Šarena Džamija, ( mk, Шарена Џамија; sq, Xhamia e Larme; tr, Alaca Cami) meaning Decorated Mosque in English but also variably translated as Painted Mosque, is a

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a Place of worship, place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers (sujud) ...

located near the Pena River in

Tetovo Tetovo ( mk, Тетово, , sq, Tetovë/Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, w ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

. The mosque was originally built in 1438 and later rebuilt in 1833 by Abdurrahman Pasha.Xhamia e Pashes
/ref>

History

The Šarena Džamija was originally built in 1438.Pg 106 - The architect behind the Šarena Džamija was Isak Bey. Most mosques of the time had

sultans Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

beys Bey ( ota, بك, beğ, script=Arab, tr, bey, az, bəy, tk, beg, uz, бек, kz, би/бек, tt-Cyrl, бәк, translit=bäk, cjs, пий/пек, sq, beu/bej, sh, beg, fa, بیگ, beyg/, tg, бек, ar, بك, bak, gr, μπέης) is ...

pashas Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitari ...

financing their constructions, but the Šarena Džamija, however, was financed by two sisters from Tetovo.Enduring Time « Notes from Near and Far
/ref> As with many mosques, a

hammam A hammam ( ar, حمّام, translit=ḥammām, tr, hamam) or Turkish bath is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited ...

was built nearby across the river. The site used to include an

Inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

as well as a bathhouse on the other side of the river. The current courtyard of the Šarena Džamija is filled with many flowers, a fountain, and a

Türbe ''Türbe'' is the Turkish word for " tomb". In Istanbul it is often used to refer to the mausolea of the Ottoman sultans and other nobles and notables. The word is derived from the Arabic ''turbah'' (meaning ''"soil/ground/earth"''), whic ...

. The octagonal "türbe" houses the resting places of Hurshida and Mensure, the two sisters who financed the construction of the mosque in 1438. Abdurrahman Pasha, a great enthusiast of art who was fond of Tetovo, reconstructed the Šarena Džamija in 1833. In 1991, the Islamic Community in Tetovo built walls around the mosque in the typical classical Ottoman style. In 2010, a renovation of the exterior paintings was completed and, with a €94,700 grant from the United States State Department, the façade was reconstructed and preserved in 2011.

Architecture

Unlike the traditional Ottoman ceramic tile decorations in mosques, the Šarena Džamija has bright floral paintings.Lonely Planet Western Balkans - Google Books
/ref> More than 30,000 eggs were used to prepare the paint and glaze that went into the elaborate decorations. Another major difference between the Šarena Džamija and other Ottoman mosques is that the Šarena Džamija does not have a distinctive exterior dome,
/ref> as the architecture of the mosques styles the early Constantinople Ottoman Architecture. The distinguishing feature of the mosque is its painted decorations. Abdurrahman Pasha commissioned, for this purpose, masters from

Debar Debar ( mk, Дебaр ; Albanian: ''Dibër''/''Dibra'' or ''Dibra e Madhe;'' ) is a city in the western part of North Macedonia, near the border with Albania, off the road from Struga to Gostivar. It is the seat of Debar Municipality. Debar has ...

who painted the ornamentation with oil paints. In addition to the geometric and floral ornamentation, landscape is also encountered. Among the pictorial decorations, especially attractive is the depiction of

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow val ...

, a rare and perhaps the only example of the illustration of the shrine of the Islamic prophet,

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monot ...

, in southeast Europe.

Gallery

File:Facade of Pasha's Mosque - Tetova (Tetovo) - Macedonia.jpg, Details of the painted walls of the Šarena Džamija. File:TetovoSarenadzamijadvor.jpg, Courtyard. File:Шарена џамија 2.jpg, Šarena Džamija. File:Šarena Džamija vnatrešnost 01.JPG, The interior of the Šarena Džamija. File:Oldtetovo1.gif, Šarena Džamija. File:Interior of Pasha's Mosque - Tetova (Tetovo) - Macedonia - 02.jpg, The interior of the Šarena Džamija. File:Шарена Џамија.jpg, Šarena Džamija. File:Mirhab der Bunten Moschee.jpg,

Mihrab Mihrab ( ar, محراب, ', pl. ') is a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the '' qibla'', the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca towards which Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a ''mihrab'' appears is thus the "qibla ...

. File:Шарена Џамија-Тетово (1932).jpg, Šarena Džamija in 1932. File:The Colorful Mosque of Tetovo , Шарена џамија Тетово 19.jpg, Inside the Šarena Džamija.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarena Dzamija Ottoman mosques in North Macedonia Tetovo Religious buildings and structures completed in 1438