macedonian cultural heritage
TRANSCRIPT
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MACEDONIAARCHEOLOGICAL TREASURE THAT TAKES YOU BREATH AWAY
MONASTERY LODGINGS OASIS OF SILENCE
Ministry o Economy
Tourism Department
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Publisher: Ministry o EconomyAutor o the text: Danijela Trpcevska
Autor o the photographs: www.dzingo.com
Production: Skenpoint
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The capital Skopje and its surroundings
are especially interesting or research.
Near the settlement Zlokukani are
the remains o the Roman city Skupi. In an-cient times, this territory was inhabited by the
Dardani, until 4th
century B.C., when Philip theSecond o Macedonia took over the authority
here. Ater his death, Skupi remains within thekingdom o Alexander the Great, and in year
164 B.C. it was conquered by the Romans. Using
the position o an important crossroad, the citydeveloped very soon. Ater the Milan Edict o
313, Skupi was made a Head Seat o Episcopacy
and later on o the Archiepiscopacy. However,
this glory ended ater the city was destroyedby the earthquake in 518, ater which it died
out. At the location, the archeologists ound abasilica rom the 4th century, whose central arc
is covered with mosaic, theater built accordingto Roman scheme and palace decorated with
rescoes.
Near the road Skopje-Kacanik is the
Aqueduct. It was built o stone and tiles with55 arches resting on massive pillars, 450 meters
long. It is believed to be built in the 6th century,
and later was reconstructed and built becauseo its importance-to provide the city with wa-
ter rom the mountain springs o Skopska CrnaGora.
In 535 the new city-successor o Stobi,was promoted. It was built by the Byzantine
emperor Justinian, as a debt to his birth place.
Justiniana Prima was surrounded by numer-
ous ortresses, o which the biggest-Crnce on
mountain Vodno, helped ghting back the at-tacks o the Slavic tribes. But, this was only until
694 when the Slavs took over the city and gave
its todays name-Skopje.Blocks o the ruins rom the city o Skupi
were used to build the Skopje ortress, located
at a highland on the right side o the Vardar
River. This area, according to the ndings othe excavation, was inhabited even in Neolithic
times and the early Bonze Age. The oldest archi-
tecture on the Fortress dates back in 535, in the
period o ruling o Justinian I. There are remainso this ortress in length o 120 meters.
Under the ortress is the Old Skopje
Bazaar, the most picturesque part o thecity. The Bazaar has still kept some o the oldcrats and stores, due to which thousands o
years ago, its streets were lled with visitors.
The Turkish itinerant Evliya Celebi, during his
stay in Skopje (1660/61) in his books wrote
that the Bazaar had 2.150 stores, squares and
markets, and compared it with the Baghdad
Bazaar. Kurshumli Inn is in the Old Bazaar, an
impressive building, built during the period oJustinian I. It is thought that on the basis o an
older building, the Ottoman Turks have built
and adjusted it into a caravan-palace.As such, itworked until 1787, and later it was transormedinto prison. Today, the rooms are used as rock-
ery o the Archeological museum. The object
Kurshumli Inn or Led Inn is considered to bethe most beautiul monument o culture in the
city. Daut Pasha Turkish bath is located near
the Stone Bridge, at the entry o the Bazaar. It is
listed among the most important monumentso the Islamic proane architecture, and its his-
tory began in the second hal o the 15th cen-
tury, when Daut-pasha lived in Skopje. The Bathwas damaged during the amous re caused bythe Austrian army-leader Piccolomini in 1689
and long ater that it was let untouched and
was slowly decaying. Its space was reconstruct-
ed or the rst time in 1948 and later on the Art
Skopje
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Gallery was located there.
The Stone Bridge in Skopje is one o themost monumental buildings in the country
that connects the two banks o the Vardar
River. According to some, it was built in the
6th century in the period o Justinian, and ac-cording to others, it was built by the Ottoman
Turks in the 15
th
century. According to Ottomansources, the bridge was constructed with wellprocessed stone blocks in the second hal o
the 15th century. In the past it was also called
Dushans Bridge.
The massive construction lies on solid pil-lars connected with 13 semicircular arches. It
is 214 meters long, and 6,33 meters wide. In
1992 the reconstruction o the bridge started,
ater which its original look was changed. TheStone Bridge was built with stone blocks, while
its massive construction lies on pillars, mutuallyconnected by semicircular arches. Today, onlypedestrians are allowed to cross it.
