Status of monument -> National monument

Published in the “Official Gazette of BiH”, no. 84/09.

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 9 to 15 September 2008 the Commission adopted a

D E C I S I O N

I

The architectural ensemble of the mosque in Umoljani, Municipality Trnovo, is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument).

The National Monument consists of the mosque and harem with burial ground.

The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 1311, title deed no. 263, cadastral municipality Umoljani, Municipality Trnovo, 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, 6/04 and 51/07) 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 providing the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary for the protection, conservation, presentation and restoration of the National Monument.

The Government of the Federation shall be responsible for providing the funds for drawing up and implementing the technical documentation required for the restoration of the National Monument.

The Commission to Preserve National Monuments (hereinafter: the Commission) shall determine the technical requirements and secure the funds for preparing and erecting signboards with basic details of 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:

Protection level I applies to the site defined in Clause 1 para. 3 of this Decision. On this site, all works are prohibited other than conservation and restoration works, with the approval of the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Protection level II applies to a buffer zone consisting of cadastral plots no. 1308, 1309, 1310, 1312, 1313, 1314, 1315, 1316, 1387, 1388, 1389, 1390, 1391, 1392, 1393, 1394, 1398, 1399, 1400, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913 and 4718, title deed no. 263, c.m. Umoljani, Municipality Trnovo, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The following protection measures shall apply within this zone:

-       the construction of industrial facilities and of properties that could be detrimental to the National Monument in appearance and size is prohibited;

-       buildings may be erected on the basis of the area planning and technical conditions prescribed by the heritage protection authority.

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 Federal 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 Art. V para 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, decisions of the Commission are final.

IX

            This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Gazette of BiH.

This Decision has been adopted by the following members of the Commission: Zeynep Ahunbay, Martin Cherry, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, Dubravko Lovrenović and Ljiljana Ševo.

No: 06.1-02-110/07-9

10 September 2008

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.

On 14 June 2007, Bandić Dervo of ......... submitted a petition/proposal to designate the mosque in Umoljani as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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:

-       Documentation on the location and the current owner and user of the property (copy of cadastral plan).

-       Details of 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 plateau bounded by Bjelašnica to the north, Treskavica to the east, Visočica to the south and Mt Obalj to the west is known as the Bjelašnica plateau. Here, in this south-eastern area of Bjelašnica, also known as lower Bjelašnica, are permanent settlements at altitudes of between 1150 and 1472 m above sea level. The villages of Umoljani, Kramari, Lukavac, Brda, Milešići, Šabići and Rakitnica lie along the right bank in the upper reaches of the river Rakitnica, which separates Mts. Bjelašnica and Visočica, while the larger villages of Bobovica and Tušila are located on the hills by the left bank. Down-river to the west of this group of villages are the villages of Lukomir, Ćuhovići and Blaca. The entire region was linked with the Sarajevo plain to the north-east, via Štirni Do, with Konjic to the west, via Jagodin Do and Radobolja.

In the past decade, the villages on the Bjelašnica plateau have been linked by road with Sarajevo, via Hadžići. An asphalt road 49 km in length connects the village of Umoljani with Sarajevo via Krupac, Babin Do and Šabići, while another asphalt road 57 km in length runs between Umoljani and Hadžići via Igman, Babin Do and Šabići.

The architectural ensemble of the mosque is at an altitude of 1350 m above sea level, on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 1311, cadastral municipality Umoljani, Municipality Trnovo, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Historical information

The Bjelašnica plateau has not been studied in any great detail, whether archaeologically or historically, and there are very few reference works dealing with the area. It was already settled in prehistoric times: one such site is on high ground above the Umoljani katun (summer pasture) settlement of Gradina.(1)  

In late mediaeval times the area from the river Rakitnica to the east to the little river Trešanica to the west belonged to the administrative district (knežija) of Črešnjevo(2) in the Neretva župa (county), which was divided by the river Neretva in the early 15th century into the Bosnian half and the Herzegovina half, on the left bank, which belonged to Hum land, later known as Herzegovina, and hence to local overlords from the Kosača family.

The south-eastern area of Bjelašnica, which was on the eastern border of the Črešnjevo knežija, was seemingly inhabited by Vlachs (Vlach katunars or herdsmen).

Popović, Đ, Cvetko, writes of the Bjelašnica katuns:

“Since ancient times, the extensive, succulent pastures of Bjelašnica have attracted herdsmen from Herzegovina, where animal feed is scarce in summer. As a result, as well as the few permanent settlements on Bjelašnica, there are also several seasonal settlements or mahalas, as the herdsmen call them. Each of these mahalas had its own name. On the Herzegovina or east and south side of Bjelašnica, near the village of Umoljani, were the mahalas of Razošlje, Hrupe, Kekuše, and further westward Ajvazi, Lovnica, Raški Do, Jasen and Zelene Njive, while on the Bosnian, northern side of Bjelašnica were the mahalas of Karamustafini Čairi, Mrtvanje, Krošnje, Stanine, Hranisava, Opančar and Gola Obrva. Life in these mahalas was even more primitive than in the permanent settlements on Bjelašnica, which are very much mountain settlements in which the main occupation is livestock rearing. Most of the villages had grown over time from mahalas, and their present-day inhabitants are of Herzegovina origins. The name of the village of Umoljani comes from “Humljani.”(3)

The toponomastic material of Bjelašnica – Vlahinja (two places on Bjelašnica), Vlaščeta and Katun in Tušili, Donji Kramari and Gornji Kramari(4), and Vlaško greblje in Lukomir, also corroborates this assertion.

