Status of monument -> National monument
Published in the “Official Gazette of BiH” no. 29/08.
Pursuant to Article V, para 4 of 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 11 to 17 September 2007 the Commission adopted a
D E C I S I O N
I
The architectural ensemble of the Repovac mosque in Konjic is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument).
The National Monument consists of the mosque and harem.
The National Monument is located on cadastral plot no. 1160/2, title deed no. 591, Land Register entry no. 489, cadastral municipality Konjic I, Municipality Konjic, 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 measures are hereby stipulated, which shall apply to the area defined in Clause I para. 3 of this Decision:
- all works are prohibited other than conservation and research works, including those designed to display the monument, with the approval of the Federation Ministry responsible for regional planning and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
- horticultural works on the harem shall be permitted.
The buffer zone consists of the plots contiguous with the protected site of the National Monument. The following measures shall apply in this zone:
- the construction of new buildings and the extension of existing ones are prohibited,
- the use of the properties in the immediate vicinity shall not be detrimental to the religious nature of the National Monument.
IV
All executive and area development planning acts not in accordance with the provisions of this Decision are hereby revoked.
V
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.
VI
The Government of the Federation, the Federation Ministry responsible for regional planning, 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.
VII
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)
VIII
Pursuant to Article V, Para 4 of Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, decisions of the Commission are final.
IX
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.308.
X
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: 06.2-2-708/03-3
12 September 2007
Sarajevo
Chair of the Commission
Dubravko Lovrenović
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 Repovac mosque in Konjic to the Provisional List of National Monuments under serial no. 308.
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 para. 4 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:
- Data on the current condition and use of the property, including description and photographs,
- Details of war damage,
- Documentation on the location of the property,
- Documentation on the current owner and user of the property,
- 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 town of Konjic is in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton, on the road from Sarajevo to Mostar and on to the Adriatic Sea.
The architectural ensemble of the Repovac mosque with its harem is located on an elevated plateau above Marshal Tito street in the old Konjic čaršija, very close to the old bridge, dominating the square. It is the only mosque dating from the Ottoman period on the right bank of the river Neretva.
The Repovac mosque is located on cadastral plot no. 1160/2, title deed no. 591, Land Register entry no. 489, cadastral municipality Konjic I, Municipality Konjic, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The property has two entrances to the harem. The first is to the north-west, from Marshal Tito street, via a single flight of stone steps; the other is from Musala street, to the north-east.
Historical information
The earliest details concerning Konjic during the Ottoman period are to be found in a census of Herzegovina sandžak dating from 1477, followed by a census of the Klis sandžak for 1537.
During the Ottoman period, Konjic acquired the status of a kasaba or town during the 16th century, with the name Neretva, which long remained divided between two sandžaks by the river Neretva. Konjic was a traffic hub and wayside station on the road from the Istanbul road via the Neretva valley to the sea. The Ottomans built a new settlement on the left bank of the Neretva, which they accorded the status of kasaba and the name of Belgraddžik. In 1585 the kasaba had three Muslim mahalas and one non-Muslim (Mulić, 2003, 27).
In 1633 there is reference to an independent kadiluk of Belgraddžik (Mali Biograd), with its headquarters in Konjic, which also began from then on to be known as Belgraddžik (Mujezinović, 1998, 422).
In the mid 17th century, the travel chronicler Evliya Çelebi travelled through Konjic, and reported that Konjic had six mahalas (on both banks of the Neretva), eight mosques, two medresas, two Sufi tekkes, three mektebs, a small bathhouse and two hostelries (hans), one of which was in the čaršija or commercial centre. Çelebi also notes that the opposite bank of the river was reached via a substantial wooden bridge(1) (Çelebi, 1996, 477).
