Status of monument -> National monument
Pursuant
to Article V para. 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina
and Article 39 para. 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve
National Monuments, at a session held from 6 to 8 November 2012 the Commission
adopted a
D E C I S
I O N
I
The
historic building of the Mišćina (Kebkebir hajji Ahmed) Mosque in Sarajevo is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the
National Monument).
The
National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 1583
(new survey), corresponding to c.p. no.1 (old survey), Land Register entry no.
141, cadastral municipality SP Sarajevo Mahala XCVI, and c.p. 2401/2 (new
survey), corresponding to c.p. 230 (old survey), Land Register entry no. 143,
c.m. SP Sarajevo Mahala XCVI, 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 and presentation 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 setting up
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 on the area defined in Clause
1 para. 3 of this Decision, the following protection measures are hereby
stipulated.
-
all works are prohibited
other than investigative and conservation-restoration works, routine
maintenance works, and works designed for the presentation of the monument,
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 (hereinafter: the heritage protection
authority);
-
the reconstruction of all
parts for which there is no reliable documentation shall be effected as part of
the project in such a way as to ensure that their interpolation is legible;
-
works that could be
detrimental to the national monument are prohibited, as is the erection of
temporary facilities or permanent structures not designed solely for the
protection and presentation of the National Monument;
-
the dumping of waste is
prohibited.
The
following measures are hereby prescribed for the urgent protection of
the National Monument:
-
the structural repair and
consolidation of the walls;
-
investigative works with a
view to identifying the original pigments of the existing decorative elements
on the mimber, mahfil and walls of the mosque, and the production and
implementation of a conservation project;
-
the removal of all
unsatisfactory installations visible on the façades and interior of the
building.
The
following protection measures are hereby prescribed for the wall paintings:
-
all works on the wall
paintings shall be carried out by a qualified person subject to a project
approved by the federal ministry responsible for culture and under the expert
supervision of the heritage protection authority;
-
supervision of the
protection measures taken to protect the wall paintings shall be carried out by
the ministry responsible for culture.
IV
All
executive and area development planning acts are hereby revoked to the extent
that they are not in accordance with the provisions of this Decision.
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
protection thereof.
VI
The
Government of the Federation, the federal ministry responsible for regional
planning, the federal ministry responsible for culture, 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.kons.gov.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: 06.3-2.3-73/12-36
7 November 2012
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 29
February 2012 Esad Zejnilagić of Sarajevo
submitted a petition/proposal to the Commission to Preserve National Monuments
to designate the Mišćina (Kebkebir hajji Ahmed) Mosque in Sarajevo
as a national monument
of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Pursuant
to the proposal, 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.
Statement of Significance
The
Mišćina (Kebkebir hajji Ahmed) Mosque was built in 1557. It was burned down in
the fire caused by Prince Eugene of Savoy's
invasion of Sarajevo
in 1697, and rebuilt in 1700.
It is one
of the larger mosques with a hipped roof and stone minaret in Sarajevo. Unlike the majority of other
mosques, in this case the stone minaret is flush with the wall. Another feature
of the mosque is the wall paintings with scenes of Mecca
and Medina, the work of Sarajevo's most famous 19th-century nakaš
(artist), hajji Mustafa Faginović.
The
mosque and mahala are known locally as the Mišćina mosque and mahala, after the
well-loved 18th-century muezzin Mišćo, whose grave, marked by modest nišan
gravestones, is in the nearby Kovači burial ground.
II – PRELIMINARY PROCEDURE
In the
procedure preceding the adoption of a final decision to proclaim the property a
national monument, the following documentation was inspected:
-
details of the current
condition and use of the property, including a description, architectural
survey and photographs
-
an inspection of the
current state of the property
-
a copy of the cadastral
plan
-
a copy of the Land
Register entry
-
historical, architectural
and other documentary material on the property, as set out in the bibliography
forming part of this Decision
Pursuant
to Article V para. 2 of Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Article 37 of the Rules of Procedure of the
Commission, before rendering a final decision designating a property as a
national monument, the Commission is required to provide the owner of the
proposed monument, the person submitting the petition, the institutions
responsible for heritage, professional and academic institutions, experts and
scholars, as well as other interested parties, to express their views.
Accordingly,
the Commission sent letters ref. 06.3-35.2-5/12-37 of 29 February 2012,
06.3-36.1-11/12-135 of 21 November 2012, 06.3-36.1-11/12-142 of 27 November
2012 and 06.3-36.1-19/13-23 of 27 February 2013 requesting documentation and
views on the designation of the Kebkebir hajji Ahmed (Mišćina) Mosque in
Sarajevo as a national monument to the Board of the Islamic Community of
Sarajevo, Stari Grad Municipality, the Federal Ministry of Regional Planning
and the Institute for the Protection of Monuments under the Federal Ministry of
Culture and Sport.
