older nišans made of tufa, assumed to be contemporary with the mosque, but they lack any epitaphs.
2. Description of the property
The architectural ensemble consists of the mosque, turbe and harem with harem wall.
Mosque
In terms of spatial organization, the Jeni (Hasan aga) mosque in Travnik is a single-space domed mosque with stone minaret. It originally had a portico with sofas, which was later removed, asa result of which the building has lost much of its authenticity and integrity.
Single-space domed mosques are composed of purely geometric shapes and volumes: cubes, hemispheres, cylinders, prisms and cones (Redžić, p. 96). They constitute a very simple architectural composition, in which the interior space is the ultimate objective and the outward appearance derives directly from the interior. These monuments are characterized by perfect clarity and strict regularity of architectural treatment and by the carefully selected proportional relations of the building in both ground plan and elevation.
What immediately strikes one in the composition of space in these buildings is not merely the harmony of all their parts but also the striking simplicity of the design: a cube and a hemisphere, with a pronounced drum, comprise the entire interior of the prayer space, and interesting contrasts are more noticeable on the exterior, where the tall, slender minaret contrasts with the low, compact, enclosed cube on the one hand and the airy, open portico on the other (A. Andrejević, p. 47).
The structural elements, like the decoration, are few in number. The mimber and mahfil seem to be furnishings, not strictly an integral part of the architecture of the interior.
The ground plan of the mosque is roughly square, with exterior dimensions of 11.25 m (north-east side) x 11.5 m (south-east side). The walls are more than 1 metre thick, with the exception of the north-west entrance wall, which is about 90 cm thick.
The walls are plastered with lime mortar on the inside, while the stone structure of the walls remains visible on the outside. It is likely that the Jeni mosque, like all Travnik’s other mosques, was also plastered on the outside, but that the plaster was removed during some later intervention.
The overall height of the mosque to the crown of the dome is approx. 12.00 metres (drawing – Sujoldžić).
The interior space of the mosque is enclosed by its four solid walls. The dome rests on a drum which is cylindrical within and octagonal without. Trompes (squinches) at the angles of the walls feature to transfer the load from the drum to the walls; these trompes are composed of three sections with stalactite decorations in four horizontal rows at the corners of the building, and three at the apex of the pointed arches of the trompes.
The inside diameter of the base of the main dome of the mosque is approx. 9.50 m. Built of tufa, it is approx. 30 cm thick, while the drum is approx.50 cm thick.
The windows in the façades of the building are set in four horizontal rows.
The first row, which features on every façade except the north-west entrance façade), consists of two rectangular windows measuring approx. 0.80-0.90 x 1.80 m in each wall, with finely cut sandstone frames on the outside, and wrought iron bars. On the inside, the windows are topped by a semi-calotte with a pointed frontal arch.
The windows in the second row, which measure approx. 90 x 170 cm, are topped by a slightly pointed arch of about 1 m in depth. On the south-east façade, these windows are set directly above those of the first row, while on the other two façades – the north-east and south-west – this is not the case. Here, the windows are offset towards the outer corners of the building.
The windows in the third row, which are identical in shape to those in the second row, are set in the upper area of the cube of the mosque, one in the axis of each wall.
The windows in the fourth row are set in the centre of every alternate side of the drum, facing east, west, north and south. They are topped by slightly pointed arches. They measure approx. 60 x 125 cm (rectangular area), with the height to the apex of the arch approx. 160 cm.
Inside, the mosque is an almost regular cube, with the sides measuring approx. 9.80 x 9.60 m, and the height to the base of the drum approx. 6.50 m. The transition from the cuboid space to the circular drum is emphasized in the interior by a simple string course about 15 cm high. The height of the interior space from the floor of the mosque to the top of the dome is approx. 12.00 m (all dimensions taken from the drawing by E. Sujoldžić).
All the inside wall surfaces of the mosque are plastered and whitewashed. Previously, according to some authors, the mosque was richly decorated with painted floral designs, of which only fragments survive – a small semicircular surface on the north-west wall above the entrance door and mimber.
Until 2003 another fragment survived, but it has been whitewashed over. According to Shaikh Esad Baždalić, there were painted cypresses on the south-west all of the mosque to the right (south-west) and left (north-east) of the mihrab.