In 1833 two nahijas gained the status of counties with the names Neretva and Konjice (Konjiće). With the formation of the Bosnian vilayet in 1865, they were merged into a single county with the title Sa Neretvom Konjice (Mea Neretva Konjiće), shortened to Konjiće in 1867. The two kasabas were also merged into one, also known as Konjiće. This remained unchanged until the start of the Austro-Hungarian period in 1878. The Austro-Hungarian authorities immediately transformed the county of Konjiće into a district known as Konjic, and the kasaba of Konjiće into a town also known as Konjic (Mulić, 2003, 27).
There were four mosques on the right bank of the Neretva, known during the Ottoman period as Neretva or Konjice: the Ahmed (Tabandža Tabanica mosque, the Girls' or Officials' mosque, the Repovac mosque, and the Ahmed Tajica mosque (Mulić, 2003, 159)
Tradition has it that the Repovac mosque is the oldest mosque in Konjic(2). According to the vakufnama (deed of pious endowment), written between 24 August and 22 September 1579, it was built before 1579. The original vakufnama is housed in the Gazi Husref Bey library in Sarajevo; the donor (hair-sahibija) was Muhamed (Mehmed) bey, sonof Alija, known as Hudaverdi Mehmed-čauš Bosna. He endowed 140,000 silver dirhams for the maintenance of the Repovac mosque, in the presence of mutevelija (vakuf manager) Alija, son of Mustafa, and 26 prominent persons (including four of his sons). The vakufnama was registered by the kadi (judge) for Sarajevo and Brod, Bali, son of Jusuf, and was certified by Redžep, son of Mustafa, military kassam for the Bosnian sandžak and the Neretva kadi, Nurudin. It is clear that it was an extremely rich endowment, with recurrent revenues used to maintain the mosque. The text of the vakufnama reads as follows, in its entirety:
VAKUFNAMA OF HODAVERDI, SON OF ALIJA
Sarajevo, Rajab 987 = 24 August - 22 September 1579.
Original: Gazi Husrev bey library in Sarajevo, no. 169.
Description: The vakufnama was written on extremely thin paper folded over, in accurate Arabic, with only a few errors.
Size: 135 x 21 cm.
Publication: The vakufnama has not yet been published.
Translation of the certification of the vakufnama by the kadi and mufti of Sarajevo and Brod, Jusuf:
The content of this noble document is in accordance with the true Shari’a and I have thus issued a decision certifying that it is valid and enforceable in detail and as a whole, although I am aware of the differences of opinion between the earliest shari’a jurists, venerable mujtahids, concerning certain matters to do with the creation of vakufs and taking strictly into account the regulations concerning the procedure of registration that are to be upheld, in the opinion
..... I, servant of Allah Almighty, Jusuf, mufti and kadi in Sarajevo and Brod, thanks be to Allah!
seal
(Humble Bali, son of Jusuf)
Translation of the certification by kadi Nurudin in the Neretva kadiluk:
After acquainting myself with the content of this shari’a document and confirming that it has been drawn up in the prescribed manner, I hereby enter it into force and appenc my signature
- I, the humble Nurudin, son of Džafer, kadi in Neretva
(seal illegible)
Translation of the certification by the military kasam, Redžep, from the territory of the vilayet of Bosnia:
This valued document having been shown to me, I find that it is in accordance with the true shari’a and with the fundamental provisions and prescribed conditions of forming a vakuf, and I hereby enter it into force and append my seal, and then render it into life after previously taking strictly into account all the matters to be upheld for the creatioin of a vakuf as prescribed by the earliest shari’a jurists.
This clause was written by the humble Redžep, son of Mustafa, military kasam, in the vilayet of Bosnia and the territorities belonging to it – may they both be forgiven!
(seal illegible)
Translation of the vakufnama:
All praise be to Allah, who knows the hidden secrets, who reveals the obscurantism of violence by the light of the shari’a law, who elucidates the provisions of the shari’a by sublime proofs and who explains that which is permitted by the faith (halal), that which is prohibited by the faith (haram) by the sublime verses [of the Qur’a], who assisted Islam by the prophet Muhammad, best among . . . may Allah showers him and his family with blessings morning and night!