In
response, the Commission has received the following documentation:
-
letter ref. 03-23-2-269/12
dated 5 March 2012 from the Federal Ministry of Regional Planning notifying the
Commission to Preserve National Monuments that it has no details or
documentation on the property in question;
-
letter ref.
07-40-4-1670-1/12 dated 5 March 2012 from the Institute for the Protection of
Monuments under the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport notifying the
Commission to Preserve National Monuments that according to the Institute’s
records the property was listed and protected by the Institute for the
Protection of the Cultural and Natural Heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina under
the name Mišćina Mosque in Sarajevo;
-
letter ref. 06-31-sl. of
21 November 2012 from Stari
Grad Municipality,
Department of Proprietary Rights, Geodetics and Cadastral Affairs supplying the
documentation requested;
-
the documentation
requested, supplied on 27 February 2013 by Stari Grad Municipality, Department of Proprietary
Rights, Geodetics and Cadastral Affairs;
-
letter ref.
065-0-Rz-13-976 of 5 March 2013 from the Municipal Court in Sarajevo, Land Registry office, supplying the
documentation requested.
The
findings based on the review of the above documentation and the condition of
the property are as follows:
1. Details of the property
Location
The
Mišćina (Kebkebir hajji Ahmed) Mosque is in Mišćina St., in the residential quarter
known as Kovači, in the northern part of Stari Grad Municipality.
From the
introduction of Austro-Hungarian rule to 1948 the street was known as Zildžića St., after
one hajji Avdaga Zildžić, who had a house in the street and was highly regarded
by his neighbours and throughout the city.
In 1948
the street was renamed after Alija Alijagić, a social activist and member of
the Crvena pravda (“Red Justice”) organization. It was named Mišćina in 1993,
after the mahala as a whole.
The
National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 1583
(new survey), corresponding to c.p. no.1 (old survey), Land Register entry no.
141, cadastral municipality SP Sarajevo Mahala XCVI, and c.p. 2401/2 (new
survey), corresponding to c.p. 230 (old survey), Land Register entry no. 143,
c.m. SP Sarajevo Mahala XCVI, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
Historical background
The
historic centre of Sarajevo
consisted of two separate urban zones, the public business quarter or čaršija
and the residential zone, subdivided into numerous residential quarters known
as mahalas. Each mahala had thirty or forty houses, a mosque with a mekteb
(Qur’an school), a bakery, a greengrocer and a barber’s shop. In 1477 Sarajevo consisted of just
three mahalas, increasing to fifteen by 1516. Mula Mustafa Bašeskija recorded
that in the latter half of the 18th century Sarajevo had about a hundred mahalas with
some 4,500 houses and 23,000 inhabitants.
The
earliest reference to the mahala of Kebkebir hajji Ahmed, son of Oruč, dates
from 1528, when it was detached from the Skender-pasha mahala to become a
mahala in its own right(1).
The
Kebkebir hajji Ahmed Mosque was built in the first half of the 16th century
(1543-1557)(2). Over
the portal, where the tarih (chronogram) is mounted, is a levha
in a wooden frame with an inscription in Arabic:
صاحب الخير
و الحستنا
كبكبير
الحاج احمد
1543 (سنة ۹٦۳, 963)
Owner of
property and a hastahana [Turkish: hospital]
Kebkebir
Hajj Ahmed
Year
1543, 963 AH
The
popular names given to mosques were usually based on one of the following
features:
-
a description (the White
Mosque, the Painted Mosque, the Girls’ Mosque)
-
the materials they were
made of (the Kuršumlija Mosque – from the word for lead)
-
a toponym – the location
where they were built (the Dolnjačka Mosque, the Gornjačka Mosque – names
deriving from the words for lower and upper – the Čaršija Mosque)
-
some natural feature
beside which they were built (the Mosque under the Lime, the Cave Mosque).
They were
rarely called after their founder or other individual associated with the
mosque in the past whose memory had been preserved (an imam, a muezzin, a
mutevelija etc.). When one was destroyed or became dilapidated, as happened to
the Kebkebir hajji Ahmed Mosque after Eugene of Savoy’s 1697 campaign, another
public-spirited citizen would come forward to restore it in full or in part. In
such cases the mosque retained the name of its original founder, though
sometimes a mosque and mahala would become known after the person who rebuilt
it.