Inside the building, the mahfil – measuring 4.20 x 2.60 m – is located by the western corner of the building, with an entrance through the minaret. The mahfil rests on four stone columns with moulded bases and capitals. The mahfil balustrade is also of stone, decorated with six-pointed stars and hexagons. The entire mahfil is now painted white.
The mimber, which measures 3.00 x 1.00 m with a height of approx. 5.00 m to the top of the canopy, consists of:
- the entrance area, which is prominent, with staircase and stone balustrade,
- the upper part of the mimber supported by four square pillars, and
- the side, extending below the balustrade.
The entire mimber is richly decorated, especially the stone balustrade, which is decorated in the same way as the mahfil balustrade, with a geometric pattern composed of six-pointed stars and hexagons. The mimber was also richly decorated with painted floral designs in the panels above the doorway and below the mimber balustrade (vases of flowers, tendrils and buds).
Later, the mimber balustrade was painted white, but the original painted compositions (a garland above the triangular sides, the entrance of the mimber, the sides) are still visible on the other parts of the mimber.
A test was conducted on the south-west side of the mimber in 2000, revealing the original structure of the stone, painted terracotta in colour, beneath the coat of plaster.
The mihrab of the Jeni mosque is in the middle of the south-east wall of the mosque. It is rectangular in shape, and measures approx. 2.20 m wide and 2.70 m high. The upper part is horizontal and has no visible decorations. The seven-sided mihrab niche is in the middle of the lower part of the mihrab. The sides arise through characteristic intersections into the triangular shapes of stalactites. These narrow gradually so as to fill the recess forming the niche. The mihrab has six horizontal rows. The niche and the section with the stalactites are surrounded by a wide flat band approx. 30 cm wide and the mihrab frame, which is approx. 20 cm wide. The mihrab projects outwardsfrom the wall surface by approx. 30 cm. Judging from the decorations found during research works on the mahfil and mimber, the mihrab too was probably formerly richly decorated.
Minaret
The minaret is to the south-west of the mosque. It is in the shape of a twelve-sided prism with a cubic plinth measuring 2.41 x 2.41 m. Its height, according to the drawng, is more than 27 m. The šerefe, at a height of approx. 20 m, has stone sides on which very simple decoration can be made out. The radius of the minaret is smaller above the šerefe. The masonry part of the minaret terminates in stone blocks decorated with blind niches. The minaret is topped b y a conical roof with an alem (finial) on top. The minaret is stone built and plastered on the outside.
Tekke
The tekke was built onto the north-west wall of the mosque in 1928, at the point where the portico with sofas formerly stood. It consists of two small rooms on the ground floor and two on the first floor. The rooms used for ritual worship are on the first floor. It faces south-east, towards the qibla. It has windows facing in every direction except in the qibla wall. The tekke was built of a mixture of stone and brick.
Harem of the mosque
The spacious harem surrounding the mosque on all four sides contains the turbe(8) of Abdulah pasha Defterdarija and some fifty pairs of tombstones, including a number of old dated nišans.
The turbe of Abdulah pasha Defterdarija, dating from 1785, stands about 4-5 m north-east of the mosque, and lies north-east/south-west, as is the rule, so that the right-hand side of the body of the deceased faces the qibla.
The ground plan of the turbe is roughly square, measuring approx. 3.50 x 3.50 metres. The structure consists of eight circular stone pillars (three on each side) on stone bases, which in turn are set on the stone basal wall; this wall is of varying height as a result of the sloping site.
The pillars of the turbe have decorated capitals, but the pillars themselves have no particular decoration other than a coat of paint, of later application. The pillars are linked by round arches which support the upper masonry section of the turbe and the open, elongated mesh dome. The turbe contains a richly decorated sarcophagus with nišan tombstones.
The painted decoration of this turbe was probably similar to that of the other turbes in Travnik, with the basic outlines incised with a sharp instrument on fine lime mortar, and composed of designs of plant origin. During inexpert interventions carried out in 2000 without any research works on the various components of the turbe, it was painted with thick coats of ochre-yellow and green oil paint, which should be removed during future conservation and restoration works on the building.
The headstone, with a distinctive vizier’s turban, bears an epitaph in Turkish prose, incised in nine lines framed by lines. The epitaph is in naskh script.