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Stobi
Macedonia has abundance o archeo-logical sites rom Ancient time. The
most amous is the Ancient city Stobi,
which is located south o Veles, at the estuary othe Crna River in the Vardar River. The assump-
tions are that the city was built in the Hellenic
period, in the 3rd or the 2nd century B.C., but it
is possible that the area was inhabited sincethe Neolith. Ater two big earthquakes in the
6th century, the inhabitants let the city com-
pletely. In Stobi, among the other, there was
a money orge where coins called denariuswere orged, ater which the todays national
currency got the name. The most impressive
object that was discovered is the theatre, dat-
ing orm the 2nd century B.C. and is similar tothe Greek theatres. It had 7.000 seats, and in
a certain period was readjusted in a gladia-tors arena. Also discovered in Stobi were: anEpiscopal residency, prison, as well as Episcopal
basilica with wonderul mosaics.
Heraclea Lynkestis
Near Bitola is the site Heraclea Lynkestis.
These are remains o the once ancient
city that was main centre o Lynkestis,
area o the Illyrian-Macedonian tribe Lynki. Heraclea was ounded by Philip 2 o Macedonia
around the middle o the 4th century B.C. Two
centuries later, the city was conquered by theRomans, ater which it ourished. In the early
Christian period, Heraclea became Episcopal
seat and centre o the new Christian aith.
During the archeological researches at thesite, early Byzantine church was ound. East o
it, Roman spas were ound, and the mosaics
on the oor o the narthex o the Big Basilica
distinguished with their painting values andiconographic eatures. It is assumed that the
mosaic was made at the end o the 5 th century
B.C. This ancient city also had a theatre in a ormo horse shoe, where theatre shows were held,
but also gladiators ghts.
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Isar
The amous archeological site Isar, nearthe village Marvinci is interesting be-
cause o the numerous objects that
archeologist ound. Those are ceramics proc-essed on pottery roundel, amphorae, vessels,
terra cottas, jewelry, weapons, statues and
coins rom the settlement. The settlement was
part o Paionia and was established in the 6 thcentury B.C.
Vardarski Hill
Near Gevgelija is the ormer settlementVardar Hill. So ar 6 settlements have
been discovered, one over the other,
where there was lie rom the 13th to the 2nd
century B.C. These old Macedonian settlementsoriginate rom the period beore and ater the
rule o Alexander the Great.
Especially rare is the cup with wine mould ,ound at this site. Numerous silver and bronzecoins orged during the period o Alexander
the Great and his ather Philip were also ound
at this site.
Vinicko kale
The site Vinicko kale set on the hill
above Vinica is widely known or
the Vinica icons ound in this place.
These are the most authentic and originaldiscoveries rom the soil o Macedonia,
which are in many aspects exceptional.
The story began in 1985, when at the site a
depot was discovered with early Christianterra cottas icons, dating rom the 6th and 7th
century. These are unique icons in Europe
made with a moulding technique, in twodierent dimensions. During the research,
as a whole or in ragments, 49 samples
o terra cotta relies were ound. These
are clay plate with quadric or rectangularshape, with dimensions o about 30cm.
They contain texts written in Latin, and 15
scenes were ound on the icons. They were
ound on the walls o an object, which wasprobably sacral.
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Ohrid
The lake city o Ohrid is a real archeological
and historical treasure. At the locationo the todays city, the city o Lichnidos
existed, which in the 4
th
century B.C. wasconquered by Philip the Second o Macedonia.
In its ocal point there was an ancient theatre,believed to date back in the 3 rd century B.C.,
and in Roman times animal ghts were held
there. The Samuil Fortress is considered to be
one o the biggest preserved ortications inthe country. For the rst time it was mentioned
by the historian Livy in the 3rd century B.C.,
when it was ortress to the city o Lichnidos. It is
considered that the todays orm o the ortress
dates back in the 10th
century, when Ohrid, asa capital o the Macedonian Tsar Samuil, had
reconstructed and strong ortresses. With its bigwalls and towers, the ortress surrounded the
whole city, and the entry was enabled by three
gates, o which one is preserved today and is
amous as the Upper Gate. In the archeologicalresearches o the gate, 145 tombs and
necropolis were ound with rich objects rom
the Archaic, Macedonian-Hellenic and Roman
period. In one o the tombs a golden mask,
golden glove and about seventy other golden,silver, bronze, iron, ceramics and amber objects
rom the 5th century B.C. were ound.