This
mosque and mahala were known as Mišćina after the muezzin, whose contemporary,
the chronicler Bašeskija, recorded the following observation: “At dawn he would
sing the paeon, his voice filling the city.”(3) Vlajko Palevestra(4) writes
that one Mehmed, son of Jusuf, nicknamed Mišćija or Mišćo, a belukčija
making women’s clothes, jelek [heavily embroidered waistcoats], fermen
[open-fronted, braided waistcoats] and so on, lived in a mahala at Ploča, above
Kovači. This Mišćo was the muezzin of the Kebkebir hajji Ahmed Mosque, who
would ascend the minaret every day at dawn to wake the city with his voice. He
became famous in old Sarajevo
for this, as is clear from the fact that the kebkebir hajji Ahmed Mosque, of
which Mišćo was the muezzin until well into old age, was named after him, as
was the mahala – Mišćina (Mišćo’s) mosque and mahala. He died in Sarajevo in 1786/87, and
was buried in the Kovači graveyard across the way from the Mišćina Mosque. His
property, amounting to 77,736 akças, was listed in a sidžil (court record)
on 21 Shabaan 1201 (9 June 1787)(5).
Sidžils
and other sources include several documents and deeds of gifts by which local
residents endowed property for this mosque.
Hafiz
Muhammed-efendi Baki Džino-zade(6) secured
himself a place among Sarajevo’s
leading vakifs (donors, legatees). For example, in 1813 he endowed his
konak and several properties for the upkeep and repair of the mosque. The 1813
budget of hafiz Džino’s endowments is kept in the Turkish archives of the Gazi
Husrev-bey Library.
Thirteen
years earlier, hajji Fatima, the daughter of hajji Ahmed-aga Džino, endowed a
storeroom at Varoš, with two rooms above, earmarking the income for the lamps
of the mosque(7).
Hajji
Omer Karić, son of Muharem, from the same mahala, endowed a bakery with three
rooms above, a storeroom, a general store and a house in Čekrekčija mahala, the
income to be used to pay the mosque officials and repair the mosque. This
endowment dates from 1844(8).
In 1870
the mosque was decorated by Mustafa Fagin(9), the second and most prominent nakaš (painter) in a series
of artists from the Faginović family.
2. Description of the property
The
Mišćina (Kebkebir hajji Ahmed) Mosque belongs to the type of single-space
mosque with hipped roof and stone minaret(10). It consists of a portico with sofas occupying the width of the
north-west entrance front, the main prayer hall, and a stone minaret. The
prayer hall and portico are covered by a hipped roof.
The
mosque is rectangular in plan, measuring approx. 11.33 m wide x 12.00 m long,
or about 11.33 x 15.80 m including the portico. The walls of the main carcass,
which are about 80 cm thick, are of unfired brick with wooden tie beams,
plastered and painted inside and out.
Portico with sofas
The sofas
of the mosque measure 4.13 x 3.79 m, with a height of 0.35 m, and have wooden
floorboards. Between them is a passageway about 2.05 m in width leading to the
mosque portal. The abdesthana (premises for ritual ablutions), built in
1997, is on the left-hand sofa.
Between
the wooden 13 x 15 cm posts of the portico is a wooden railing with a height of
1.33 m on a base wall which varies in height, reflecting the slope on which the
mosque stands. The entrance gateway, which is about 1.90 m in height, is of
wooden boards. The wooden posts are linked on the entrance front of the portico
by round arches composed of wooden boards; the sides of the portico are walled
in. The roof timbers over the portico are concealed by wooden boards.
Entrance portal
The
portal, which is about 5.10 m high and 2.50 m wide, with a height to the tarih
(chronogram) of about 2.73 m, projects out from the wall face by about 26 cm. Above
the arched doorway is a niche in the form of a stepped arch, where the tarih
was once mounted and which is now occupied by a levha in a wooden frame.
Two
decorations in the form of circles standing 2-3 cm proud of the wall are set
symmetrically over the arched doorway.
The
double wooden doors are set in a doorway about 1.26 m wide x 2.06 m high
(daylight opening) or 1.62 x 2.26 m (masonry opening). They are divided into
square and rectangular panels decorated with carved rosettes; each door is
fitting with a decorative metal rosette and door knocker.
Prayer hall
The
portico leads into the main prayer hall, which is about 9.80 m wide x 10.00 m long,
with a ceiling height of about 5.60 m. All the inside walls are plastered and
whitewashed. The prayer hall contains a mihrab, mimber, ćurs and mahfil.