He [Allah] is the Eternal.
For the noble soul of the deceased Abdulah pasha, rest his soul,
Bosnian valija, Sultan’s silahdar,
Bošnjak,
A gentlemen like Asaf,
Recite Fatiha. [d.] on the last date of Rabi' I 1199.
(10 February 1785).
Other nišans in the harem:
Nišan of Salih pasha Kulenović
The headstone, which bears an epitaph, is of small size, with a very delicately carved folded turban and band. Below the neck of the nišan, there is a zigzag line on all four sides. This design usually indicates that the deceased had performed the hajj during his lifetime. The epitaph on the nišan is in Turkish prose in naskh script, and is incised on two sides of the headstone. It reads:
This is the grave of Salih pasha Kulenović,
may God have mercy upon him,
and may the living enjoy long lives.
The owner of this grave, Salih pasha,
Died a martyr's death in 1134.
(22 October 1971-11 October 1722).
Nišan of Ahmed-aga Mostarac Čehaja čauš
The epitaph, in Turkish prose, is incised in naskh script on the headstone with a special kind of turban.
He [Allah] lives eternally.
On the grave stone
It is proper that we write this verse:
“This is the garden of Eden, enter into it and remain in it eternally.“
Čehaja čaušaIš-eri-zade Emin Ahmed-aga Mostarac.
[recite] Fatiha for his soul. 1174
(1760/61)
Nišan of Hatib Omer-effendi
Omer-effendi’s grave has a surround with two nišan tombstones. The headstone, with a mušebak turban, bears an epitaph incised in naskh script, reading:
O [Lord] Who forgiveth.
Brothers! The person buried in this grave
Omer-effendi,
Khatib of this mosque, has quit this transient life
And passed on into eternity. May God receive the deceased in his
mercy, with your prayers,
and may Muhammad Mustafa intercede for him.
For God's pleasure [recite] Fatiha for the soul of Omer-effendi.
1189
(1775/7)
Nišan of Mustafa-beg Kulenović
The headstone, which bears an epitaph, has a turban that narrows gradually towards the top, and from which bold stripes emerge. The two narrower sides and one of the wider sides are richly decorated with skillfully executed floral designs. The chronogram, in Turkish prose, is incised on one of the wider sides of the headstone, in naskh script.
He [God] lives eternally.
The deceased, rest his soul, has passed on from the transient
house to the protected house
in need of the mercy of the Creator Who forgiveth [sins].
Mustafa-beg Kulenović-Bajbut, who was strangled.
[Recite] Fatiha for his soul. 1238
(1822/23).
Mustafa-beg Kulenović was put to death during the rule of governor Dželaludin pasha.
Nišan of Hafiz-Osman Uzuni
The headstone has a mušebak turban. The inscription in Turkish prose is incised in eight lines in calligraphic naskh.
The owner of this grave is hafiz
Osman effendi Uzuni,
Son of Ahmed effendi.
[Recite] Fatiha for his soul.
1267
(1850/51)
Nišan of Sadik, son of Hafiz Osman
The epitaph is incised on one side of the simple headstone, in naskh script.
He [God] lives eternally.
Everyone who comes into this world must drink the chalice of death.
[Visitors], do not pass by my grave
without reciting Fatiha
for the soul of Sadik, son of Hafiz Osman,
May the True One receive him in the paradise of Firdaus.
1269
(1852/53)
Sadik was probably the son of the hafiz Osman referred to in the preceding epitaph.
The following persons are also buried in the harem of the Jeni mosque:
- a certain Muhamed, d. 1178 AH ( 1764/65),
- Omer-beg Šaranbeg-zade, 1267 AH (1850/51),
- Ahmed-beg Kurbeg-zade of Prusac, 1285 AH (1868/69),
- Mehmed-aga Jusufbašić, son of Salih-aga, 1294 AH (1887/88).
Movable heritage
The movable heritage of the Jeni mosque consists of 20 levhas, of which 18 are in the central prayer space and two in the tekke.
Jeni mosque
1. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. I believe in God, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Day of Judgment, I believe in the Divine decreeing of good and evil, and in the resurrection after death. I believe that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is His Servant and Apostle.