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Macedonia may be proud o its rich architecture and objectsthat until today have kept the authentic look. The house o
Robevci amily in Ohrid, where the Archeological Museumand the Ethnology exhibition are placed, is considered to be
one o the most representative objects o urban architecture inMacedonia, which reaches its zenith in the course o XIX century.
The construction o the house o the two brothers Robevci was
done by the builder Todor Petkov rom the village o Gari, near
Debar. The object was built in 1825 ater which it was burnt andthen built again next year. The house is protected monument
o culture and contains three oors, plus the up most oor, the
so called shirvan. The lower part has exhibited epigraphicmonuments rom Ohrid and the surrounding, as well the valuable
exhibits: Miljokaz (ound on the Via Egnatia Road), the twotorsos o the Goddess Isida etc. Archeological exhibits dating
rom the Pre-Historic period to the Middle-Ages are exhibited onthe second and third oor.
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Almost all Macedonian monasteries have been
built in the mountains bosoms at places dif-
cult to access, in areas with wonderul naturalbeauties, surrounded by thick orests and wide
meadows. Although monks have always want-
ed to be alone in their spiritual lie, they have
still opened the gates or the population romthe surrounding villages, who have therein
celebrated their religious holidays, their village
religious holidays and sought comort and sal-
vation in difcult times.Because o the extraordinary touristic po-
tential and the possibility to enjoy the peace, si-
lence and tranquility, many o the Macedonian
monasteries are called oasis o peace. The esti-mations are that there are 155 preserved mon-
asteries, while about hundred are hal-ruined or
dont exist. Although the church tourism in thecountry is still in its germ,each year, more and
more tourists rom around the world decide to
step on the monastery paths and get to know
the Macedonian history and tradition, trans-used in rare rescos, iconostasis and engrav-
ings, made by eminent Macedonian groups.
The womb o the Macedonian sanctuary-
the ancient city Ohrid has 365 monasteriesand churches. Because o its huge spirituality,
it is not accidentally called the City o Light.
The road o all travelers that come to visit this
spiritual treasury always ends in the St. Naummonastery on the bank o Ohrid Lake, where
the eternal home o the saint is located. There
is something magnicent and unexplainablypowerul in the ritual o kneeling by the tomb
o the saint Naum, while you careully place
the ear on the tombstone and excited wait
to hear the beat o the big heart with heal-ing power. Although it is only a legend, rarely
anyone doubts it, as probably there is no man
that hasnt thrown a coin in the wish well, in
the middle o the church yard. The holly placewhere the monastery was built gives peace and
tranquility. It was not accendently that Naum
has chosen the rock overnaging Ohrid Lake orhis spiritual peace. Here are mixed the waters
o the springs rom the Crn Drim River and the
clear waters o Ohrid lake. Over the monastery
rises mountain Galicica with meadows lled
with thick herbs. This place is as it was createdor healing the ill. St. Naum has done that-used
the power to help the mentally ill, but also to
develop monkhood, and together with St.
Clement orm Ohrid, continued the mission othe rst Slavic Enlighters, the brothers Sts. Cyril
and Methodius. He died in 910, ater whichhis body ound its eternal peace in the tombplaced on the southern side o the church.
St. Naum in the 9th century has built the
church St. Archangels, which was ruined in
the Ottoman period. On the basis o the origi-nal church, between the 16th and the 17th cen-
tury, the todays church was built. It rescoes
were painted in XV and XVI century and the
todays rescoes in the period between 1800to 1806 were painted by theicon-painterTrpo
rom Korca. The splendoro the painted cyclesand scenes lists the church among the biggestmonuments rom the 18th and 19th century in
MONASTERY
LODGINGS
OASIS OF SILENCE
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Macedonia. Naums monastery and the church
Sts. Archangels, as well as the monastery o
Cement and church St. Pantelejmon in Ohrid
are the rst monuments o the Slavic churcharchitecture and art in the region o Ohrid. The
legend says that when St. Clement came to
Ohrid, he has introduced the Glagolitic alpha-bet o the holly brothers Cyril and Methodiusto the local people and he revealed to them
the secret o building stone houses instead o
the straw cottages where they used to live. Forthat purpose he rst built a church. That was St.
