Fethija mosque - Bihać (BH_06)
Country or territory: Bosnia and Herzegovina
Name of organisation compiling the information: Commission to Preserve National Monuments
Contact name: Mirela Mulaluć Handan
Email address: mirela.m.handan@kons.gov.ba
Name and address of building(s) or site: The Fethija Mosque, Bihać
Inventory reference number(s): 08.2-6-795/03-8
Building type(s): Monumental, architectural ensemble consisting of a mosque, harem (courtyard/burial ground) and nine gravestones. Religious building
Main date(s): 13th or late 14th century
Current use(s): Mosque from 1592 to the present day
Church from the 13th or late 14th century to 1592
Significance
In the middle ages the town developed as a free royal borough with a fortress and two monasteries, one Dominican and one Franciscan, several churches, a large number of commercial and residential buildings, and several defense towers. In the sixteenth century, Bihać and its surrounding fortresses became part of the so-called Military Frontier consisting of a defensive zone fortified against the increasingly frequent incursions by Ottoman troops. The Ottoman Army, led by the Bey of the Segedin Sanjak, Hasan Pasha Predojević, occupied the town in June 1592.
The Gothic Church of St Anthony has survived to this day. After the conquest of Bihać, it was turned into a mosque and given the name Fethija (from fath, victory), as were mosques in Jajce (St Mary's Church) and Soko near Gračanica.
There is no reliable document providing the exact date of construction. Stylistically, it appears to date from the late fourteenth century. Marko Vego notes that it was built in 1266 and that it served as the borough church under Dominican administration. In Mujezinović's view, the building probably dated from the fourteenth century, since a plaque close to the apse bore the date 1400. He also notes that there was a Dominican monastery alongside the church, to which there is reference in the thirteenth century.
The Gothic bell tower of the building served as a minaret until 1863, when it was so dilapidated that it was pulled down and a new minaret was erected.
After Bosnia and Herzegovina was occupied by the Austro-Hungarians, the Franciscans built a new church, since they were unable to agree with the authorities on the restitution of the building to the Catholic Church.
During World War II the mosque was damaged – the roof and all the wooden elements in the interior were burned down, and there was damage to the minaret. After World War II conservation works on building were carried out.
General information
The building has a rectangular ground plan, with a length of 22 and a width of 11.5 m. The building was largely constructed of precisely square-cut blocks of bihacite laid in even rows. The thickness of the walls at the base ranges form 1.1 to 1.2 m.
The north side of the building is partly plastered, with layers of hardcore visible beneath the plaster. There was an apse on the east wall, which was removed when the church was turned into a mosque, and two new rectangular windows were added. There is also a small rosette window on the same wall, dating from the same period. The place where the apse formerly stood is visible from the exterior.
On the south side, which is entirely built of finely dressed cut stone blocks, there are two large Gothic windows at approximately the same distance from the corners of the buildings, of rectangular shape and terminating in broken arches. The window frames are of diagonally cut stone with very restrained moulding on the inner side. The Ottomans partly walled up these windows, leaving only a small aperture. During the Austro-Hungarian period the windows were restored to their original condition. At the end of the south wall, by the eastern corner of the building, there is a smaller window, which probably belonged to the presbytery of the church. The walls of the building terminate in a cornice extending the full length of the building except at the point where the minaret breaks it. The front facade of the building is entirely in the Gothic style, visible both in its proportions and the proportions and treatment of the portal and rosette.
There are four round columns on either side in the portal, with a flattened column between each. The frieze is 25 cm wide and 90 cm long. There are eight carved flowers on either side. The door is 1.7 m. wide and 3.12 m high, terminating in a profiled round arch and a Gothic arch.
There is a rosette above the portal, made of diagonally cut pieces of stone that were then smoothed. The outer edge of the window is rounded and moulded. The eight arms of the rosette are also of moulded stone and take the form of stylized petals.
There are also two short stone brackets on the same wall, the first 2 m from the north corner of the building and the second below the rosette and above the door. These brackets are 4 m apart and there was no doubt formerly a third, removed when the minaret was built. They were probably intended to hold small sculptures of saints (Jusić, 173). The ends of the south and north walls of the building project 20 cm from the surface of the east wall giving them the appearance of pilasters.