The levha is in ink on paper in thuluth and naskh Arabic script, and measures 56 x 39 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1345 (1927/28).
2. Muhammed, peace be upon him.
The levha is in gold ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 41 x 34 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1345 (1927/28).
3. Allah is the best of protectors and He is the Most Merciful. (Holy Qur'an, sura Yusuf)
The levha is in black ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 32 x 28 cm. Unsigned.
4. He, the Almighty.
The levha is in black ink on paper in the tughra style of Arabic script, and measures 26.5 x 24 cm. Unsigned.
5. We have laid open before thee a manifest victory. (Holy Qur'an, sura Fath, ayat 1)
The levha is in black ink on paper in shatranji (rectangular kufic) Arabic script, and measures 32.5 x 28 cm. Unsigned.
6. O, Thou who alterest conditions, alter our condition into the finest condition.
The levha is in gold ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 51 x 96 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1346 (1928/29).
7. There is no god but God, Muhammad is His prophet. Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali.
The levha is in gold ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script with the central inscription in tughra, and measures 5 x 49 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1345 (1927/28)
8. There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is His prophet.
The levha is in ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 56 x 41 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1345 (1927/28).
9. He is almighty. (in an ellipse) Allah, Muhammad, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali.
The levha is in ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 52 x 49 cm. Unsigned.
10. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
The levha is in ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 46 x 28 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1353 (1935/36).
11. Glory unto Thee, we cannot praise Thee with true praise, O Praised One.
The levha is in red ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 29 x 24 cm. Unsigned.
12. There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is His prophet.
Printed, measuring 44 x 24.
13. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. To man belongs only that for which he strives. (Holy Qur'an).
Early print(9), thuluth Arabic script, measuring 65 x 49 cm. Signature: Sejid Ibrahim.
14. O, Opener.
The levha is in red ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, in mirror writing, and measures 34 x 28 cm. Unsigned.
15. As Allah wills. I believe in God, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Day of Judgment, I believe in the Divine decreeing of good and evil, and in the resurrection after death.
The levha is in ink on paper in thuluth and ta’liq Arabic script, and measures 56 x 44 cm. Signature: Hamid Hamdi
16. The text of the levha is identical to that of levha no. 1.
17. Ah, of love and the state of love, my heart burns from the heat of love.
Early print, ta’liq Arabic script, measuring 75 x 58 cm.
18. Mislina, Mekselina, Jemliha, Mernuš, Debernuš, Sazenuš, Kefestatajuš, Kitmir – names of the Companions of the Cave(10).
The levha is in gold ink on paper in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 56 x 41 cm. Signature: hajji Hamid Selimović, Travnik, 1345 (1927/28).
Tekke by the Jeni mosque
19. He is the Friend. Abdulqadir Jilani.
The levha is painted on board in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 56 x 36 cm. Signature: Ahmed Seid one of the notables of the Imperial divan and defterćehaja of the Bosnian eyalet. 1254 (1838/39).
20. Sayyid Shaikh Saduddin, to whom the mystery was dedicated.
The levha is painted on board in thuluth Arabic script, and measures 39 x 53 cm.
3. Legal status to date
Pursuant to the provisions of the law, and by ruling of the Regional Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and Natural Rarities in Sarajevo, no. 721/50 dated 1950, the Jeni mosque with the turbe of Abdulah pasha Defterdarija and surrounding burial ground, property of the Islamic Community in Travnik, cadastral plot. no.: IV/213, 214, 498, Land Registry entry no. 1554, was placed under state protection.
Pursuant to the provisions of the law, and by ruling of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and Natural Rarities of NR Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo, no. 02-879-3 dated 1962, the Jeni mosque in Travnik with the turbe of Abdulah pasha Defterdarija and surrounding burial ground, property of the Islamic Community in Travnik, cadastral plot. no.: IV/213, 214, 498, Land Registry entry no. 1554, was entered in the Register of immovable cultural monuments under no. 168.
The Regional Plan for the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina to 2002 listed the Jeni mosque in Travnik as a Category II monument.
The Jeni (Hasan aga) mosque in Travnik is on the Provisional List of National Monuments of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, under serial no. 641.
4. Research and conservation and restoration works
All the works on the interior of the Jeni mosque have been carried out by the congregation, without a design project or the supervision of the heritage protection authority.