In the name of Allah, the true God, to whom the pigtails of our leaders are subordinate, with whose name (if mentioned) no harm can come about on earth or in heaven, he who showers forth immeasurable, momentary and perpetual blessings.
This is a valid document, based on shari’a principles and institutions, a clear document that is to be upheld in all aspects, and its contents express and demonstrate that the benefactor, pride of the famous and the frugal, pride of the ever-fortunate, Hodaverdi, son of Alija(3), who is known as ghulam shah Muhamed bey, knowing that this world is transient and the next world everlasting and that all that a man eats destroys him, the clothes he wears wear him out, but whatever he gives for charitable purposes grants him eternal life(4) - that which he has endowed in perpetuity and withheld from circulation – with the sincere purpose and pure intention of acquiring a great reward and relief from punishment on the day when neither wealth nor sons shall profit except for him who comes to God with a pure heart(5) when he was in health and of sound mind, able to dispose of his property and give alms and gifts, [created this pious endowment] from his clear estate and that which he had acquired by honest means, the sum of one hundred and forty thousand silver dirhams, which are legal currency, of which the sum of seventy thousand dirhams is confirmation of the capital.
Having set aside this sum of money from his estate, he transferred it to the person whom he appointed as mutevelija, for the purpose of registration, and the said person is called Alija, son of Mustafa. After this, the said vakif [benefactor] – may Allah preserve him from all misfortune on this earth – stipulated that the said sum of money be lent at interest (murabaha) and that it be used by the persons appointed as mutevelijas in the manner prescribed by the shari'a, but in such a way that each loan of money at interest be secured by firm pledge and guarantee, or one of these, depending upon circumstances, subject to one and a half dirhams being calculated for each ten [dirhams] loaned, perpetually, and that the said calculation may not be greater or lesser than that stipulated. The money earned in this way shall amount to twenty one thousand dirhams per annum.
He has stipulated that this shall be distributed as follows:
- to the person who shall be imam in the mosque built by the [benefactor] in the kasaba of Konjic, nine dirhams per day;
- to the person who shall be hatib [preacher at Friday congregational prayers], four dirhams [per day];
- to the person who shall be vaiz [predicator], six dirhams [per day];
- to the kajim [treasurer?], two dirhams per day;
- to the džabija [collector of revenues], two dirhams per day;
- for candles and reed mats, two dirhams each per day;
- for performing devar [distribution of alms from a deceased's estate] on Fridays, for five persons, two dirhams each per day;
- for each of five persons who read one juz [thirtieth part] of the Holy Qur'an each day, one and a half dirhams each;
- for the senior džuz-han [reader of a juz], one dirham per day;
- for calling the azaan and reciting the interpretation, seven dirhams each per day;
- for the person who shall be mutevelija, six dirhams per day;
He has also stipulated that the moneys remaining after paying for the above offices shall be spent for the needs of the said mosque, as required, subject to obtaining the opinion of the kadi on the matter.
[The benefactor] also stipulated that [each of the said offices], apart from the office of mutevelija, shall be performed by persons competent and worthy of performing them, among his most honourable sons, from generation to generation, and then by their freed slaves, and then by their sons and the sons of their sons until they die out, after which the matter shall be left to the discretion of the kadi.
[The benefactor] stipulated that amendments [to the provisions of this vakufnama], as well as increases or reductions [to certain of the sums specified in money terms] in this vakufnama [may be carried out] solely during his lifetime.
[The benefactor has endowed the said sum of money] validly according to shari'a regulations and [stipulated the said provisions] explicitly and they should thus be upheld.
Since the matters [that are the subject of this vakufnama] have been determined in the manner set forth, the kadi – whose signature is at the head of this document, and who hopes [thereby] to earn the pleasure of his lord – has rendered a decision establishing the validity of this endowment and the provisions herein set forth, as well as its [execution] and the rules advocated by certain shari'a jurists on the treatment of this type of pious endowment in the manner in which other such endowments are treated.