Mihrab
The
mihrab in the south-east wall of the mosque, directly opposite the entrance
portal, is 1.98 m wide overall, with a niche about 98 cm wide surrounded by a
rectangular frame. The mihrab frame is about 4 metres in height, with a width
on the right of 52 cm and on the left of 48 cm. The frame stands 26 cm proud of
the wall face, and is decorated with a close-packed polychrome floral design
painted on plaster. The decoration consists of the following components: on the
upper level, three sets of lines following the outline of the mihrab frame, a
moon and stars set symmetrically on either side of the frame, and on the lower
level, stars and two pillars or supports set symmetrically on each side of the
frame, bearing vases of flowers. The niche, with a radius of 72 cm, is topped
by six rows of stalactites (muqarnas). The leaves of the floral decoration
are thickly intertwined. Inside, the niche is decorated with four pillars with
capitals decorated with floral motifs in yellow, green and brown. These colours
dominate the inside of the niche, while the mihrab frame also has touches of
red. The upper level of the frame includes a central framed levha with an
Arabic inscription:
كلما دخل
عليها زكريا المحراب
Whenever
Zachariah went into her [Mary] in the Sanctuary [mihrab]
(Sura
al-Imran v. 37)
The
mimber, which is to the right of the mihrab, is about 3.62 m long, 77 cm
wide, and 5.60 m high. It consists of an entrance portal formed by a wooden
frame over which is a moulded wooden slat with a floral decoration, a
twelve-step staircase with wooden stair rails on each side, and a podium or
kjurs at the top. The kjurs is surrounded by four uprights carrying the canopy,
above which is the top of the minber, consisting of a low octagonal drum and
polygonal roof. The triangular sides of the minber below the stairs are
enclosed, with five small pointed arches at the base. The mimber is painted
green(11).
Ćurs
The ćurs,
the pulpit from which sermons are preached in the mosque, is by the south-east
wall, right of the mihrab. Measuring 79 x 79 cm, it consists of four pillars
with moulded tops, joined on two sides by a wooden railing. The lower part of
the ćurs has moulded openings.
Mahfil
The
mahfil or gallery is a “front mahfil,” occupying the full length of the
north-west mosque wall. Measuring 8.36 x 2.30 m, it is wooden, resting on four
wooden posts measuring respectively 12 x 13 cm, 19 x 20 cm, 20 x 20 cm and 22 x
20 cm in section, standing on concrete bases, except for one of the central
posts, which still has its original stone base. One post is set by the side
wall of the mosque, another by the minaret wall, with the other two between,
2.80 m apart. Midway along the mahfil, over the central posts, is a
semicircular tribune about 77 cm long for the muezzin. The mahfil railing is
about 40 cm high, with an additional railing about 90 cm high. The area beneath
the mahfil constitutes an interior sofa measuring 3.62 x 1.97 m, surrounded by
an L-shaped railing about 76 cm high. Access to the mahfil is via the stone
minaret steps. The mahfil is painted green.
According
to the description in the file on the mosque drawn up in 1959 by the Institute
for the Protection of the Cultural Heritage of BiH, the wooden mahfil of the
Mišćina Mosque was fairly extensively decorated with carving.
Façades
From the
outside, a particular feature of the mosque is the row of round openings below
the eaves.
The
mosque has fourteen arched windows, two on the north-east façade and four each
on the south-east, south-west and north-west facades. The windows are in two
ranks, except for those of the north-east façade, which are both upper windows.
All the lower windows are rectangular, 105 cm wide and 152 cm high, with a small
pointed-arched opening above each, of the same width as the window, and with a
rise of 60 cm. These windows are fitted on the outside with iron grilles. The
upper windows, set directly above the lower, are arched; they are of the same
width as the lower windows, but are about 2 m high.
In
addition to these windows, there are another eleven glazed oculi in wooden
frames, three on each façade except for the north-west, where there are two. These
round windows, with a diameter of 40 cm, are set between and level with the top
of the upper windows. Two on the north-east wall have been closed off to allow
for the installation of air conditioning units, as has one of those on the
north-west wall. The façades are plastered, and the two air conditioning units
can be seen on the north-east façade.
The stone
structure of the minaret can be seen on the south-west façade. The minaret
is entered from the prayer hall, through an arched wooden door of about 174 x
72 cm, set 16 cm above floor level. The door to the mahfil is at a height of
about 3 m. The stone šerefe (minaret balcony) is at a height of about 13
m. It is surrounded by plain stone slabs not accentuated by moulded string
courses above and below. The minaret is clad with sheet copper, and surmounted
by a lead alem (finial) with three equal-sized orbs.
The
mosque has a hipped roof with a pitch of about 30°.
Wall paintings
“The
dervish orders came early to Bosnia
and probably played an essential role in Islamization and the development of
Muslim towns(12). Many people
from the Bosnian sanjak joined these orders, which did much to disseminate
knowledge of philosophy and to foster poetry and literature, and the decorative
arts of calligraphy and miniature paintings(13).
