Articles

This mosque is rightly seen as the most important architectural monument from the time of Ottoman rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The mosque was built as part of a vakuf (endowment) established by the Ottoman Governor, Gazi Husrev Bey, who governed Bosnia, more or less continuously, from 1521 until his death in 1541. It was the first mosque in the world that had electricity in 1898. Gazi Husrev-bey Mosque is a masterpiece of Ottoman architecture. The mosque was built in 1531 as a "vakuf" (endowment) of Gazi Husref bey who was a grandson of Bajazit ll. He spent a part of his wealth on the urbanization of Sarajevo. The Bey's mosque was built in the early Romanesque style by the project  architect Adjem Esir Ali, from Persia. The mosque was built out of stone from Bosnia and Herzegovina and had no façade at the time.

The first thing to notice are the stone pillars and arches. The main entrance is styled with arabesques, ornaments and gilding. The height of the dome is 26 meters, width 13 meters and length 13 meters, so the building gives an amazing impression of harmony. The interior of the mosque is monumental and has solemn character as the walls are decorated with arabesques. In addition to its size, this mosque is unique as it was the first mosque in the Balkans to have been electrically lit since 1898.

The mosque is surrounded by streets and only when you enter the courtyard you can see this beautiful object of unique size. In the courtyard there is a fountain where you can drink water and the faithful can take „abdest“ (the ritual of washing hands and feet, before a prayer). Originally there was just a well for water supply, then in 1775 a fountain was erected and it has been repeatedly restored, over time losing its original shape.

Beside the mosque there are two turbets - stone mausoleums; the larger one belongs to Gaza Husref bey and the smaller one to his friend Murat bey. Turbets were built for the beys lifetime and today visitors throw in coins "for luck" or "special wishes."

On the left of the courtyard is the „abdestshana“ and next to it is the „muvekitha“ - "muvekit" is a person who used to set the time accoring to the sun.

Nearby is a madrasah and a very rich library with books written in Bosnian, three Oriental and several European languages.

Many famous personalities such as Alibey Firdus and Mehmed Spaho were buried in the harem (a part of the courtyard where the graves are).