When the said endowment had been proclaimed, the said benefactor was desirous of withdrawing the said endowment, holding the opinion that the endowment [of money] was not valid in the opinion of the greater number of eminent shari'a jurists, but the said mutevelija opposed this. They thus came into dispute and in this regard addressed the said kadi, who rendered a decision on the validity of the endowment, pursuant to the opinion conveyed by imam Al-Ansari, may the Lord's mercy shower down upon him, from imam Zufer, may Allah Almighty have mercy upon him, that it is permitted [by the shari'a] to endow money.
After this, the benefactor [again] wished to withdraw the endowment, motivated [by the fact] that [endowing money] is not appropriate in the opinion of the greatest scholar of shari'a law(6), but [on this occasion too] the said mutevelija did not agree. When the two of them addressed the said kadi – may Allah shower blessings upon him – in this dispute, he rendered a decision that the said endowment of money may be executed, both in detail and as a whole, in line with the opinion of two eminent scholars of shari'a law(7), and the said endowment became legally valid, executable, registered, established in perpetuity in the unanimous view of all leading shari'a jurists, so that it may not be anyone's property, nor may it be granted in ownership, nor bestowed as a gift nor received as a gift, nor may it be passed on as an inheritance nor inherited, until Allah shall inherit the earth and all that are upon it, and unto [Him] shall they be returned(8). For He is the best of inheritors(9). Whosoever changes it after hearing that it is forbidden, they shall bear the sin thereof, and Allah is All-knowing, All-hearing(10). Beneficent Allah will reward the benefactor's good deed.
This was written and proof thereof appended in the month of Rajab nine hundred and eighty seven [AH – 24 August-22 September 1579].
Witnesses to the act:
1Ibrahim-beg, son of Abdurahman, ghulami shah; mevlana Hasan-halifa, hatib; Osman, son of Husein, muezzin; Mustafa, muezzin; Ahmedčelebi, son of Ali-bey Dugalić; Hasan, son of Mustafa, muezzin, Emir šah-ćehaja, son of Jusuf; Nezir, son of Mustafa; Mustafa, son of Junus, imam; Valija, son of Abdullah, known as Ašik; hajji Bali, son of Ilijas; Sulejman, son of Mustafa; Ruhan, son of Alija; Ahmed, son of Abdulgani; Jahja, halifa in the mektebu; Muhamed, son of hajji-Abdija, Pir Alija, son of Turhan; Behram, son of Abdullah; Osman, son of Emir šah-ćehaja; Husein-bey, son of the said benefactor; Murat, son of Abdullah; Mustafa-beg, son of the said benefactor; Muhamed-beg, son of the said benefactor, and Džafer-ćehaja.
Annex to the vakufnama:
Whereupon the said benefactor endowed, withdrew from circulation and endowed from his clear estate and that which he had acquired by honest means, the sum of one thousand six hundred and forty silver dirhams, which are legal currency for the musala(11) erected by the benefactor's brother, Lutfi-hojja, son of the late Alija, near the kasaba of Konjic. He stipulated that the mutevelija of this vakuf be the same person as the mutevelija of the [above]-named endowment. [He also] stipulated that the [said money] be loaned at interest in line with shari'a prescriptions, in the manner set forth for the endowment referred to previously. He [also] stipulated that the money received as interest, namely the sum of one and a half dirhams for every ten [dirhams] loaned, be distributed as follows:
- to the person exercising the duty of hatib in the said musala, on the occasion of the two Eids, twenty dirhams for each Eid;
- to both muezzins, ten dirhams each at Eid;
- to the person reciting the Qur'anic chapter al-Mulk, each Friday eve, on the grave of his deceased brother referred to above and for his brother's soul, forty-eight dirhams per annum;
- to the person reciting the Qur'anic chapter al-Mulk as described above on the grave of his said deceased brother's wife, whose name is Šerifa, daughter of Alađoz, for her brother's soul, the same sum of money as that given to the above person, so that the total sum of money specified [as remuneration] for the recitation for those two persons amounts to ninety-six dirhams;
[The benefactor] stipulated that any money remaining [after this] from the revenue of the said sum shall be spent on repairs to the said musala.