There is
extensive evidence of art deriving from the prayer customs of the dervish
orders in Bosnia and
Herzegovina’s mosques and tekkes, as well as
in private collections and libraries.
The wall
paintings showing Medina (277 x 165 cm) and Mecca (276 x 166 cm) on the
north-east inside wall of the Mišćina Mosque are the work of Mustafa Fagin, who
was influenced by the teachings of the Dala’il al-Khayrat, composed and
studied by the Naqshbandiyya order in particular, which begin with images of
Mecca and Medina(14).
A
comparative analysis of earlier and somewhat later scenes of Mecca and Medina
in manuscripts of the Dala'il al-Khayrat in the Balkans (Dala'il
al-Khayrat, Medina, 18th century; Museum of the Applied Arts,
Belgrade; Dala'il al-Khayrat, Medina and Mecca, 1902, National
Archives, Skopje)(15) reveals
that in Mustafa Fagin’s composition every space is filled, and that the
principles of composition he based his work on are those of the historical
cartographic art of Turkish miniatures, themselves influenced by Persian art(16).
An
interesting feature of the view of Medina
to which Mustafa Fagin accords particular significance is the Jannat al-Bakki
burial ground, a detail that could lead scholars to the model he used for his
wall paintings, since it does not feature in miniatures. When the mosque was
restored, only fragments of the wall on which the holy places were painted were
retained, and the areas of wall between them were whitewashed. The original
composition has thus been broken up into the three fragments now on the wall. These
surviving fragments were coated with transparent acrylic varnish, to the
serious detriment of the colour scheme, and the murals are also at risk because
of the low diffusion coefficient of the acrylic. The present state of the wall
paintings also makes it more difficult to study the composition, the surviving
part of which abounds in details, with particular emphasis on the Prophet’s
Mosque in the veduta of Medina, and on the Kaba
in the veduta of Mecca.
Unlike such views in miniatures, where the composition is in portrait
(vertical) format, these are in landscape format, and shown from a bird’s-eye
view. The scene of Mecca
is dominated by the Ka’ba in the centre of the Masjid al-Haram (Holy Mosque),
while the rest of the town is depicted around the mosque, filling every part of
the scene. The side walls of the Holy Mosque slant inwards, and are echoed by
the surrounding buildings, creating an impression of depth. The scene of Medina is similar in composition to that of Mecca, except that much of
the painting, apart from the Prophet’s Mosque in the centre, is dominated by
the ramparts surrounding the entire townscape. The same perspective is applied
to create a sense of depth with the buildings around the mosque and beyond the
ramparts. In both scenes there are no empty spaces, which the artist achieved
by incorporating features from the natural surroundings (Mecca
is surrounded by rocks, and Medina
by tall trees). Faginović paid meticulous attention to each building, painting
the features of the Holy Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque in minute detail.
Nišans of muezzin Mišćo
The grave
of Mehmed Mišćo son of Jusuf across the way from the mosque is marked by two
small green nišan gravestones. The grave was known to exist, but had become
buried under about a metre of soil, so mutevelija Mustafa Korić arranged for it
to be dug out. The position of the grave was carefully chosen; on festival
days, when the muezzin is squatting in the mahfil tribune, all that can be seen
through the window to the right of the mihrab is Mišćo’s grave, which is in
line with the point in front of the mimber where the muezzin recites the
convocation to prayer. When stepping into the minaret, the first thing to be
seen is the grave.
The grave
of the famous muezzin Mišćo is opposite the mosque, in the old Kovači burial
ground, on a slope, separate from the others and surrounded by a stone
retaining wall of about 2.80 x 1.50 m.
Both
nišans are damaged.
Nišan no.
1
Man’s
nišan with pleated turban, measuring 12 x 13 x 61 cm, without epitaph.
Nišan no.
2 (footstone)
Octagonal
nišan with sides of 6 cm and a height of 51 cm.
3. Legal status to date
The
property was subject to statutory protection pursuant to the provisions of the
law and by ruling of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of
NR BiH in Sarajevo no.678/50 of 9 June 1950,
placing the Mišćina (Kebkebir Hajji Ahmed) Mosque in Sarajevo under state protection.
4. Research and conservation-restoration
works
-
the mosque has been
renovated on several occasions
-
the record of the property
at the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of NR Bosnia and Herzegovina
states that repairs were carried out on the minaret in 1958. The old
hollow tiles and board underlay were removed, and the roof was reclad with
interlocking tiles
-
the façades were repaired
and repainted
-
the woodwork and interior(17) were painted with oil paint(18)
-
reeds were laid over the
ceiling, which was then plastered
-
the ceiling was then
decorated in colour, but these decorations were overpainted in white during the
1997 works
-
the frescoes, which were
beginning to come away from the ground, were varnished over.
