IĆHISAR MOSQUE IN BIHAĆ

Word ‘ićhisar’ means ‘inside the fortress’, which implies that the mosque was situated within the fortress of Bihać in the period of Ottoman administration. According to data which we obtained thanks to prof. Ismet Bušatlić, PhD, and which are found in Maliye Defter IV, on pages 33 and 117, which was translated into Bosnian by A. Polimac, it was the second sultan mosque in Bihać, built in the period between 1703 and 1718, during the rule of sultan Ahmed III. As almost all the other mosques of the time it had the wooden minaret. In 1853, Ottoman army stored gunpowder and other military supplies in the mosque and storage next to it. It was situated next to former German door by the old castle, and a cemetery adjoined it. In a period of three years, by 1891, Austro-Hungarian authorities almost completely razed the old town, which had separated the two empires for centuries. After razing the old town, only the Ićhisar Mosque remained; however, it was in dilapidated state and district authorities issued an order to have it either repaired or razed. It should be noted that Bihać used to house four towers, nine forts and three kapi-kulas (towers which served for defense in the war and as town gate in peace). They were all destroyed in the describe period. The town in still dominated by Captain’s Tower, which used to be twice as big, and was named after Hasan-pasha Predojević.

Upon citizens’ request to Land Government, a madrasa was built at the site of former Ićhisar Mosque in 1892. The present mosque has been moved to Harmani, across Jarak. The inscription above the entrance door says:  

“My houses are indeed on the land of the mosque, and their visitors are those who build and maintain them.”

The year of building is 1313 Hijri year, i.e. 1895/96 A.D.

From “Cirkular” – invitation to members of District Religious and Education Committee in Bihać it can be seen that, at a meeting held on 16 February 1913, they discussed, among other things, usurpation of the real estate of waqf of the Ićhisar Mosque by Bećo Pervanić from Bihać and the usurped real estate of the waqf of Donje Prekounje. The dispute with Pervanić is particularly interesting. Actually, his father Jusuf Pervanić sold the waqf of the Ićhisar Mosque on the plot which was entered in land registry under number 535, for the price of 800 krunas, and the same amount was paid immediately, according to the testimony of Mehmed-ef. Kadić. The truth of this statement was confirmed by Salko Ibukić, head of the Ićhisar Mosque, and Osman Delić. With this money, Jusuf Pervanić built a house, while the waqf built a mosque and a house for imam on the bought plot.

The sales was executed 15-17 years before, as stated in the letter to the Religious and Educational Board in Sarajevo of 23 February 1913. The reason for which the garden was not entered as waqf property is the fact that a building permit by Land Government was required. While the process of issuing the permit was in progress Jusuf Pervanić died and his son, Bećo Pervanić, completely denied the sales and claimed that he inherited the plot. However, as soon as he learned that a lawsuit would be initiated, he contacted lawyer Simo Ibišević, PhD, who persuaded him to sell the plots to a third person. Since Pervanić did not have money to pay the lawyer, the latter proposed that he mediate in the sales and they divide the money, as written in the letter to District Waqf and Educational Committee in Bihać number 181/13 from 18 February 1913, which was signed by Mustafa-ef. Hodžić, manager of the town waqf in Bihać. Pervanić sold the plots to Marko Radošević for the price of 1,000 krunas and a contract was drawn for the sales. However, the request by Mark Radošević for registration of the rel estate was denied, based on the Decision by the District Court in Bihać of 17.4.1913. The District Court determined a time-limit of a month for bringing an appeal. District Waqf and Educational Committee in Bihać did not act promptly and it was concluded that the appeal would not be successful, due to the fault of the committee. It is visible from the letter of Waqf and Educational Board in Sarajevo to District Waqf and Educational Committee in Bihać number 7601 of 8 May 1913. Today, however, these plots are registered in the land registry in favor of the waqf.

   Based on the described purchase of the land from Jusuf Pervanić, as well as the fact that the mosque was moved, we have established with certainty that it was built in 1313 Hijri year, i.e. in 1895/96 A.D, rather than in 1212, as was believed before. The inscription above the entrance door pertains to building a new structure of the mosque in Harmani in the late 19th century.

Ićhisar Mosque in Harmani, in 1913 and 2014, respectively

The Ićhisar Mosque had rich waqfs. It is confirmed by budgets of waqfs in Bosnia and Herzegovina for 1889, 1912 and 1913. The waqf included two shops a bakery, a coffee house and a school for children. In 1913, one shop was rented to Ibro Hukanović for the amount of 72 krunas, the bakery was rented to Ibrahim Kečalović for 288 krunas, while the rent for the coffee house and the other shop, which were rented to Meša Abdihodžić, amounted to192 krunas. Since the bakery was situated in the downtown, in Marijina Street, and accordingly had higher rent, the initiative for its renewal was launched in 1913.

In the opinion of Mister Dvoržak, an expert in civil engineering which was engaged by the Waqf and Educational Board in Sarajevo, this repair would not be a high expense for the waqf of the Ićhisar Mosque, and it was therefore made. Imam and teacher in the jamaat of Ićhisar was hafiz Abdullah-ef. Zahić, and the chairman of the Board was hafiz Ibrahim-ef. Redžić, a Sharia judge, who resigned on 17 May 1913.

In the Second World War the Mosque was considerably damaged, and the maktab with the teacher’s apartment also suffered some damage. The wooden minaret was replaced with a concrete one in 1967, when the mosque was repaired as well. It was thoroughly reconstructed in 2001. The roof, carpentry, interior and exterior façade, mihrab and minber were replaced, heating was installed and the minaret was renewed. The works began on 20 July 2001 and were completed in November the same year, i.e. on the eve of Ramadan of 1422 Hijri year. Exactly twenty years later the mosque was covered with new roof tiles, and at the moment works on its interior are nearing the end. In this way the mosque will gain a new attire, which this facility of historic significance deserves.