The toponomastics of the upper reaches of the Rakitnica, where Šabići is also located, suggest that the villages were organized into communes, consisting of small groups of clan-based villages. The political function of the commune was exercised in a fort or castle. The name Grad (fort or town) of a hill above Lukavac indicates a site probably built by a village commune. In late mediaeval times there was a clear preference for each territorial political entity to have its own fort, usually simply known as Grad without any other means of identification. The toponym Varda is to be found in Umoljani, Tušili and Šabići, suggesting the organized military and police force of such entities. The commune would also have a central place of worship. It is common for the later centres of a džemat (Ar. jama’ah, congregation) with a Friday mosque to be on the site of a mediaeval communal place of worship. It would seem that Umoljani was and remained the religious centre of this village commune, as evidenced by the site known as Crkvina (indicating the presence of a church)(5), between Umoljani and Šabići, and the mosque in Umoljani.(6)  

The summary census of the Bosnia sanjak for 1468/69(7) refers to part of the village of Umoljani, with 31 households, as “part of the Neretva military(8) reserve, in the hands of the said Hajji Mehmedi.

The 1488/89 census refers to the village of Umoljani, and among the list of inhabitants are Muslim first-generation names, such as Ahmed son of Milobrad, Mehmed son of Marko, Yusuf son of Milobrad and so on. Umoljani had twenty houses and a total income of 1,046 akča(9). This suggests that Islam reached the people of Lukomir at a very early date and that the villagers began to embrace Islam very soon after Bosnia fell to the Ottomans.

The detailed census of the Klis sanjak for 1550(10) lists the village of Umoljani, in the Neretva nahija (minor administrative district), as a timar (feudal holding) of Nesuh, son of Ejnehan, Mahmud, son of Ejnehan, and Davud, son of Ejnehan. The village had the following: “households: Muslim 76, bachelor 21, hereditaments 6, resmi čift 2.056; households: Christian 9, ispendža(11) 225. The revenue was 6,427 akča.” There is also reference by name to vojnuks of the village of Umoljani and their income of 959 akča, and to akindžije(13) of the village of Umoljani: households: Muslim 6, bachelor 3, hereditament 1, resmi čift 190; households: Christian 6, ispendža 150 akča, and their income of 1,004 akča. The owners of all the čifluks with their income are listed by name). The total revenue was 9,506 akča, of which “the share of the said Nesuh: 3,000; the share of the said Mahmud: 3,000; the share of the said Davud: 2,800. The share of another: 706, in the timar of Sulejman, garrison commander of the Gradiška fort.”

The 1574 census refers to the village of Umoljani, with all the holders of estates Muslims (69 in all) whose forebears were non-Muslims. The census refers to 42 hereditaments(14) and 17 čifluks(15) with total revenue of 13,500 akča.(16)

There is no written record of the first construction of the mosque in Umoljani, and nor is there any surviving vakufnama or other document that might help to date it reliably. There are, however, certain facts and observations that implicitly suggest a possible time frame:

-       the number of residents of Umoljani who embraced Islam in the 16th century (details from the censuses)

-       the fact that in late mediaeval times, the Ottoman period, and to this day, Umoljani has been the religious centre of the area

-       the present-day location of the mosque, to the south of modern Umoljani, which is unusual in the light of the custom of building mosques where they could most easily be reached by all the congregation. To make access to free pastureland easier, as time elapse the village was relocated some 300 metres to the north. The assumption that the village was once further to the south, with the mosque in the middle of the village, is suggested by the toponym Donje selo (lower village – the name of the area to the south of the village where there is not a single building now standing, though about twenty years ago there were still a few cowsheds there, the remains of which can be seen in the immediate vicinity of the mosque)

-       the people of Umoljani have an oral tradition, passed down from generation to generation, that the timber used to build the mosque was cut in the forest at a place called Potoci, where there has been not a single tree large enough to provide timber for building purposes for the past two hundred years, implying that the mosque could have been built prior to the 18th century

-       the old nišan tombstones (without epitaphs) in the harem of the mosque.

All this suggests that there was a mosque there more than 200 years ago, and that the present-day mosque was probably built in the early 20th century.

It is the tradition in Umoljani to hold a mevlud (Ar. maulid, originally a commemoration of the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday) in the summer (July and August)(17), usually attended by several thousand people. “In the history of this part of the world, no lower-ranking religious official, let alone the supreme leader of the Muslims(18), has ever come here a third time. It is hard for him, as supreme leader of the Muslims, to cover more than 15 km on foot along a very bad road, over the wild [terrain] of Mt. Bjelašnica, to visit the village of Umoljani. . . The people of this area were thrilled by the arrival of their religious leader. His surprise appearance in Umoljani meant great celebrations by all the residents. He made a very moving speech to the more than 3,000 Muslims at the Mevludi-šerif.” (19)