In 2000 Nihad Bahtijarević and Mirzah Fočo carried out tests on the mimber of the mosque and discovered the original coats of paint.
In 2000 the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of BiH - architect Aličić Azer – drew up a design project for the entrance gate to the mosque.
5. Current condition of the property
At first sight the Jeni mosque appears to be in good structural condition. The interior was recently renovated by the congregation, without the involvement of or supervision by the heritage protection authority. During one of the interventions on the building, four vertical cracks, on each side of the building, were observed. These cracks extend from top to bottom of the mosque walls. They were filled in with mortar and whitewashed over.
There are also minor cracks to be seen on the pillars and capitals. The mihrab has been whitewashed over and given new stencilled decoration.
The mimber has been repainted, but there are still places to be seen where the original coats of paint are visible.
Underfloor heating has been installed in the mosque, which necessitated the floor level being raised in the central prayer space by about 8 cm. As a result, the bases of the columns supporting the mahfil structure have become partly covered. The minaret of the mosque has also been newly whitewashed.
Major damage is visible on the sarcophagi in the harem, the result of long years of lack of maintenance. Individual joints between the vertical slabs of the surrounds have deteriorated over time, resulting in the slabs become detached from one another. Some of the nišan tombstones are covered with moss and lichen.
The turbe of Abdulah pasha Defterdarija was recently renovated with financial assistance from the SFOR Turkish battalion.
6. Specific risks
- Possible subsidence (cracks in the dome)
- Inexpert interventions to the interior and the turbe
- Lack of maintenance of the harem – overgrown with vegetation, and
- Moss and lichen growing on the nišan tombstones.
III – CONCLUSION
Applying the Criteria for the adoption of a decision on proclaiming an item of property a national monument (Official Gazette of BiH nos. 33/02 and 15/03), the Commission has enacted the Decision cited above.
The Decision was based on the following criteria:
A. Time frame
B. Historical value
C. Artistic and aesthetic value
C. i. quality of workmanship
C.iii. proportions
D. Clarity
D. iv. evidence of a particular type, style or regional manner
D. v. evidence of a typical way of life at a specific period
E. Symbolic value
E.i. ontological value
E.ii. religious value
E.iii. traditional value
E.iv. relation to rituals or ceremonies
E.v. significance for the identity of a group of people
F. Townscape/ Landscape value
F.i. Relation to other elements of the site
F.ii. meaning in the townscape
F.iii. the building or group of buildings is part of a group or site
The following documents form an integral part of this Decision:
- Copy of cadastral plan
- Copy of land register entry and proof of title;
- Drawings:
o ground plan and cross-section of the building – from Sujoldžić Enver, Džamije Travnika (Mosques of Travnik)
o ground plan of building – from Ayverdi Dr. Ekrem Hakki, Avrupa’da Osmanli Mimari Eserlera Yugoslavya II,
- Photodocumentation of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments of BiH – photographs taken by Mirzah Fočo and Hazim Numanagić
Bibliography
During the procedure to designate the historic building of the Jeni mosque in Travnik as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina the following works were consulted:
1858. Kukuljević, I. Putovanje po Bosni (Travels in Bosnia), Zagreb, 1858.
1908. Kemura, S. Iz Sejahatname Evlije Ćelebije (From Evliya Çelebi’s Seyahatname), Jnl of the National Museum 1908, p. 193.
1931. Petrović, Dr. J. S arheologom kroz Travnik (With archaeology through Travnik), Zagreb 1931.
1941. Alečković, Sulejman. Je li Jeni džamija bila kada crkva (Was the Jeni mosque ever a church), Narodna Uzdanica Calendar for 1941,
1959. Enciklopedija likovnih umjetnosti (Encyclopaedia of Fine Art), publication of the Lexicographical Institute of FNRY, Zagreb, 1959.
1961. Kreševljaković H., Korkut D.M., Travnik u prošlosti 1464 – 1878 (naročito kao glavni grad Bosne 1699 – 1850) (Travnik in the past 1464-1878 [especially as capital of Bosnia 1699-1850]) Edition of the Regional Museum of Travnik, Travnik Press and Bookbinding Co, Travnik, 1961.