After verifying that [all] the [necessary] conditions had been met for a valid endowment, the kadi rendered a decision by which he confirmed the validity of the endowment of the said sum of money and its execution, whereby the decision became valid and based on the shari'a, after which it was entered in the sidžil [court record] according to the shari'a. The endowment thus became executable and based on the opinion of all leading shari'a jurists and perpetual, so that it is inadmissible for it later to be misrepresented, annulled, amended, or to undergo change in any form and for any reason.(12) Beneficent Allah will reward the benefactor's good deed.
This was written and proof thereof appended in the month of Rajab nine hundred and eighty seven [AH – 24 August-23 September 1579].
Witnesses to the act: The above-named
(Vakufname Bosne i Hercegovine XV i XVI vijek, 1985, 187 – 192)
In his 1983 work on Herzegovina's endowments and their benefactors, Hivzija Hasandedić confirmed that the Repovac mosque was built in 1579 by Hudaverdi Mehmed-čauš Bosna and that he was of the aristocratic Repovac family.
In his Kulturni razvoj Konjica za vrijeme Osmanske vlasti, published in 1991, Fehim Nametak states that the Repovac mosque was built in 1574.
According to Mulić, the Repovac mosque could have been built between 1658 and 1664 (Mulić, 2001, 165).
The minaret was built to the left of the entrance to the building(13), probably because it was impossible to build it to the right. In this the Repovac mosque differs from other mosques.
During the Austro-Hungarian period, the Muslim population moved to the left bank of the river Neretva. The Islamic Community let the mosque to the Austro-Hungarian military garrison, which used it as a depot.
In 1924, after the restoration of the mosque and the return of the Muslim population to the right bank of the Neretva, the mosque was again used for its proper purpose.
In 1943, during World War II, the Germans turned the mosque into a depot. After World War II it continued to be used as a warehouse, and the harem was turned into a cattle market.
In 1990 the property was restored, giving the Repovac mosque its present appearance.
During the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina the roof of the mosque was hit by artillery missiles, as were the mosque walls. After the war the damage to the building was made good, and a roof was erected over the sofas, an abdesthana (for ritual ablutions) was built in the courtyard, and the harem was walled.
2. Description of the property
The Repovac mosque in Konjic belongs to the type of single-space mosque with a hipped roof, covered portico and stone minaret abutting onto the left side of the entrance (to the north-east of the building).
The mosque harem has a surrounding wall, of which part is stone and the rest concrete. There are two entrance to the mosque harem, to the north-east and the north-west. There is a small building in the northern part of the harem, the abdesthana, recently erected.
The mosque measures approx. 10.55 x 11.16 m on the outside, not counting the sofas. The walls are of stone, with an average thickness of approx. 75 cm. They are rendered inside and out with lime cement mortar and whitewashed. The mosque has a hipped roof clad with stone slabs over timber roof trusses.
Inside, the mosque consists of a single prayer space, rectangular in plan with the sides measuring 9.05 x 9.66 m. There is a wooden pillar in the middle of the prayer space, measuring 23 x 19 cm in section, supporting a wooden beam of roughly the same size running from wall to wall, north-west to south-east, with its ends resting on the walls. The ceiling joists, which are smaller in section, lie at right angles to the main beam, 50 cm apart, and are clad with wooden boards. The height from floor to ceiling is 5.50 m.
The portico with stone sofas, measuring 13.34 x 4.48 m, is to the north-west of the building, with a passageway leading to the 2.18 m wide entrance door. The sofas are about 60 cm above ground level and are covered by a three-paned roof consisting of a timber frame clad with stone slabs. The portico rests on 11 wooden 12 x 12 cm pillars on stone bases. The pillars are joined to each other and the mosque itself by a wooden beam. The underside of the roof above the sofas is faced with wooden slats.