The Muslims of the villages of Bjelašnica helped the mosque; “one who stands out among them is the late Tatarović hajji Ahmed of Umoljani, who before his death donated a ćilim (kilim) to the mosque, worth more than 70,000 old dinars, and endowed a vakuf (pious endowment) worth 20,000 dinars and made donations of about 16,000 old dinars. Others who stand out are the late Čomor Halil of Lukomir, who bequeathed to the mosque a ćilim worth about 60,000 old dinars, and Muharem Tatić, who gave land for the enlargement of the harem and mosque to the value of about 80,000 old dinars. A resident of Lukavac, not far from Umoljani, brought water from a spring to the mosque, a distance of about 50 m, at his own expense. Vatrić Zejnil gave about 35,000 old dinars for the Islamic community . . .” (20)

According to a resident of the village of Umoljani, Bandić Omer (b. 1930), the imams of the mosque in Umoljani were Džihan Omer (1890-1900), Bandić Hamid (1910-1920), Bandić Meho (during Royal Yugoslavia), hafiz Medić Rasim of Prijedor, Aljević Vejsil (who held the post of imam for 30 years), Bandić Duran, Drkić Alija (1992-1995) and, since 1999, the imam is Ahmed Bandić.

In 1993, thirteen villages on Bjelašnica were set on fire, and the only property that was not, in August 1993, was the mosque in Umoljani: all the houses in the village were burned to the ground. There are various stories and legends to explain the survival of the mosque.

On 21 August 2008, during an on-site inspection of the condition of the property, compiling photodocumentation and conducting a technical survey of the building, an inscription was found on one of the beams forming the structure of the mahfil (in the vestibule of the mosque, before the second entrance door to the main prayer hall), carved into the wood in Cyrillic, and reading: ГАТАЧКИ ЧЕТНИЦИ.

2. Description of the property

The architectural ensemble consists of the mosque and burial ground.

The mosque is rectangular in plan, with sides measuring approx. 8.07(21) (8.20(22)) x 14.10 (15.55)(23)m on the outside, and in layout consisting of an open entrance portico of approx. 1.45 x8.07 m, a vestibule of approx. 3.42 x 4.77 m with a staircase leading to the mahfil, an abdesthana of approx. 2.08 x 3.37 m, and a central prayer hall, rectangular in plan, with sides of approx. 6.93 x 8.89 m) on the ground floor, a mahfil of approx. 6.93 wide x 5.5. m deep at the front of the building, and a minaret by the south-west perimeter wall of the mosque.

Access to the mosque is from the north-west, through an open entrance portico measuring approx. 1.45 x 8.07 m. The portico has a central passageway about 1.41 m wide and 1.45 m long, and two sofas: the one to the left (north-east) of the passageway measures 3.32 x 1.41 m, and the one to the right (south-west) 3.34 x 4.45 m. The sofas are about 36 cm higher than the central passageway.

Several features suggest that the portico was a later addition(24). The portico is not under the same hipped roof as the mosque, but was covered by extending the eaves to the north-west; the width of the projecting eaves is the same as the length of the north-west wall, and the height of the eaves (which were at a height of about 3.50 m(25)), was lowered to about 1.70 m. The rafters of the portico roof rest on a purlin and four wooden pillars, 14 x 14 cm in section, set 2.57, 1.77 and 2.46 m apart. The portico has a wooden railing about 49 cm in height.

The double-valved wooden door (with a masonry opening of 136 x 195 cm on the inside and 129 x 191 cm on the outside) leading into the vestibule is in the middle of the north-west wall. The vestibule measures approx. 3.24 x 4.77 m, with a daylight height of approx. 1.98 m. To the right of the entrance door, by the north-west wall, is a papučluk (where shoes are removed and left before entering the mosque). A double-flight L-shaped wooden staircase by the south-west wall of the mosque, made of planks, leads to the mahfil.

To the right of the entrance door to the mosque, in the north corner, is the abdesthana (2.08 x 3.37 m), entered from the vestibule through a door in the 11 cm thick wooden partition wall. The floor and dado of the south-east wall of the abdesthana, to a height of about 100 cm, are tiled, and there is a trough in the north corner of the mosque, by the outside wall, for taking abdest (ritual ablutions before prayer).

The central prayer hall measures approx. 6.93 x 8.89 m, and has a ceiling height of approx. 3.60 m.

The mihrab niche, which is approx. 106 m wide, 225 cm high and 52 cm deep, is in the south-east wall. The mihrab has a rectangular frame measuring approx. 188 x 255 cm and projecting out from the wall face by approx. 27 cm. The mihrab and frame are painted light blue, and in the mihrab niche is a calligraphic inscription at a height of approx. 1.40 from floor level, inscribed between 1997 and 2001. The inscription, in kufic script, reads:

فول وجهك شطر المسجد الحرام

Turn thy face towards the Holy Mosque.(26)

To the right of the mihrab is the wooden mimber, which is of recent date(27) and measures approx 80 cm wide x 318 cm long x 250 cm in height to the cone. The mimber has ten steps, and the canopy, resting on four pillars, is topped by a cone with an alem (finial). The sides of the mimber are decorated with carved motifs of pointed oriental arches, rosettes and geometric designs.

The load of the mahfil is taken by four square wooden pillars measuring 16 x 16 cm in section, set in pairs over wooden joists(28). The rectangular jutty for the muezzin, which is 215 cm wide and 86 cm deep, is to the side of the mahfil, by the south-west wall of the mosque. The mahfil gallery has a wooden torbozanluk (balustrade) about 53 cm in height.