Pantelejmon monastery, built on the hill above
Ohrid. Ater his death, Clement was buried in
the tomb that he himsel prepared in his church
on Plaoshnik.This, one-time centre o the Ohrid School,
rom where the Slavic literacy, spirituality and
culture were spread, is considered by archeolo-gists to be one o the most important cites inthe country. The monumental early Christian
church was built and decorated in the 5 th cen-
tury, in the period when Lychnidos (todaysOhrid), was an important centre o bishops. It
was built in a shape o a treoillea, on the ba-
sis o an older ancient building. The arches o
this temple were decorated with mosaics that
had golden basis. Near Plaoshnik, in 2002, theSt. Clement temple was renewed and ater 530
years the relics o the rst Slavic Bishop and
ounder o the Macedonian Orthodox Church,St. Clement, were brought here. In the excava-tions in 1999, baptistery o a ve-arc basilica,
with swastikas on the mosaic oors dating rom
the period between the 4th and 6th century, wasound. It is believed that this Early Christian
basilica on which the monastery o Clement
was built in the 9th century was dedicated to
Apostle Paul.St. Sofa church is one o the biggest
middle age churches, which or a long pe-
riod o time was a synod church o the OhridArchiepiscopacy. It was built on the oundationso an old sacral building in the period ater the
big mission o Sts. Cyril and Methodius, when
Macedonian Slavs have accepted Christianity in
Slavic language. It probably served as cathedralin the period o Tsar Samuil, who by the end o
the 10th century, transerred his throne center
rom Prespa in Ohrid. However, there are thesesthat in that period, on the same place, there was
a church that or unknown reasons was ruined.
There is no inscription or the period o con-struction o this church, but it is said that it wasreconstructed during the period o Archbishop
Lav, who rom 1035 to 1056 headed the church
throne. Lav was also a trustee o the painting
decoration in the church and had big inu-ence on the way it looked. Later the Ottoman
Turks have turned St. Soa in a mosque and
have drastically changed its look. The rescoes
were painted with lime, the dome was ruinedand a minaret was built. The paintings o this
church are considered to be the zenith o theMiddle Ages painting in Macedonia and wider.Here are the best preserved pieces o Byzantine
monumental painting. The outside shape o St.
Soa, which has or a long period o time been
a synodchurch o Ohrid Archiepiscopacy, is inthe shape o the letter T. It was built o tiles ,
scale and stone. Because o the acoustic ea-
tures o the space, today important concerts
are being held in the church.Sv. Bogorodica Perivlepta (Preslavna)
church was built in 1295 by the Byzantine armyleader Progon Zgur, relative o Andronic II
Paleolog. Ater St. Soa was transormed into
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mosque, St. Bogorodica Perivlepta became a
synod church o Ohrid Archiepiscopacy. Due
to its exceptional architecture and rescoes,
St. Bogorodica Perivlepta (Holly Mother oGood Perivlepta) is among the most impor-
tant Middle-Ages monuments in the country.
The rescoes in the church were made by theeminent Middle-Ages icon-painters- Mihailoand Evtihij. This wall painting provided the ba-
sis or a new style o Byzantine art-Renaissance
o Paleoliths. The church was built in a shapeo an embedded cross. The construction mate-
rial that was used consisted mainly o tiles and
scale, whose skillul laying provided a rare im-
pression o harmony and polychrom, separat-ing it rom the other Byzantine and Macedonian
monuments o the 13th century.
Built on a rock in the old part o Ohrid,above a ormer shermen settlement, St.John Theologian-Kaneo captures you with
its beauty, peace and tranquility. This is the a-
vorite place or the people that are in love, or
the believers, but also or all the tourists in theCity o Light, who come to rest in a place where
the blue colors o the sky and the lake are
joined. The church was built and painted at theend o the 13th century. This Middle-Ages mon-
ument is a successul combination o Byzantine
and Armenian elements.Hidden in the Southeast side o Ohrid Lake,
near the village Trpejca, the church St. Zaum
is a real challenge or the visitors since it may be
accessed only by boat. It was built in 1361, in a
orm o an embedded cross, with central dome.The legend says that the Tsars daughter was
visiting St. Naums monastery and by the time
she should have gone back to Ohrid, big waves
appeared in the lake. Even ater the advicesthat she should wait or the waves to calm, she
started her way back, but she hardly managedto save hersel. At the place she was rescued, asa sign o gratitude and or being reasonable
in uture (Za um litteraly translation), the
Tsars daughter has built this church.