Originally, the floor of the Repovac mosque was stone-paved, but in 1924 the paving stones were replaced by a wooden floor.
The mihrab is simply moulded, with no marked decoration except at the top, where there is a plaque with quotations from the Qur'an. The mihrab is about 192 cm wide and consists of a semicircular mihrab niche with a diameter of 96 cm. It is approx. 308 cm in height. The mihrab niche is surrounded on three sides by a stone frame projecting out from the wall face by 30 cm. The frame is approx. 25 cm wide and 360 cm high.
The mahfil and mimber are of recent date.
The mimber is to the right of the mihrab, with its longer side abutting onto the south-west wall of the mosque. It measures 80 x 307 cm, with a height of approx. 6.15 m. The mimber is made of wood and is composed of an entrance consisting of a massive frame, steps, and a baldaquin with a pyramidal canopy. There are 10 to 12 steps with a landing or pedestal at the top. On both sides of the steps is a high wooden railing with carved decoration. The steps are closed off at the sides.
The mahfil of the Repovac mosque occupies the entire length of the north-west wall, above the entrance door, with a projection for the muezzin. It is made of wood and rests on two square 15 x 15 cm wooden pillars. The mahfil measures 9.66 x 2.70 m and has a wooden floor. It is 2 metres above floor level. The mahfil railing is also made of wood, and is about 85 cm high. The mahfil is reached via the narrow spiral staircase of the minaret.
There are 13 wooden windows in all in the mosque, set in two rows on all four facades. The lower row consists of 7 double-casement windows, and the top row of six, so that each facade had four windows except the north-west facade, where there is only one. The windows are rectangular, terminating in pointed arches. They are made of wood, treated with natural wood preservative. The windows measure approx. 110 x 210 cm. All the windows at ground-floor level are fitted with wrought-iron bars. The windows at first-floor level are of wood, with nine panes, also terminating in pointed arches. They measure 90 x 144 cm and are set directly above the ground-floor windows. On the outside of north-west facade, level with the first-floor windows, is a pointed-arched niche.
The portal of the mosque is simple, and projects outwards from the north-west wall by about 20 cm. It consists of solid oak double doors, rectangular in shape and decorated with floral and geometric carvings. The doors are approx. 1.45 m wide and 1.90 m high.
The ten-sided stone minaret is built on to the left of the entrance to the mosque, by the north-east wall. It is relatively short, at approx. 19 m. It was built of tufa, plastered and painted white. The šerefe is made of stone slabs. The minaret is entered from the prayer space below the mahfil. Inside the minaret is a stone spiral staircase leading to the mahfil and the šerefe. The base of the minaret is square, measuring 2.2 x 2.2 m. The transition from the base to the shaft of the minaret is effected by trapezoid prisms on which there is a stone string course. The shaft of the minaret is polygonal in section (ten-sided), with a width of 175 cm at the base and 171 cm at the top. The šerefe railing is plain and undecorated, with a height of 90 cm. The conical steeple of the minaret is clad with sheet copper (originally lead) and topped by a copper alem (finial).
The harem by the Repovac mosque
There is a spacious harem around the Repovac mosque, originally containing graves with nišan tombstones. Oral tradition has it that Zulfi hojja and Mehmed-bey, sons of Alija, were buried there. Most of the tombstones have been destroyed; the only one to survive is of simple workmanship, with no epitaph, and was presumably brought there from another site.
The harem of the mosque is surrounded in part by a stone wall and in part by a concrete block wall with an average height of approx. 1.5 m.
3. Legal status to date
In the procedure prior to the adoption of a final decision to designate, documents concerning the protection of the property were inspected and the following was ascertained:
We have no information as to whether the property was subject to legal protection.