A single-flight ladder-style staircase in the west corner of the mosque leads from the mahfil to the attic space.

Each of the façades has a single rank of rectangular windows, with the exception of the south-west façade, where there are two ranks. The entrance façade has no windows, but the wall(29) between the vestibule and the central prayer hall has two small openings measuring 35 x 35 cm (with the sill at a height of 78 cm) and 50 x 34 cm (with a sill height of 86 cm). The south-west façade has two windows of (82 x 90 x 58 cm and 78 x 80 x 90 cm (interior masonry width x height/sill height) at ground-floor level and one of 68 x 96 168 cm interior masonry width x height/sill height) above; the south-east façade has two windows of 82 x 90 x 58cm and 78 x 80 x 90cm (interior masonry width x height/sill height), and the south-east façade also has two, of 82 x 83 x 70 cm and 82 x 96 x 71cm (interior masonry width x height/sill height). The upper window on the south-west façade is not directly above the lower.

All the windows of the perimeter walls of the mosque are single-casement, single-light windows glazed with double insulating glass, are rectangular in shape, and have stone frames on the outside fitted with wrought iron bars. The openings have wooden beam lintels, and all are splayed towards the inside, to allow more light into the interior. The wooden windows in the perimeter walls are not original.

The mosque has a steep hipped roof, with a pitch of roughly 45o. The flashings and gutters are of galvanized iron. There is guttering only on the north-west side of the building; the other eaves have no gutters.

The roof structure is timber, and the cladding is double rebated tiles.

The rafters of the roof structure rest on the double wall plate of the perimeter walls of the mosque and a purlin of approx. 15 x 15 cm in section set at a height of approx. 200 cm above the top of the wall plate. The roof ridge has no purlin – instead the rafters are joined by overlapping carpentry joints(30). The load of the roof on the purlin is transferred by double queen posts to two trusses(31) set longitudinally about 195-200 cm from the side walls and about 350 cm apart. Level with the purlin, the trusses are joined by four collar beams of approx. 15 x 16 cm in section.

The ceiling beams, which are approx. 15 x 16 cm in section, over the central prayer hall are set transversely, about 55 to 60 cm apart, below the roof trusses, and take part of the load of the roof structure. The great height of these beams (about 6.95 to 7 m) and their relatively small cross-section of 15 x 16 cm had led to considerable sagging of the ceiling, which was therefore reinforced by underpinning the ceiling beams with two joists(32) set lengthwise, resting on a wooden pillar with a double headtree in the middle of the prayer hall. The pillar is 14.5 x 17 cm in section and about 305 cm in height, and the headtree consists of separate timbers of approx. 2 x 15/20 cm with a length of approx. 3.85 m. The headtree of this bearing pillar is moulded, and the double headtrees taper in section towards the console ends.

The minaret stands on a stone base of cyclopean masonry with prominent pointing. The base is a rounded four-sided pyramid in shape, with the sides measuring approx. 295-300 cm long at the base and approx. 245-265 cm long at the top of the rounded pyramid, which is approx. 150 cm high and the sides of which are at an angle of approx.78 degrees from the horizontal.

The entrance to the minaret is from the mahfil, through a 47 x 145 cm door in the south-west wall, about 4.46 m from the west corner of the mosque.

The minaret was built of quarry stone, and the masonry shaft is a tapering cylinder in shape:

-       the base of the shaft, which is level with the mahfil floor, has a diameter on the outside of approx. 240 cm and on the inside of approx. 130 cm; the walls of the cylinder are approx. 55 cm thick;

-       at the top of the masonry shaft of the minaret, about 5.83 m above mahfil floor level, the diameter of the cylinder is approx. 183 cm on the outside and 98 cm on the inside, and the walls are approx. 43 cm thick;

-       the angle of the walls is approx. 87 degrees from the horizontal;

-       the overall height of the masonry section of the minaret is approx. 7.33 m (5.83 m for the cylinder + approx. 150 cm for the base);

-       the minaret staircase consists of a total of 25 steps; the first 19 are of massive wooden beams of approx. 18 x 23 cm in section, one end of which is fixed into sockets about 20-22 cm deep in the wall of the minaret, with the other end abutting onto the mast of the minaret, while the last six steps are of 6-7 cm thick wooden planks. There are four window openings, each 30 cm wide x 54 cm high x 45 cm deep, in the wall of the minaret at a height of 4.95 m.(33)  

The wooden mast running up the centre of the minaret has an overall height of approx. 9.25 m and a diameter of approx. 20 cm at the base, 15 cm at a height of 4.95 m, and 8 cm at a height of 7.40 m. There is a gap of about 1.68 m between the mast and the inner side of the south-west wall.