1978. Kovačević-Kojić, Desanka, Gradska naselja srednjovjekovne bosanske države (Urban settlements of the mediaeval Bosnian state) Veselin Masleša, Sarajevo, 1978.
1980. Institute for Architecture, Town Planning and Regional Planning of the Faculty of Architecture in Sarajevo, Regional Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Stage B – valorization of the national and cultural and historical values, Sarajevo, 1980.
1983. Redžić, Husref: Studije o islamskoj arhitektonskoj baštini (Studies on the Islamic architecture heritage), Sarajevo.
1984. Andrejević, Andrej, Islamska monumentalna umetnost XVI veka u Jugoslaviji – kupolne džamije (16th century Islamic monumental art in Yugoslavia – domed mosques), publication of the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade, Institute for History and Art, Serbian Academy of Science and the Arts, Balkan Studies Institute, Belgrade, 1984.
1986. Čehajić, Džemal, Derviški redovi u jugoslovenskim zemljama (Sufi orders in Yugoslav countries), Sarajevo, 1986.
1989. Kreševljaković, Hamdija, Evidencija nepokretnih spomenika kulture na poručju opštine Travnik (studija) (Records of immovable cultural monuments in Travnik Municipality [a study]) Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and Natural Sites and Rarities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, 1989.
1996. Çelebi, Evliya, Putopis – odlomci o jugoslovenskim zemljama (Travelogue – excerpts on Yugoslav countries) Sarajevo Publishing, Sarajevo, 1996.
1998. Mujezinović, Mehmed, Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovine (Islamic epigraphics of BiH) Bk II, Sarajevo Publishing, Sarajevo, 1998.
1998. Sujoldžić, Enver, Džamije Travnika (Mosques of Travnik) Regional Museum of Travnik in association with ŠIP Borac Travnik, Travnik, 1998.
1999. Bećirbegović, Madžida, Džamije sa drvenom munarom u Bosni i Hercegovini (Mosques with wooden minarets in BiH), Sarajevo Publishing, Sarajevo, 1999.
2000. Ayverdi Dr. Ekrem Hakki, Avrupa'da Osmanli Mimari Eserlera Yugoslavya II, 3. kitab, Istanbul, 2000.
(1) The name Jeni indicates that this was an entirely new mosque as distinct from one already in existence or one that had previously stood on the same site but had been entirely rebuilt from the foundations up.
(2) For more on the history of Travnik, see the Decision designating the architectural ensemble of the Old Fort of Travnik as a national monument of BiH.
(3) Abjad is the sum of the numeric values of the Arabic letters of the verse of the chronogram, where each letter has its own specific numeric value
(4) The holdings of the Sinan tekke include minute no. 72, composed on 29 March 1936, in regard to a dispute over the performance of rituals of both the Naqshbandiyyah and the Qadiriyyah orders in the Jeni mosque.
(5) H. Kreševljaković and D. Korkut write, in their list of viziers (Korkut, Kreševljaković, p. 138), that the pasha died on 3 November 1785, but the epitaph indicates that it was on 10 February that year.
(6) He is alleged to have said. “I will give up the head on my shoulders, but never will I give up a single stone.” (Mujezinović, p. 322)
(7) Bašeskija writes: “On 1 Rabi’ al-Awwal 1199 (11 February 1785) on Friday, or 30 qanuni-sani, the Bosnian valiya Abdulah pasha Bošnjak, a friend of Bosnia and known as a generous, open-handed man, died suddenly. The people say various things and nonsense about his death, that he poisoned himself and I know not what else, so that the real truth is not known. However, compared with other pashas he was a good man. May God have mercy upon him.” (Bašeskija, pp. 255, 311 and 314; Mujezinović, pp. 332, 333)
(8) Travnik has more turbes than any other town in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Not counting the Jenišeherlija turbe, which has been demolished and stood in the courtyard of the former Mehmed pasha Kukavica medresa, and the turbe of Rehim and Rahima, also demolished, which stood in the burial ground behind the hotel, four open and two enclosed turbes survive in the town. They are extremely valuable examples of the memorial architecture of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
(9) Translator’s note: is “rana,” early, perhaps a typographical error for “ravna” – i.e. planographic? See also no. 17.
(10) Seven companions, plus the dog Kitmir (trans.)
|