The interior of the building measures 20.8 m long x 9.13 m wide, and is plastered so that the stone of the walls is not visible. When the church was turned into a mosque, the interior was adapted, with a mihrab built and the floor raised at an angle in front of it to adjust the orientation towards the south-east. A minber and ćurs were also added.
By the entrance to the building a mahvil, 6.00 m. deep and two storeys high was made, taking advantage of the considerable height of the building. The mahvil is made of wood and rests on six wooden pillars with corbels in three transverse rows and on two storeys.
The entrance to the minaret of the Fethija mosque is situated on the second storey of the mahvil.
The minaret of the Fethija mosque is built of the same stone as the building, and stands where the Gothic steeple stood until its demolition. Its proportions and the way the stone blocks are dressed indicate that it is the work of an outstanding stonemason.
All the cornices, like the šerefe (balcony) of the minaret, are richly decorated with rope-twist and globular projections. The šerefe railing is also in stone, but has been left plain except for a single band of 10 cm at the top. The top of the barrel of the minaret is decorated with blind broken arches and a shallow stone cornice.
The mosque was originally roofed with wooden shingles, later replaced by plain tiles.
Stonemasons' marks
On the outer surfaces of the walls, almost every stone block bears a stonemason's mark. There are 22 different marks in all, if one counts those facing different directions. There appears to be no rule as to where the marks were placed, which leads to the conclusion that they were not intended to indicate the order in which the blocks were to be laid, but rather to designate the stonemason who had cut them so as to ensure that each craftsman was paid for the work he completed. In addition to the stonemasons' marks on the west wall, there are some graffiti around the portal, which have not been deciphered.
Inscriptions
There are two inscriptions on the Fethija mosque. The more recent is above the entrance to the mosque, and records the restoration of the mosque in 1312 AH (1894 CE), while the older is on the base of the minaret, carved into a stone plaque measuring 1.6 x 0.9 m, with a smaller plaque with the date below it. The inscription reads:
This minaret was erected, which is without peer, and this venerable mosque was restored, for the noble rule of the head of the illustrious Ottoman family, protector of the faith, sustainer of cities, our lord Sultan Abdul-Aziz-han.
The smaller plaque, measuring 90 x 60 cm, bears an inscription reading:
1280 (1863). Written by the humble Hilmi, kajmekam [district head] of Bihać, on the Eternal, the Sustainer.
The small plaque above the entrance to the mosque bears this inscription:
Ya Fattah! This venerable mosque was in great need of repair and with the financial help of the state and the help of the population the roof was repaired and the entire interior painted and decorated. The renovation was happily completed in 1312 (1894).
Harem
There is a harem by the Fethija mosque, with several nišan tombstones of which two are dated and bear epitaphs.
Gravestones
Before World War I, nine gravestones were taken from the Fethija mosque in Bihać to the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo (inventory nos. 5780-5788 of the Museum's Mediaeval Collection). The slabs had been built into the floor of the entrance to the building in such a way that their reverse sides were uppermost, which meant that they were very well preserved. Before the church was turned into a mosque some were probably built into the right-hand wall of the church, and others into the left-hand and more noticeable side (Vego, 1954, 269).
The slabs date from 1519 to 1565, and most of them were from the graves of members of the Croatian nobility serving in and around Bihać. They were made of the local stone, bihacite, which is easily worked. From the treatment of the slabs it is clear that some of them were made by the same master craftsman or came from the same school. All the epitaphs are in Latin, in both Humanistic and Gothic script. There are errors in the language, particularly in the recording of the years.
Research and Conservation and Restoration Works
- thirteenth century – building erected.
- early nineteenth century – part of windows walled up.
- 1863 – Gothic tower pulled down and minaret built.
- 1894 – repairs to the building, when the gravestones were found set into the floor.
- late 19th/early 20th century – windows restored to original condition.
- 1946 – šerefe of the minaret repaired.
- 1954 – minaret repaired, paid for by voluntary contributions.
- 1966 – repair works to the ceiling and roof structure.
- parts of stone cornice made.
- 1968 – works to the interior of the building: windows, repairs to mahvil, reconstruction of the minber, plastering interior walls.