The spiral staircase leading to the enclosed šerefe gallery (of which the floor is at a height of approx. 5.83 m) winds around the mast. The šerefe is of timber, consisting of ten small uprights of approx. 8 x 9 cm in section and a height of approx. 180 cm set about 60 cm apart around the outer edge of the šerefe floor, forming a regular decagon, on which the wall plate of the roof of the šerefe rests. The conical roof, with a pitch of approx. 55 degrees, has no rafters; the board cladding is laid over two ring-beams and the top of the mast. Wooden struts were used as bracing between the timber rings and the mast. The wooden structure of the šerefe is faced with wooden boards approx. 22 mm thick, and on each side of the polygonal wooden facing is an opening measuring about 20 x 20 cm at a height of about 120 cm from the šerefe floor, with fine-mesh wire netting fixed to the inside to prevent birds from entering the minaret.

The entire minaret (the stone shaft and wooden structure of the šerefe, barrel and spire) is faced on the outside by sheet metal, from the alem (finial) at the top right down to the stone base.

A careful analysis of the proportions and height as well as of the relative positions of the elements of the minaret (the beam steps, the plank steps, and the openings in the wall of the minaret), and a consideration with their relationship with the intended purpose of the minaret, suggests some very precise conclusions:

-       the stonemasonry work of the minaret was left unfinished: the wooden parts above the floor of the šerefe and the last six steps, made of wooden planks, were added later. An analysis of the height of the topmost (19th) step made of a 17 x 23 cm beam, at a height of 3.80 m(34), as compared with the height at which the openings in the stone wall of the minaret were pierced (4.95 m)(35), it is obvious that this gives a sill height of 115 cm(36). From the anthropometric point of view, the head of the muezzin(37) calling the azaan would be in the ideal position in relation to the openings in the minaret;

-       in line with the above conclusion, the present level(38) of the šerefe floor (+5.83 m) was raised by about 203 cm (5.83 – 3.80 = 2.03 m), five extra steps made of planks were added, and the stone-built šerefe, barrel and spire of the minaret were constructed, which not only altered the proportions and outward appearance of the minaret and had the effect of increasing its overall height. The four openings in the wall thereby lost their purpose, and were later completely sealed off on the outside, first with timber facing and then with sheet metal;

-       if one considers the minaret of the mosque without its wooden šerefe and metal cladding, in shape and structural solutions it is very reminiscent of the stone minarets of the mosque in Kotezi (the Mujo Kotezlija mosque). The minaret of the mosque in Kotezi is topped by a stone roof;

-       the reason for cladding the minaret with metal, which was done in 1978-79, was to protect it from the elements: wind, rain and snow blown by storm winds.

The mosque is stone-built, with perimeter walls approx. 62-65 cm thick. The wall separating the vestibule from the central prayer hall is approx. 48 cm. The walls are plastered and limewashed inside and out. Inside the mosque, the north-east, south-east and south-west walls each have two circles at a height of 2.50 above floor level, within which are calligraphic inscriptions dating from 1997-2001.

There are seven calligraphic inscriptions inside the mosque, six on three of the walls and one in the mihrab. They are of recent date.

-       The inscriptions on the mihrab (south-east) wall read:

الله جل جلاله

God Almighty

محمد عليه السلام

Muhammad, peace be upon him.

-       The inscriptions on the north-east wall read:

ابو بكرالصديق رضي الله عنه

Abu Bakr the sincere, may God be pleased with him.

عمر رضي الله عنه

‘Umar, may God be pleased with him.

-       The inscriptions on the south-west wall read:

عثمان ذو النورين رضي الله عنه

‘Uthman, he of the two lights, may God be pleased with him

علي ابن ابي طالب رضي الله عنه

‘Ali ibn Abi Talib, may God be pleased with him

One stone about 70 cm above the entrance door to the mosque stands out from the wall face by about 3-4 cm. It too has been plastered, and it is impossible, without stripping off the plaster, to see if it bore an inscription giving, perhaps, the year when the mosque underwent repairs.(39)  

Some stećak tombstones were built into the foundations of the mosque. The tops of the foundations of the mosque are above ground level in places, and the number of tombstones used in the foundations that can be seen is about twenty.

Part of the harem, to the east of the mosque, contains six fairly old men’s nišan tombstones with pleated turbans, without epitaphs, two of which have a hajji's band carved on the tombstone below the turban (this zigzag line indicates that the deceased had performed the pilgrimage).

The eastern part of the harem also has ten nišan tombstones of recent date (latter half of the 20th century) and four shahids' nišans dating from the 1992-1995 war.

Just 1.40 m from the north-west wall of the mosque was a 20 metre high sycamore tree(40), which was felled in 2008. The surviving stump has a diameter of approx. 140 to 150 cm.

3. Legal status to date

The property was listed in the Register of the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural and Historical Heritage of BiH as the Mosque in the village of Umoljani, Trnovo Municipality, but was not on the Register of Protected Monuments of SR BiH.(41)

4. Research and conservation and restoration works

Given its previous status, there are no details of any research or conservation and restoration works on the property.

The sparse evidence in writing on the Umoljani mosque, and the account by residents of the village, Bandić Omer (b. 1930) and Bandić Salko (b. 1949), have produced the following information:

Bandić Omer referred to his grandfather Bandić Salih (who died in 1940 at the age of 100) remembering a mosque built of wooden logs. This would indicate that in the late 19th or early 20th century the timber walls of the mosque were replaced by stone walls. It was probably at that time too that the stone minaret was built.

According to Bandić Omer himself, in 1930 Durak Elezović (from the hamlet of Elezovići) continued work on the masonry of the minaret, but while doing so he fell from the minaret and died as a result of the fall.