In the Northeast part o Macedonia, nearthe city o Kriva Palanka, is located the mon-
astery St. Joachim o Osogovo. It is located at
the slopes o Osogovo mountain, surrounded
by deep oak orest and separated rom the city,oering peace and tranquility or the visitors.
The monastery was ounded in the 17th century.The big monastery church was made o hacked
stone and was built by the amous constructor
Andreja Damjanov with his group. The church
was painted between the end o the 19th cen-
tury and the middle o the 20th century and
dominant there is the composition Baptizingo Christ. Most o the rescoes were made by
the amous rescos painter Dimitar Andnov
Papradishki, assisted by icon-painter PetarNikolov. Northeast o the big monastery church,there is a smaller church dedicated to the birth
o the Virgin Mary, built in 14th century. Within
the church there is a spring o holly water withhealing eatures. Beside the churches, the most
important object is the three-storey lodgings
and or the guests here traditional ood is pre-
pared.Surrounded by the babbling canyon o the
Radika River, sunny mountain Bistra, Mavrovo
lake and the magnicent mountain Korab,in the most picturesque part o Macedonia,monastery St. John the Baptist is located.
It is called Bigorski (made o scale, literaly
translation), since it is made o stone scale.It is
believed that the icons o the monastery havehealing eatures or several illnesses, including
inertility. The monastery was ounded in 1020,
and then with the coming o the Ottoman Turks
it was ruined and rom all the objects only one
small church was let. It was reconstructed in1743 by monk Ilarion. It has one o the most a-
mous iconostasisi, work o xylographers Petre
Filipovski-Garakata, rom the village Gari andMakarija Frckovski rom the village Galicnik.According to the belies o the monks o the
previous century, the monastery was built
by the monk John, the last head o the Ohrid
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church in Samuils state, at the place where a
miraculous icon o St. John Preteca ( the
Forerunner) appeared. The magnicent icon
o John the Baptizer, 980 years old, has the cen-tral place in the monastery. According to the
legend, the icon came itsel to the place where
the monastery was built and was oating abovethe springs o the Radika River. It is told thatthe monastery was destroyed three times by
the Ottoman Turks, and the icon always disap-
peared and was returned again. This monastery
is composed o monastery church and complex
o monastery and guest lodgings.
The monastery Middle-Ages church Holly
Mother Eleusa, located in the village Veljusa,near Strumica, has an important place in the
church and cultural history o the Southeast
part o Macedonia. It is a womens convent,dedicated to the holiday o Presentation othe Mother o God to the Temple, celebrated
in December. The preserved inscriptions point
out that the church was built in 1080 by themonk Mauel. Holly Mother Merciul is im-
portant because o the originally preserved ar-
chitecture, paintings, mosaic oor and marble
iconostasis.The ascinating church St. Pantelejmon
in Veles was built in 1840. The history o Balkan
architecture denes it as the most splendid arto Renaissance, and with the area o 810 squaremeters it is considered to be one o the biggest
churches built in that period.
In the city o Skopje and its surroundings
there are plenty o religious objects worth to bevisited, such as the church St. Pantelejmon,
located in the village Gorno Nerezi. It was built
in 1164 during the rule o the Byzantine dy-
nasty o Comnens.The paintingsin the church
is considered to be one o the most importantmonuments o the Byzantine art. Here are the
amous compositions o rescoes:The Birth o
the Mother o God, Lamentation o Christ andThe Entry into Jerusalem.There is wonderulview o the capital rom the churchs yard.