- during these works, discovery of niches in north wall.
- 2000 – repair works to the roof structure.
- 2000 – archaeological investigations:
- test dig I, 2.00 x 2.00 metres, alongside north wall;
- test dig II, 2.00 x 2.00 metres, alongside north-west corner of the building.
The purpose of the archaeological investigations was to determine how deep the foundations of the main building were and whether it stood on its own foundations or walls from an earlier period or whether it was built on living rock. The dig was conducted by a team from the Pounje Regional Museum in Bihać headed by Mulabdić Enver, graduate archaeologist. In test dig I, the first layer to be removed consisted of turf (grass and soil), and the next two of rubble largely consisting of soil and stone. The living rock appeared at a depth of 10 cm to the north of the cut and 30 cm to the south of the cut in test dig I. The north wall of the main building stood on a wall built to level the terrain. The stone was split and bonded set on a base of lime mortar. This leveling wall was about 30 cm high. Once a level base had been achieved, the bihacite masonry began.
In test dig II, the living rock appeared at a depth of about 40 cm. There were no archaeological finds in either dig. The north west corner of the building was partly dug into the rock, probably for stability and as a result of leveling the ground.
The findings of test dig 1 did not fully answer the question whether there had been another building – the Dominican monastery, or another construction – alongside the north wall of the building. The use of two different types of stone in the eastern half of the north wall suggests this, as do four stones found in the centre of the dig, bonded to the living rock with lime mortar. This is not enough to reach firm conclusions, however.
Categories of significance
- Of outstanding national importance.
Categories of ownership or interest
- Of national interest.
Documentation and bibliliographic references
Documentation
The following documentation is in possession of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments
- Documentation on the location and current owner and user of the property (copy of cadastral plan and copy of land registry entry).
- Data on the previous and current condition and use of the property, including a description and photographs, data of war damage if any, data on restoration or other works on the property if any, etc.
- Historical, architectural and other documentary material on the property, as set out in the bibliography.
Bibliography
1. Documentation of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.
2. Ayverdi, Dr Ekrem Hakki. AVRUPA 'DA OSMANLY MIMARI ESERLERI, II f.3 kitab. Istambul: Baha Matabaasi, 1981.
3. Bećirbegović, Madžida. Džamije sa drvenom munarom u Bosni i Hercegovini (Mosques with wooden minarets in BiH). Sarajevo: Sarajevo Publishing, 1999, 70, 71.
4. Jusić, Enisa. Srednjevijekovna crkva sv. Antuna – sadašnja džamija Fethija u Bihaću (The mediaeval church of St Anthony – now the Fethija mosque in Bihać), collected papers of the regional museum VII, 169-177.
5. Lopašić, Radoslav. Bihać i Bihaćka krajina (Bihać and the Bihać frontier region). Zagreb: 1890.
6. Mujezinović, Mehmed. Islamska epigrafika Bosne i Hercegovine (Islamic epigraphics of BiH), Vol. 3, 3rd ed. Sarajevo: Cultural heritage series, Sarajevo Publishing, 1998, 61-65.
7. Report on archaeological dig Fethija 2000. Bihać: Pounja Museum Bihać, 2000.
8. Truhelka, Ćiro. Sredovječni spomenici Bosanske Hrvatske (Mediaeval monuments of the Bosnian Croats). Zagreb: Hrvatsko kolo XXIII, 1942.
9. Vego, Marko. “Crkva sv. Ante (Fetija džamija)” (St Anthony's Church – Fetija mosque), Naše starine. Sarajevo: 1954, 255-268.
Condition
Very poor
- In 2000, the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina inspected the condition of the building, and found that the minaret of the Fethija mosque was cracking alarmingly along the joints, both horizontally and vertically, along the barrel of the minaret up to the top, which is threatening the stability of the minaret. The cracks are visible although the whole of the body of the minaret which is covered with a strong mixture of cement and terrazzo, having an aggressive effect on the stone. Local inhabitants are contributing, by their works on the interior, to the very bad condition of the building.
Amount of war or associated damage
- No damage.
Risk
The mosque is at risk of rapid deterioration, due to:
- Lack of finance for maintenance and repair.
- Structural destabilization of minaret – cracking.