The original roof cladding of shingles was replaced by tiles. Again according to Bandić Omer of Umoljani (b. 1930), the tiles, which were brought from Konjic, were laid in or about 1937, when a police station was built in Umoljani and a fountain, known as “the pipe,” was installed in the village.

There is a reference to the mosque in an article by Aljović Vejsil, published in 1966: “In that chain of villages, one of the largest is the village of Umoljani, where a mosque was built with a low wooden minaret rising above the mosque roof like a somewhat wider chimney. The congregation say that anything taller and slenderer would not survive the strong winds.”(42) He goes on to say in the same article that “a resident of Lukavac, not far from Umoljani, brought water from a spring to the mosque, a distance of about 50 m, at his own expense.”(43)

Bandić Omer says that the minaret was clad with sheet metal in 1978-1979.

The following works were carried out between 1997 and 2001: replacement of the bearing wooden posts of the mahfil; replacement of the wooden post that takes part of the load of the ceiling via a headtree and joist; replacement of the wooden slatted ceiling and panelling installed; replacement of the mahfil railing; replacement of the entrance door to the mosque; replacement of part of the tiles. The calligraphic inscriptions on the walls and in the mihrab niche also date from 1997-2001.

Since the walls were whitewashed between 1997 and 2001, and the Commission is unaware whether the calligraphic inscriptions that date from this period were preceded by investigative works, soundings of the wall decorations would need to be taken to ascertain if there were any earlier decorated layers or calligraphic inscriptions.

5. Current condition of the property

Structurally, the property is in very good condition.

A letter(44) from the mayor of Trnovo states that the roof of the mosque leaks, which could not be verified during the on-site inspection, and there were no signs on the ceiling of possible damage to the roof cladding.

The base of the wooden mast of the minaret, at a height of approx. 30-40 cm, is rotten, and the first two steps of the minaret have come away from their sockets.

The works that have been carried out on the mosque in the past 50-60 years consist of replacing the roof cladding of shingles with tiles; cladding the minaret with sheet metal; replacing the mimber; replacing the wooden slats with panelling; fitting panelling to the dado of the mihrab wall; fitting insulating glass in the windows. These have resulted in the building losing some of its original features. Some of these works are reversible, however.

Felling the sycamore tree, which to judge from the diameter of the stump of 140-150 cm (with a likely chest-high diameter of about 80-100 cm) must have been a couple of hundred years old, has caused irreparable damage to the visual identity of the architectural ensemble.

In 2007 work began on building a house about 20 m to the south of the mosque. In 2008, at the initiative of the people of Umoljani and with the support of Trnovo Municipality, this property was demolished. The ruins of the property and the surviving concrete structure of the ground floor have yet to be removed.

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

C.         Artistic and aesthetic value

C.vi.     value of construction

D.         Clarity

D.ii.      evidence of historical change

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.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.iii.      the building or group of buildings is part of a group or site

G.         Authenticity

G.iii.     use and function

G.iv.     traditions and techniques

G.v.      location and setting

G.vi.     spirit and feeling

G.vii.    other internal and external factors

H.         Rarity and representativity

H.i.       unique or rare example of a certain type or style

The following documents form an integral part of this Decision:

-       Copy of cadastral plan issued by the Department of Geodetics and Proprietary Rights Affairs, real property cadastre and inspection supervision for town planning and building, 4 January 2007, c.p. no. 1311, c.m. Umoljani, title deed no. 263, plan no. 5, Municipality Trnovo, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina

-       Land Register entry no. SL/08 for plot no. c.p. 1311, c.m. Umoljani, property of the Trnovo Board of the Islamic Community, issued by the Department of Geodetics and Proprietary Rights Affairs, real property cadastre and inspection supervision for town planning and building, Municipality Trnovo, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina

-       Photodocumentation

-         Photographs of the mosque taken on 21 August 2008 by architect Emir Softić using Canon PowerShot A450 digital camera

-       Drawings

-         Ground plan of the mosque and minaret with dimensions as measured on site; drawing of technical survey of the property by Emir Softić, 21 August 2008

Bibliography

During the procedure to designate the monument as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina the following works were consulted:

1932.    Popović, J. “Ljetni stanovi (mahale) na planini Bjelašnici” (Summer residences [mahalas] on Mt Bjelašnica), Jnl of the National Museum, (Natural History volumes), XLIV-1932

1966.    Beširović, Uzeir. “Teferič na Slatini” (A Picnic at Slatina), Naše planine, review of the Alpinists' Federation of Croatia and Alpinists' Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Zagreb: 1966, no. 11-12

1966.    Aljović, Vejsil. “Odrazi odanosti islamu vjernika u Umoljanima” (Reverberations of Devotion of the Islamic Worshippers of Umoljani), Herald of the Islamic Elders of SFRY, XXIX/1966, no. 11-12

1970.    Aljović, Vejsil. “Reisu-ul-ulema po treći put gost umoljanskog područja” (Reisu-l-ulema visits Umoljani for the third time), Herald of the Islamic Elders of SFRY, XXXIII/1970, no. 9-10

1973.    Basler, Đuro. Starine na Bjelašnici (Antiques on Bjelašnica), 25th anniversary of the Bjelašnica Alpinists' Society. Sarajevo: 1973