The
minaret was repaired in 1980, when it acquired its present appearance. Rebars
were laid around the minaret and then overlaid with cement mortar.
The
mosque took two hits from shells during the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina,
one at the base of the minaret, the other near the top of the roof.
The
following works were carried out on the mosque in 1997:
-
the roof timbers were
reinforced by laying ridge tiles and new slats. New tiles were laid, with metal
flashings and snow guards
-
the sofas and the entire
wooden entrance area were completely replaced, piece by piece
-
the abdesthana and
fountain were installed
-
the mosque was painted
white inside
-
double windows were
installed – previously the mosque had had inside windows only. The windows were
painted green
-
the wall paintings were
conserved(19).
Works
carried out in 2003:
-
installation of underfloor
heating
-
rewiring
-
lighting installed on the
minaret.
Arrangements
were made in the 1950s for a copy to be made of the wall paintings in
the mosque. The copies were then displayed in the Sarajevo Museum
(which then occupied the Shari’a Judges’ School building, now the Faculty of
Islamic Studies)(20).
5. Current condition of the
property
The
findings of an on-site inspection conducted in March 2012 are that the mosque
is in good condition.
6. Specific risks
-
unskilled and
inappropriate interventions to the wall paintings and mihrab
-
use of in appropriate
modern materials during maintenance works, installation of air conditioning and
gas boiler
III – CONCLUSION
Applying
the Criteria for the adoption of a decision on designating a property as a
national monument of Bosnia
and Herzegovina
(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
D. Clarity
(documentary, scientific and educational value)
D.iv. evidence of a particular type, style or
regional manner
D.v. evidence of a typical way of life at a
specific period
E. Symbolic value
E.i. ontological value
E.ii. religious value
E.iii. traditional value
E.iv. relation to rituals or ceremonies
E.v. significance for the identity of a group
of people
F. Towncape value
F.i. relation to other elements of the site
F.ii. meaning in the townscape
F.iii. the building or group of buildings is part
of a group or site.
G. Authenticity
G.i. form and design
G.ii. material and content
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
H.ii. outstanding work of art or architecture
H.iii. work of a prominent artist, architect or
craftsman
The
following documents form an integral part of this Decision:
-
copy of cadastral plan
-
proof of title
-
photodocumentation
(photographs of the Kebkebir hajji Ahmed (Mišćina) Mosque taken in March 2012
-
drawings (architectural
drawing of the mosque in its present state by Milka Grujić BSc.Arch and Mejra
Hodžić BSc.Arch.)
Bibliography
During
the procedure to designate the Kebkebir hajji Ahmed (Mišćina) Mosque in Sarajevo as a national
monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina
the following works were consulted:
1913. Kemura, Šejh Sejfudin. Sarajevske džamije i druge javne zgrade
turske dobe (Sarajevo’s
mosques and other public buildings of the Turkish period). Sarajevo: 1913.
1939. Nametak, Alija. Islamski kulturni spomenici turskog perioda u
Bosni i Hercegovini (Islamic cultural monuments of the Turkish period in
BiH). Sarajevo:
Državna štamparija u Sarajevu, 1939.
1953. Bejtić, Alija. “Spomenici osmanlijske arhitekture u Bosni i
Hercegovini” (Monuments of Ottoman architecture in Bosnia and Herzegovina), in: Prilozi
za orijentalnu filologiju i istoriju jugoslovenskih naroda pod turskom
vladavinom (Contributions to oriental philology and the history of the
Yugoslav peoples under Turkish rule), volume. III-IV. Sarajevo: Oriental Institute, Veselin
Masleša, 1953.
1960. Šabanović, Hazim. Postanak i razvoj Sarajeva (The origins
and development of Sarajevo), proceedings of the
Scientific Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina, vol. 5. Sarajevo: 1960.
1968. Bejtić, Alija. Stara sarajevska Čaršija, jučer, danas i sutra
(The old Sarajevo
Čaršija, yesterday, today and tomorrow). Sarajevo:
Stambeno preduzeće Sarajevo,
1968.
1982. Redžić, Husref. Umetnost na tlu Jugoslavije, Islamska
umjetnost (Art in Yugoslavia:
Islamic Art). Belgrade:
Izdavački zavod Jugoslavija, 1982.
1982. Šabanović, Hazim. Bosanski pašaluk (The Bosnian pashaluk).
Sarajevo: 1982.
