MUSA-PASHA’S MOSQUE IN NOVA KASABA

NATIONAL MONUMENT OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Photo & video: Mirza Hasanefendić

In 2003, Commission to Preserve National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina designated the architectural ensemble the Musa-pasha Mosque in Nova Kasaba, Municipality of Mahići, as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Musa-pasha Mosque is located on the left bank of Jadar river, along the road which leads from Vlasenica toward Zvornik. The origins and development of Nova Kasaba were closely associated with the name of the grand vizier and Governor of Buda Musa-pasha. In the period from 1641 to 1643, Musa-pasha formed the basic residential-business infrastructure in Nova Kasaba, and by the mosque he also commissioned a maktab and a large number of business facilities.

Musa-pasha was a local man, born at Vikoči near Foča, from the Vehabegović family.

There are no inscriptions on or in the mosque concerning its erection, but based on the 1641 firman and Musa-pasha's deed on endowment dated May 1643, building probably started in the spring of 1642 and ended in the spring of 1643.

The Musa-pasha Mosque in Nova Kasaba belongs to the typological series of single-space mosques with solid stone walls, hipped roof, porch and stone minaret. The mihrab was made of stone and was decorated with a rich stalactite ornament. The minbar and the window niche elements were also richly decorated. Special attention was given to the treatment of the wooden elements of the window shutters, both exterior and interior.

What gave the particular character to the building was the material from which it was partly made. It is stone of particular green color. The minaret was made of this stone from top to bottom, as were the cut stone parts of the windows, gates, mihrab, minbar and particularly, all the four corners of the mosque itself from top to bottom.

Serbian forced completely destroyed the mosque in 1992. It was renewed in 2010.

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