1973.    Popović, Đ, Cvetko. Stočne mahale na Bjelašnici (Grazing Mahalas on Bjelašnica), 25th anniversary of the Bjelašnica Alpinists' Society. Sarajevo: 1973

1978.    Kovačević, Ešref. Opširni popis bosanskog sandžaka 1488-89 (Detailed survey of the Bosnian sanjak, 1488-89), part II, Original: Istanbul, BBA TD 24, transcript (unpublished m/s). Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 1978

1978.    Opširni katastarski popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1574. godine (Detailed cadastral survey of the Klis sanjak of 1574), analyzed by Fehim Dž.Spaho and Behija Zlatar. Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 1978

1984.    Mihić, Ljubo J. Bjelašnica i Igman: planine Četrnaeste zimske olimpijade (Bjelašnica and Igman: mountains of the 14th Winter Olympics). Mostar: 1984

2001.    Mulić, Jusuf. Konjic i njegova okolina u vrijeme Osmanske vladavine (1463-1878) (Konjic and its Environs during the Ottoman Period). Sarajevo: 2001

2005.    Babić, Braco, Bozja, Drago. Planinarsko-turistički vodič po planinama oko Sarajeva (Alpinist and Tourist Guide of the Mountains around Sarajevo). Sarajevo: Fondacija za zaštitu Bjelašnice, Igmana, Treskavice i kanjona Rakitnice, 2005

2007.    Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine (Detailed census of the Klis sanjak of 1550) analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar. Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustranti ; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; bk. 5) Based on: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis.

2007.    Fekeža, Lidija. “Srednjovjekovna nekropola u Šabićima” (The Mediaeval Necropolis in Šabići), Annual of the Centre for Balkan Studies, vol. XXXVI. Sarajevo: Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2007

2008.    Ahmed S. Aličić. Sumarni popis sandžaka Bosna iz 1468/69. godine (Summary census of the sanjak of Bosnia for 1468/69), deciphered and translated from Ottoman Turkish, with a scholarly analysis, and prepared for the press by Ahmed S. Aličić. Mostar: Islamic Cultural Centre, 2008 ([s.l. : s.n.]). –XXVIII

2008     Record of the epigraphic material of the architectural ensemble of the mosque in Umoljani, studied, recorded and processed by Hazim Numanagić, orientalist and calligrapher of Sarajevo, on 3 September 2008

            Website of the Majlis of the Islamic Community of Sarajevo, http://www.medzlis-sa.ba/

(1) Karlo Pasch, “Rimska mjesta u konjičkom kotaru,” Jnl of the Provincial Museum, A, Sarajevo: 1902, 331.

(2) The Črešnjevo fort in the Trešanica valley, with the town on its outskirts known as Neretva on the right bank of the river Neretva (in present-day Konjic) flourished during the 15th century

(3) Popović, Đ, Cvetko, Stočne mahale na Bjelašnici, 25th anniversary of the Bjelašnica Alpinists' Society, Sarajevo: 1973, 95.

(4) The leader of a Vlach caravan was known as kramar

(5) There are the unexcavated remains of a mediaeval church on the site (Fekeža, Lidija, “Srednjovjekovna nekropola u Šabićima,” Annual, Centre for Balkan Studies, vol. XXXVI, Sarajevo: Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2007, 213)

(6) Fekeža, Lidija, “Srednjovjekovna nekropola u Šabićima,” Annual, Centre for Balkan Studies, vol. XXXVI, Sarajevo: Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2007, 191-220

(7) Ahmed S. Aličić, Sumarni popis sandžaka Bosna iz 1468/69. godine, deciphered and translated from Ottoman Turkish, with a scholarly analysis, and prepared for the press by Ahmed S. Aličić; Mostar: Islamski kulturni centar, 2008, 95

(8) “Vojnuk – member of a military rank in the Ottoman Empire, recruited in the Balkans from the local non-Muslim population, mainly the Vlachs. They were rewarded for their services, which consisted of guarding forts, especially in frontier regions, by the freedom to inherit hereditaments, and were exempt from all state and feudal taxation.” (Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; bk. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, Glossary of Terms, p. 470)

(9) Kovačević, Ešref, Opširni popis bosanskog sandžaka 1488-89/part II, Original: Istanbul, BBA TD 24, Transcript (unpublished m/s, Oriental Institute, Sarajevo, Sarajevo, 1978

(10) Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; knj. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, p. 318-324

(11) “The poll tax paid in cash to the spahi by the Muslim raja amounted to 22 akča.” (Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; knj. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, Rječnik termina, p. 469)

(12) “The raja poll tax paid by the non-Muslim raja to the spahi amounted to 25 akča per head for men. It was also paid by non-Muslims who held lands registered in the defters to Christians.” (Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia ; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri ; bk. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, Glossary of Terms, p. 467)

(13) “Member of a military rank in the Ottoman Empire in the frontier sanjaks in Europe. An akindžija was a light cavalryman. These troops, composed of Ottomans and local Muslim and non-Muslims, were used for incursions into enemy territory. For this reason they were allocated timars or free hereditaments.” (Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; knj. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, Glossary of Terms, p. 463)

(14) “A complex of land-holdings in the possession of a single peasant family and large enough to maintain it.” (Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (MonumentaTurcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; bk. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, Glossary of Terms, p. 463)