1983. Redžić, Husref. Studije o islamskoj arhitektonskoj baštini
(Studies on the Islamic Architectural Heritage). Sarajevo: Veselin Masleša, 1983.
1984. Andrejević, Andrej. Islamska monumentalna umetnost XVI veka u
Jugoslaviji (16th century Islamic monumental art in Yugoslavia),
study 6. Belgrade:
1984.
1985. Skarić, Vladislav. Izabrana djela, knjiga I, Sarajevo i njegova okolina od
najstarijih vremena do austrougarske okupacije (Selected Works, Bk. I, Sarajevo and environs
from ancient times to the Austro-Hungarian occupation). Sarajevo: Cultural Heritage Series, 1985.
1987. Bašeskija, Mula Mustafa Ševki. Ljetopis 1746-1804
(Chronicle 1746-1804). Sarajevo:
1987.
1991. Kreševljaković, Hamdija. Izabrana djela II, Esnafi i obrti u
Bosni i Hercegovini (1463-1878) (Selected Works II – guilds and trades in
BiH 1463-1878). Sarajevo:
Veselin Masleša, 1991.
1996. Çelebi, Evliya. Putopis – odlomci o jugoslovenskim zemljama
(Travelogue – Excerpts on Yugoslav countries). Sarajevo:
Sarajevo
Publishing, 1996.
1998. Mujezinović, Mehmed. Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovine
(Islamic epigraphics of Bosnia
and Herzegovina), bk. I. Sarajevo:
Sarajevo-Publishing, 1998.
1999. Bećirbegović, Madžida. Džamije sa drvenom munarom u Bosni i
Hercegovini (Mosques with wooden minarets in BiH). Sarajevo:
Sarajevo
Publishing, 1999.
2003. Palevestra, Vlajko. Legende iz starog Sarajeva (Legends of
old Sarajevo).
Zemun: 2003.
2009. ANALI - Gazi Husrev-begove biblioteke, Knjiga XXIX-XXX. Sarajevo: 2009.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/74606001/Anali-Gazi-Husrev-begove-biblioteke-u-Sarajevu-knjiga-29-30-2009
accessed 29 February 2012
Izvještaj
o radu Zemaljskog zavoda za zaštitu spomenika kulture i prirodnih rijetkosti u
Sarajevu u 1958 (Report on the work of the National institute for the Protection
of Cultural Monuments and Natural Rarities in Sarajevo in 1958)
http://www.fmksa.com/download/zzs/1959/29-1959.pdf accessed 29 February 2012
2010. Halimić, Enes. Iz mape Faginovića (From the Faginović portfolio).
Sarajevo: Bošnjački
Institut – Fondacija Adila Zulfikarpašića, Print Line, 2010.
(1) Mujezinović,
Mehmed, Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovine, knjiga I - Sarajevo, Sarajevo:
Sarajevo Publishing, 1998, 273-274
(2) The levha
states that the mosque was built in 1543, but other sources, including the
records of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of NR BiH,
state that it was built in 1557.
(3) The muezzin
performs the iqama or convocation to prayer, leads dhikr
(praising God after namaz/salah or ritual prayer), and performs the adhan or
call to prayer for each of the five obligatory daily prayers
(4) Palevestra, Vlajko, Legende
iz starog Sarajeva, Zemun: 2003, 69
(5) Bašeskija,
Mula Mustafa Ševki, Ljetopis 1746-1804, Sarajevo: 1987, 259
(6) Hajji hafiz
Muhammed Baki was born in Sarajevo
in the mid 18th century. He sometimes signed his name as Muhammad Abdulbaki
(and his son signed himself Abdulbaki), but more often as Muhammad Baki Džino
or Džinozade. Muhammad-aga Džino was one of Sarajevo’s leading vakifs (donors,
legatees). He founded two mektebs, the first of which, a boys’ mekteb, was in
the Čekrekči Muslihuddin mahala. He endowed a caravanserai and a storeroom for
its maintenance, and prescribed that the income be spent on repairing vakuf
(pious endowment) buildings and for the salary of 30 florins for the mu’allim
(teacher). Džino’s caravanserai, which was in Kovači, had room for 20 people
and 20 horses. The other mekteb was in Hubjaraga’s mahala, and for its
maintenance Džino endowed a women’s hammam, known as the Mehmed pasha hammam,
in Sheikh Ferrah mahala. This single domed hammam was built before 1554, and
purchased by Džino before 1771. It was demolished after 1848, and the building
materials were reused to build a caravanserai. Džino’s original vakufnama
(deed of endowment) of 27 Safar 1185 (11 June 1771) is kept in the archives of
Muhammed Enveri Kadić. Funds from Džino’s vakuf were used to build a wooden
bridge at Bendbaša in Sarajevo
in 1782. Mehmedović, Ahmed, “Hadži hafiz
Muhammed Baqi Džino-zade - sarajevski kadija, vakif, kaligraf i bibliofil,” ANALI
- Gazi Husrev-begove biblioteke, Knjiga XXIX-XXX, Sarajevo:
2009, 225-236
(7) Mehmedović,
Ahmed, “Hadži hafiz Muhammed Baqi Džino-zade - sarajevski kadija, vakif,
kaligraf i bibliofil,” ANALI - Gazi Husrev-begove biblioteke, Knjiga
XXIX-XXX, Sarajevo:
2009, 225-236
(8)
Mujezinović, Mehmed, Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovine, knjiga I - Sarajevo, Sarajevo:
Sarajevo Publishing, 1998, 273-274
(9) The
Faginović family of artists, one of Sarajevo’s
leading traditional art houses, occupies a special place in the rich and
diverse cultural history of Ottoman-period Sarajevo.