- Inappropriate interventions as a damaging factor. Works to the interior were carried out by the owner without approval from the relevant Ministry for Regional Planning and the Environment or under supervision from the heritage protection authority. The following is ascertained:
1. the wooden mahfil and its access staircase have been pulled down;
2. the floor slabs have been pierced and eight reinforced concrete free-standing bases measuring 2.20 x 2.20 x 0.60 metres have been concreted in;
3. on each of the reinforced concrete bases an octagonal reinforced concrete pillar has been set with cross-section dimensions of 40 x 40 cm and a height of 3.10 m;
4. shuttering for horizontal tie beams has been laid across the pillars with part of the shuttering for a reinforced concrete floor slab.
- The gravestones are in the Mediaeval Archaeological Section of the National Museum in Sarajevo and are in good condition.
Condition risk
- Immediate risk of further detorioration or loss of fabric, solution agreed but not implemented.
Technical assessment and costing
Project for urgent protection measures from further deterioration needs to be done, as well as projects for next phases of protection – project of sanitation, conservation and restoration.
For the purpose of ensuring the permanent preservation of the monument, the following measure shall be applied on the National Monument:
- all works on the monuments of the architectural ensemble are prohibited other than conservation and restoration works carried out to a design project approved by the Federal Ministry of Regional Planning and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of FBiH.
- works of any kind to the infrastructure are prohibited unless with the approval and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of BiH.
- the dumping of all kinds of waste on the site of the National Monument is prohibited.
- the display and other forms of presentation of the gravestones in Bosnia and Herzegovina shall be carried out on the conditions determined by the Federal Ministry responsible for culture.
The Government of the Federation shall be responsible in particular for drawing up a project for conservation and restoration works that shall include the following procedures and measures:
- a technical survey of the monument.
- research works including a study of the stability and structure of the walls of the building and the minaret, and proposed repairs.
- research works to reveal the interior original painted layers (around the mihrab and on the mihrab wall).
- research works on the mahfil of the mosque followed by a project to repair the mahfil using original parts.
- repair of damage to the entrance area of the building – steps and landing – and repair of the damage to the wall surrounding the complex.
- conservation of the tombstones from the mosque harem.
Preliminary technical assessment with broad assessment of budgetary needs and phasing was done, as follows:
Outline summary of required repairs
Stage 1 comprises conservation and restoration works of the building:
- A technical survey of the National Monument.
- Carrying out a study of the stability and structure of the walls of the monument and the minaret and proposed repairs.
- Research to reveal the original painted layers in the interior (around the mihrab and on the mihrab wall).
- Resolving problems of dampness.
- Restoration of the eastern and northern facades. All damaged material must be replaced; as much of the original material as possible should be kept.
- Repairs to the interior of the building.
- Removing the water instalations from the mosque.
- Repair to damage to the entrance area of the building – steps and landing – and repair to the damage to the wall surrounding the complex.
- Reparing works on the minaret.
- Conservation of the tombstones from the mosque harem.
Stage 2 comprises works of outdoor space
- Removing the inappropriate open market and other similar facilities.
Broad assessment of budgetary need and phasing
The expected total investment for all renovation works can be roughly estimated to amount to:
Description Amount
From to
1. Drafting Project Task for Restoration Programme 1.500 2.000 Euros
2. Drafting and revising Restoration Programme 2.000 2.500 Euros
3. Inviting tenders and selection of consultants for drafting
project documentation 500 1.000 Euros
4. Inviting tenders and carrying out research and drafting appropriate studies in line with the Restoration Programme. Research would include, but is not restricted to, the following: archaeological investigations, removal, study, identification and storing of fragments, ascertaining the geomechanical characteristics of the soil, ascertaining the condition of the existing foundations, and a study of materials.(incl. Study of the stability and structure of the walls of the monument) 10.000 15.000 Euros
7. Drafting and revising project documentation for restoration15.000 20.000 Euros
8. Drafting and inviting tenders for a works contractor and selection of most suitable contractor 2.000 2.500 Euros
9. Carry out restoration works 50.000 60.000 Euros
10. Supervision of works 5.000 7.000 Euros
Total: 86.000 110.000 Euros
In 2009, the Institute to Protect Heritage of Una Sana Canton has completed the project for structural repairs to shell-damaged minaret. Works on structural repairs to the minaret are to start in 2010. with raised funds of 36.500 KM.