(15) “A type of holding with a specific economic and legal status differing from other rights to land.  It was a distinct economic and territorial entity with its own boundaries, but its size was not unlimited. It could consist of one hereditament and several villages. The essential difference in economic and legal terms from peasant landholdings was its higher level of proprietorship.” (Opširni popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1550. godine, analyzed by Fehim Dž. Spaho, Ahmed S. Aličić; ed. Behija Zlatar.. - Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 2007 (Sarajevo: Bemust). - XXII, 470 p.; 29 cm. - (Monumenta Turcica. Historiam slavorum meridionalium illustrantia; Ser. 2 T12, Defteri; bk. 5) From: Defter-i mufassal-i Liva-i Klis, Glossary of Terms, p. 463)

(16) Opširni katastarski popis Kliškog sandžaka iz 1574. godine / analyzed by Fehim Dž.Spaho and Behija Zlatar, Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, 1978

(17) The time when the mevlud was held in Umoljani was associated with the agricultural cycle. It was held in July or August at a time when the local residents had some free time. This in turn was dictated by this harsh mountain climate, which meant that the date of the mevlud had to be flexible to allow for the changing weather conditions (information from Mujo Sušić, a teacher at the Gazi Husrev-bey medresa in Sarajevo.

(18) The reference is to the visit by Reis-ul-ulema Hajji Sulejman ef. Kemura to Umoljani on 9 August 1970 (note: Emir Softić)

(19) Aljović, Vejsil, “Reis-ul-ulema po treći put gost umoljanskog područja,” Herald of the Islamic Elders of  SFRY XXXIII/1970, no. 9-10, 503

(20) Aljović, Vejsil, “Odrazi odanosti islamu vjernika u Umoljanima,” Herald of the Islamic Elders of SFRY XXIX/1966, no. 11-12, 586. The article does not give the dates when the carpets and money were given to the mosque, or when the land was donated or the water pipes laid, but it must obviously have been before 1966 (Emir Softić)

(21) Length of the south-east wall, as measured 

(22) Length of the north-west wall, as measured 

(23) The north-east wall is approx. 14.10 m long; together with the entrance portico, the overall length is approx. 15.55  m.

(24) No information on the date of this extension is available

(25) The reference point is ground level outside the entrance to the mosque

(26) Qur’an, 2:144

(27) 1997-2001

(28) The daylight height from floor level in the central prayer hall to the underside of the joist is a mere 1.65 m (note: Emir Softić) 

(29) The presence of these openings in the wall, and the unusual feature of the absence of windows in the present wall of the entrance façade (the north-west wall), suggest that the mosque may at one time have had a kind of portico that was later walled in to turn it into a vestibule. Both the door (118 x 156 cm) and the openings in this wall (35 x 35 cm with the sill at 78 cm and 50 x 34 cm with the parapet at 86 cm) are very small (the masonry openings of the windows in the other walls – width x height – are 47/55, 54/63, 56/84, 47/55, 60/70, 56/84 cm), probably in an attempt to keep the cold out, since this side of the mosque faces the prevailing wind (note: Emir Softić). The specific features of the climatic area where Umoljani is located make this likely. The mean annual temperature on Bjelašnica is 0.7°C, the maximum temperature is 24°C, and the lowest is -41°C. In winter the snow-cover is one to three metres deep, with drifts of more than four metres. Strong winds and thunderstorms, and sudden weather changes, are a feature of Bjelašnica. 

Another feature suggesting that the vestibule was formerly part of a portico is the vestibule floor, consisting of cement screed.

(30) Translator’s note: in the original the words literally translated here as “overlapping carpentry joints” are between quotation marks, as is the word translated as “truss.” It is not clear from the description why this should be so, except perhaps to suggest that the terms are not being used in their true meaning.

(31) The trusses consist of a basal truss beam of approx. 16 x 16 cm in section, posts of approx. 12 x 18 cm in section, braces of approx. 12 x 18 cm in section, and a top truss beam of approx. 12 x 16 cm in section.  The joints of the posts, braces and beams are reinforced with cramps (note: Emir Softić)

(32) These joists are set at the same level as the roof trusses

(33) Measured from the point at which one enters the minaret, which is level with the mahfil floor (note: Emir Softić)

(34) Height of the bottom edge of the openings above the point at which one enters the minaret, level with the mahfil floor

(35) Measured from the point at which one enters the minaret, level with the mahfil floor

(36) (4.95-3.80=1.15 m)

(37) The average height of an adult male in BiH is approx. 175-180 cm   

(38) Measured from the point at which one enters the minaret, level with the mahfil floor

(39) The way in which it juts out strongly suggests that it bears an inscription of some kind (note: Emir Softić).

(40) Acer pseudoplatanus (L.)

(41) Letter no. 07-40-4-186-1/08, of 15.01.2008, Institute for the Protection of Monuments of the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport, Sarajevo

(42) Aljović, Vejsil, “Odrazi odanosti islamu vjernika u Umoljanima,” Herald of the Islamic Elders of SFRY XXIX/1966, no. 11-12, 585

(43) Aljović, Vejsil, 1966, 586

(44) Letter from Trnovo Municipality, no. 02/2-23-80, of 04.01.2008.