The family produced several generations of outstanding calligraphers and
painters, including Mustafa Faginzade and Ali Šeriš Faginović, a famous
calligraphy teacher. Mustafa Fagin was born in Sarajevo
in 1839 and died in Istanbul
in 1900. Halimić, Enes, Iz mape Faginovića, Bošnjački Institut – Fondacija
Adila Zulfikarpašića, Print Line, Sarajevo, 2010, p.11-12
(10) There are many
more mosques with hipped roof and stone minaret than there are domed
mosques. Statistics from 1993 reveal
that there were 223 mosques with hipped roof and stone minaret in Bosnia and
Herzegovina as a whole, with Sarajevo in first place with 34 (now 26), only
three of which were built in the 15th century. The rest date from the 16th
century but their present appearance dates from the 18th, as most of Sarajevo’s mosques were burned down in 1697, when Prince
Eugene of Savoy set fire to Sarajevo. Bećirbegović, Madžida, Džamije sa
drvenom munarom u Bosni i Hercegovini, Sarajevo Publishing, Sarajevo, 1999, p. 43
(11) A
gas-fired boiler has been installed on the wall next to the mimber (op. MH)
(12) “The first
dervish tekke [lodge] in Sarajevo, the Isakbegova tekija, belonging to the
Mevlevi order, was built before 1463; another, the Skender-paša, of the
Naqshbandi order, was built in 1500, and two more important tekkes (the
Sinan-paša and the and Bistrigina) were added in the seventeenth century. . . Evliya Çelebi counted forty-seven altogether
in Sarajevo in
the mid seventeenth century. . . As well as being centres of local fellowship
and piety, the tekkes were also part of a huge international network.” Noel Malcolm, Bosnia:
A Short History, 2nd ed., Macmillan, 1996, 104.
(13) Ibid,
103-4
(14) The wall
paintings in the Mišćina Mosque are unique in their coloured scenes of Mecca and Medina. Among Sufis, and in particular the
Naqshbandiyya order, it is customary to recite prayers for the Prophet Muhammad
a.s. from the most famous collection of litanies known as the Dala’il
al-KhaayratI, composed by Sheikh Suleyman Jazuli in the first half of the
15th century. It was widely transcribed, and the illuminations invariably
included miniatures of Mecca and Medina. Mustafa Fagin
drew on his experience of painting miniatures for manuscripts when painting the
murals of the Mišćina Mosque. Enes Halimić, op.cit., 12.
(15) Zagorka
Janac, Islamska minijatura, Beograd:
Prosveta [1985.], 54, 55, 104, 105.
(16) Map of Istanbul, Nesuh Es-Silahi El-Matrakči, 1573, from Beyan-i
Menazil-i Sefer-i Irekeyn (A tale of the famous campaign on the two Iraqs), Istanbul,
University Library. See Luca Mozzati, Islamska umjetnost, Sarajevo: Šahinpašić
[2011], 245. [Also available in English: Luca Mozzati, Islamic Art,
Prestel, 2010, 245, previewable on the Amazon UK site. Trans.]
(17) The mosque
walls were painted to a height of about 120 cm with oil paint to imitate wood.
The work was carried out by Orlo Alija and Goro Salih, who also began working
on the mihrab, but never completed it.
(18) The works
were financed by the Vakuf, in the amount of 370,000 dinars.
(19) According to
Mustafa Korić, the paintings were glued to the base by qualified persons hired
specially for the purpose. He was unable
to tell me who they were
(20)
Information provided on 3 June 2012 by Mustafa Korić, former mutevelija (whose
father was also mutevelija of the Mišćina Mosque).
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