In the valley o the Marko River, near the
village Sushica is located Marko Monastery,whose construction was started by the king
Volkashin. The construction started in 1345 and
was completed and painted by his son, king
Marco in 1371. At the beginning o the 19th cen-tury, the amous literary Kiril Pejcinovic stayed
there. The monastery o Marco is composed o
several buildings located in circle around thechurch. There are logdings and an old diningroom, which is especially interesting or the
visitors. The most picturesque monasteries are
located in the gorgeo the Treska River. Hidden
among the steep and high rocks, at the bank oLake Matka is the breath-taking monastery St.
Andrew, built by the second son o the king
Volkashin, Andrew, in the period 1388-89.In the Old Bazaar in Skopje is the church
St. Spas, built ater the re in Skopje by the
Austrian army leader Piccolomini in 1689. It isamous or its iconostasis, the deep engrav-ing, made between 1819 to 1824 by the Mijak
masters. The decoration is graceul, in the spirit
o baroque, with dierent ornaments and mo-
tis. The church is the home o the relics o theMacedonian revolutionary Goce Delcev.
Above the picturesque Prespa village
Kurbinovo is the oldest church in the region
o Prespa -St. George. Located on a highlandit oers a unique view o almost the whole
Prespa Lake and the island Big City. This 12 thcentury monument is a real precious stone othe Byzantine wall painting o that period. The
church was built in 1191 and its rescoes were
painted by ve unknown masters rom Kostoria.
This church was built in the same period whenthe churches St. Pantelejmon in Nerezi and
St. Vracain Kostoria were built.
On the slopes o the mountain Osogovo,
monastery o Lesnovo was built. Its lodgingswere built in the 19th century, and the church
was built in the 14th century. The despot Oliverbuilt the church St. Archangel Michael in 1341,
on the oundations o an older basilica that
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existed during the time o the eremite Gavril
rom Lesnovo, who in XI century started living
in Lesnovo wood and ounded the monastery.
From the graceul painting, which even todayenchants you with its beauty, one may mention
the presentations o Archangel Michael, com-
positions o the lie o Christ and the Saints, il-lustrations o David psalms. The iconostasis,which in 1814 was made by Petre Filipovski-
Garkata, is considered as the rst work o the
Mijaks xylographicschool.Monastery Treskavec is located 10km
rom Prilep, among the rocks o Zlatovrv, at
a height o 1.280 meters. This place oers a
unique view o Pelagonija, Kajmakcalan andPelister. The monastery complex is composed
o the church Dormition o the Virgin Marry
and impressive lodgings, oten visited by nu-merous guests rom the country and abroad.The church Dormition o the Virgin was built
in the 13th century, and the oldest rescos date
back rom a century later. The monastery was
ruined during history, but was reconstructed inthe 16th century.
O the numerous Islamic objects, interest-
ing to mention is the Jaja Pasha mosque inSkopje, characteristic or the size o its mina-
ret, 50 meter high. The mosque was built by
Jaja Pasha in 1504. At the top o the minaret,there are crescent moon and star made o gold.East o the main entry o the Skopje ortress
is the Mustaa Pasha mosque, which is rec-
ognizable by its narrow and high minaret and
the impressive dome. It was built in 1492 byMustaa Pasha, who was an eminent person in
the Ottoman kingdom. The impressive Mustaa
Pasha mosque in Skopje is considered to be one
o the most beautiul mosques in the country.At the south part o the mosque there is a beau-
tiully made sarcophagus, believed to mark thetomb o Umi, one o Mustaa Pashas daughters.One o the most interesting monuments o the
Islamic sacral objects is the Colorul mosque
in Tetovo. Its original name was Aladza (textile
colorul cotton, literally translation), and in the19th century it was named Pasha-mosque, ater
the renovator Abdurahman Pasha, Ottoman
eudal master and Governor o the Tetovo re-
gion at the time, who also built the Fortresson Baltepe. The original Colorul mosque was
built in 1495 and had the unction o an Islamicsynod temple. It was reconstructed between
the 16th and the end o the 17th century, when
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it was completely burnt in a big re in the city. The numerous paintings, ornaments and
painting techniques o the most amous masters are rarities that include this mosque in the
anthologies o Islamic architecture.Jeni mosque in the centre o Bitola was built in 1558 by
Sir Kadi Mahmud, over a Christian church devoted to St. George. The inside o the object islled with resco-decoration with rare landscapes o the 18th century, deep engravings on
the wooden doors and decorative plastics in orm o stalactites. Today it is used as an art
gallery.
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