The Regional Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina to 2002 listed the Repovac mosque in Konjic as a Category III monument.
4. Research and conservation and restoration works
Minor works have been carried out on the Repovac mosque on several occasions, but with no major changes to the layout.
During the Austro-Hungarian period the Islamic Community rented the mosque to the authorities, who used it as a warehouse. The first restoration was carried out in 1924, after which the mosque was used for its proper purpose. It was then that the floor was replaced, with the paving stones removed and a wooden floor laid.
In 1943, during World War II, the Germans turned the mosque into a depot. It was left in such poor condition that it was long before it could be used as for prayer.
In September 1986 a project for the reconstruction of the Repovac mosque in Konjic was drawn up by the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and Nature, Mostar. The project provided for the following works to be carried out:
- making good the foundations of the mosque,
- repairs to the floor and ceiling joists and roof frame,
- replacing the dilapidated roof cladding with new stone slabs,
- stripping the plaster from the outside and inside of the walls and re-plastering,
- opening up bricked-up windows,
- making new windows and door,
- making a new member,
- making good the sofas,
- making good the šerefe on the minaret.
The building works on the Repovac mosque were completed in 1990 and the mosque was reopened after a long period of disuse.
During the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina the roof of the mosque was hit by artillery missiles, damaging not only the roof but also the mosque walls. After the war the damage to the building was made good and the property was renovated.
5. Current condition of the property
During an on-site inspection in August 2007 it was found that the Repovac mosque is in good structural condition.
6. Specific risks
There are no specific risks that could endanger the National Monument.
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.ii. quality of materials
C.iii. proportions
C.iv. composition
C.v. value of details
C.vi. value of construction
E. Symbolic value
E.ii. religious value
E.v. significance for the identity of a group of people
F. Townscape/ Landscape value
F.ii. meaning in the townscape
F.iii. the building or group of buildings is part of a group or site
G. Authenticity
G.v. location and setting
The following documents form an integral part of this Decision:
- Copy of cadastral plan and Land Register entry,
- Photo documentation (photographs taken by a member of the Commission's staff),
- Copy of the project for the reconstruction of the Repovac mosque in Konjic drawn up by the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and Nature, Mostar, September 1986.
Bibliography
During the procedure to designate the architectural ensemble of the Repovac mosque in Konjic as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina the following works were consulted:
1954. Kreševljaković, Hamdija, “Stari hercegovački gradovi” (Old Herzegovinian towns), Naše starine, II, Sarajevo, 1954, 9-10.
1975. Anđelić, Pavao, Historijski spomenici Konjica i okoline, I (Historic monuments of Konjic and environs), Konjic Municipal Assembly, Konjic, 1975.
1985. Vakufname iz Bosne i Hercegovine (XV i XVI vijek) (Deeds of Pious Endowment from BiH [15th and 16th century), Oriental Institute in Sarajevo, Sarajevo, 1985.
1986. Project for the reconstruction of the Repovac mosque in Konjic drawn up by the Regional Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and Nature, Mostar, September, 1986
1991. Nametak, Fehim, “Kulturni razvoj Konjica za vrijeme Osmanske vlasti” (Cultural Development of Konjic under Ottoman Rule), Islamska misao, 1991.
1996. Çelebi, Evliya, Putopis (Travelogue), Sarajevo Publishing, Sarajevo, 1996.
1997. Mujezinović, Mehmed, Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovina III (Islamic epigraphics of BiH II), 3rd. ed., Cultural Heritage Series, Sarajevo Publishing, Sarajevo, 1997.
1999. Bajić, Esad, Monografija Medžlisa Islamske Zajednice Konjic sa posebnim osvrtom na džamije i druge spomenike islamske kulture na ovom području (Monograph of the Council of the Islamic Community of Konjic, with particular reference to mosques and other monuments of Islamic culture in the area), Konjic, 1999.
2001. Mulić, Jusuf, Konjic i njegova okolina u vrijeme osmanske vladavine (1464-1878) (Konjic and environs in the Ottoman period [1464-1878]), Konjic Municipality, Konjic, 2001.