Ownership
- Islamic Community of BiH.
Occupation
- Regularly occupied.
Management
The provisions relating to protection and rehabilitation 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 and 27/02) shall apply to the National Monument.
The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina shall be responsible for ensuring the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary to protect, conserve, display and rehabilitate the National Monument.
The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina shall be responsible for providing the resources for drawing up and implementing the necessary technical documentation for the rehabilitation of the National Monument.
The Ministry of Regional Planning of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is responsible for the implementation of legally-prescribed protection measures. It is responsible for issuing planning approvals and permits for all works and construction in the protected area on the basis of planning and technical documentation approved by an authorised professional institution.
The Institute for the Protection of the Monuments within the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sport is responsible for expert supervision, as prescribed by the Decision of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, and for the implementation of projects or parts thereof financed by the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Decisions designating national monuments are forwarded to the authorities responsible for town planning and cadastral affairs in order to implement the measures prescribed by these decisions, and to the competent municipal court for entry in the Land Register.
The Institute for the Protection of the Cultural Heritage, a public institution headquartered in Bihać, conducts heritage protection affairs in Una Sana Canton. The Institute conducts specialist and scientific studies and investigations, maintenance and takes steps of an administrative and financial nature required to identify, protect, maintain, popularize and publish (pertaining to the cultural heritage of importance for the canton).
Bihać Municipality is responsible, through its various departments and the buildings and planning inspectorate of the Federal Inspectorate Authority, for overseeing and controlling on-site activities.
Islamic community, as owner, is responsible for regular maintenance of the building and is required to refrain from all activities detrimental to the national monument, and to co-operate with the Commission to Preserve National Monuments and the Entity institutions in the process of implementing the Commission’s decisions.
Pursuant to the Decision of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Commission to Preserve National Monuments is authorised to perform activities of international co-operation in the field of heritage. The Commission is responsible for the implementation of the project in accordance with the Rules for the implementation of donor funds earmarked for the renovation or protection of the endangered cultural and historical heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Summary
After the Ottoman conquest Bihać in 1592, the Gothic Church of St Anthony was turned into a mosque and given the name Fethija (from fath, victory). There is no reliable document providing the exact date of construction. Stylistically, it appears to date from the late fourteenth century. Some of its architectural features influenced the form taken by mosques, including a somewhat more elongated prayer space and the use of elongated windows. From the nineteenth century onwards, the facades of many of the mosques in the Krajina were altered in appearance. The old fashion of two rows of windows disappeared, to be replaced by tall, rectangular windows like those of the Fethija, which were to remain a general feature of mosques in the Krajina and also in other regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Commission to Preserve National Monuments designated Fethija mosque as national monument, providing the highest degree of legal protection.
Today, the monument is either directly or indirectly endangered by lack of the financial resources necessary for the repair and restoration of the building, water installations that are in the interior of the building and Inadequate facilities (open market) in the mosque neighbourhood.
The building is in good technical condition, except some parts of the minaret are cracking. In 2003 the owner pull down original interior wooden gallery and started construction of concrete pillars. The unadequate interventions were stoped. Under supervision of the responsible institute for heritage protection, the owner of the building constructed a new wooden gallery in the interior of the mosque.
Based on the significance of the building and the physical situation, the following aims, levels and types of appropriate interventions are proposed:
1. The Fethija mosque in Bihać should be restored.
2. Missing parts of the monument (minaret) and parts that were destroyed or missing shall be reconstructed in their original form, of the same size, using the same or similar type of material and building techniques wherever possible, on the basis of documentation on their original appearance.
3. All deteriorating building materials should be preserved and consolidated where, or replaced by the same or similar type of material.
The work can be done in phases. The strategy for restoration and conservation should maintain the authenticity and cultural values of the building.
The priority level for intervention is HIGH.
Condition
Very bad
Condition risk
- Immediate risk of further rapid detorioration or loss of fabric, solution agreed but not implemented.
Sign. and date
Mirzah Fočo, architect
Mirela Mulaluć Handan
2010.
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