2003. Mulić, Jusuf, “Dvije značajne godišnjice grada Konjica: 620 godina prvog zvaničnog pomena grada i 320 godina od izgradnje bivšeg kamenog mosta” (Two important anniversaries for the town of Konjic: 620 years since the first official reference to the town, and 320 years since the construction of the first stone bridge), Hercegovina 15-16 – periodical for the cultural and historical heritage, Archives of Herzegovina, Mostar, 2003.
(1) Çelebi notes: ”The kasaba is in the Herzegovina sandžak. It is the domain (hass) of its pasha. It is governed by the pasha’s duke. It is a fine kadiluk, with the rank of a fifty-akča kadiluk. It has a spahi’s ćehaja [depity], a Janissary serdar [commander], ajans [members of the upper class], leading figures, a mayor, a harač [tax] commissioner, a market supervisor and a baždar [customs officer]. . . . It has six mahalas. It has six hundred houses with stone-clad roofs. They are not large, but they have extensive vineyards. It has eight mosques, two medresas, three primary schools, two Sufi tekkes, a public baths, and two hostelries (hans). There are seventy-five workshops there. These are mainly smithies, since the iron that is processed here is famous for its strength. What is more, there is a mahzum sabre known as the Konjic sabre. It is made so as to bend when used to strike, and then to straighten up again. They make curved swords, butchers’ knifes, various kinds of weapons and military equipment, since there is an iron mine in their mountains, and large quantities of charcoal on the hills. Since the climate is alpine, figs, grapes, pomegranates and olives do not grow as well as in Mostar. The residents welcome strangers, and are mainly artisans and traders."
(2) Reference works provide varying details concerning the donor (hair-sahibija) Hudaverdi Bosna, along with the date when his endowment, the Repovac mosque, was built.
(3) Known as Hodaverdi Bosna Mehmed-bey, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's biggest feudal lords in the 16th century. Local tradition has it that he held the post of Bosnian vali for a time. His heirs have various surnames, reflecting the fact that his large family split into several branches as time passed (Ajanović, Alibegović, Avdibegović, Dautbegović, Ferhatbegović, Hasanbegović, Hašimbegović, Hisejinbegović and Repovac. (See Hamid Hadžibegić and Derviš Buturović, Berat Hudaverdi Bosna Mehmed-bega od 1593. godine (“The Berat of Hudaverdi Bosna Mehmed-bey of 1593”) Contributions to Oriental Philology, XII-XIII, 151-174).
(4) Hadith.
(5) Qur'an, XXVI, 88-89.
(6) Allusion to imam Abu Hanifa.
(7) Allusion to imam Muhammed and imam Abu Yusuf.
(8) Qur'an, XIX, 40.
(9) Qur'anic reference to be verified – trans.
(10) Qur'anic reference to be verified – trans (original of decision gives II, 131, but this does not correspond).
(11) The reference is probably to the musala that was used up until World War II for open-air Eid and Friday prayers whenever the weather permitted. It was located on the right bank of the river Neretva above the present-day grammar school. If so, it is strange that the vakufnama states that the musala was near the kasaba, not in the kasaba. The part of the town where the musala was is now seen as an integral part of Konjic. In addition, I believe that when this vakufnama was drawn up, the area where the musala was set up was also part of the urban settlement, which probably extended along both sides of the river Neretva, regardless of whether there were houses there or not. The main reason for this is that we known that by 1570 there was already a bridge over the Neretva at Konjic, linking the right and left banks.
(12) See n. 7.
(13) Legend has it that the minaret was built to the left of the entrance to the Repovac mosque, and that the mosque itself was built, to the order of Hudaverdi-bey after the death of his wife Lejla and his daughter Jasmina, with the minaret to the left, the side where the heart is located in the body, as a token of his love for them both. (Kabes no. 5, 63)
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