The most beautiful mosques to visit Northern Macedonia

Located along the Pena River, this superb ^19th-century mosque (Шарена Џамија/Šarena Džamija, Xhamia e Larme) is a rarity in Islamic architecture: its exterior and interior walls are adorned with rich, brightly-colored decoration. In the Balkans, only the Colorful Mosque in Travnik (1817), Bosnia-Herzegovina, and the Et'hem Bey Mosque in Tirana (1823), Albania, preserve comparable frescoes. Here, the mosque is modest in size (10 x 10 m) and preceded by a five-arched porch. It was built in 1833, on the site of an earlier "colored" mosque dating from 1495, of which only the 28 m-high minaret remains. It was commissioned by the region's governor, Abdurrahman Pacha. This Albanian patron of the arts, a follower of Bektashism, was the son of Rexhep Pacha, the governor who enlarged the Arabati-Baba tekké. To decorate "his" mosque, Abdurrahman Pacha called on craftsmen from the Debar region, renowned for its iconostasis sculptors and church painters. It is said that 30,000 egg yolks were needed to make the paint and varnish for the decorations.

Star of the Mahdi. The outer walls each feature some 30 rectangular panels painted with geometric and arabesque motifs. The façade has fewer painted panels and more arabesques. The porch features a large six-pointed star, rather than the classical five-pointed one representing the five pillars of Islam. This is the symbol of the Mahdi, the "Saviour" awaited by all Muslims, but whose belief is more widespread among Bektashis (and Shiites) than among traditionalist Sunnis. Inside, the six-pointed star can be found in various places. The mihrab (niche indicating the direction of Mecca) and minbar (pulpit) are carved marble and painted in a baroque style. On the porch side, the upper part of the wall is open with three corbelled balconies, also in Baroque style. The walls are decorated with floral and geometric motifs, Arabic calligraphy and landscapes depicting Muslim buildings. Among the latter is a representation, extremely rare if not unique in a mosque, of the Prophet's tomb in Mecca. The carved wooden dome is adorned with twelve medallions representing six floral compositions and six mosques in the Tetovo region. Last but not least, note the ^18th-century wooden clock with a mechanism indicating the (variable) prayer times.

This mosque (Јени Џамија/Jeni Džamija) is easy to spot thanks to its 39-m-high minaret. It owes its name of "new mosque"(Yeni Cami in Turkish) to the cadi (Muslim judge) Mahmud Efendi, who had it built in 1558 on the site of several churches, the foundations of which can be seen all around. It's a fine example of provincial Ottoman architecture: a square with a single dome, extended by a porch. The interior is decorated with arabesques in bas-relief on the marble furnishings, stalactite sculptures, painted earthenware and calligraphy.

This mosque (Султан-Муратова Џамија/Sultan-Muratova Džamija, Xhamia e Sulltan Muratit) is the oldest in Skopje. It was erected in 1436 on the site of an Orthodox monastery dedicated to St. George thanks to a donation from Ottoman Sultan Murat II (1421-1451). However, not much remains of the original building as many changes were made, including the restoration completed in 2020. The rectangular building (34.60 x 27.60 m) is preceded by a porch with five arches. The large, classical, tiled roof conceals a decorated dome. The interior space is divided into three naves delimited by two supporting walls and three rows of columns. Dominated by a minaret of 35 m high, the mosque is part of a complex of which two mausoleums and the old buildings of a former medersa (Koranic school) and an imaret (hospice) remain. Next to the latter, to the north, stands the clock tower (Саат-Кула/Saat-Kula, Kulla e Sahatit) which was used to indicate the (variable) prayer times to all the mosques in the city. With a height of 37 m, it was built between 1566 and 1573. For the lower part, a square defensive tower of the old monastery was used. An octagonal stone section was added, topped by a wooden floor. The latter was rebuilt in brick in 1902. Like the mosque, the tower has undergone a recent restoration funded by Turkey.

Located next to the Museum of Northern Macedonia, this mosque (Мустафа-Пашина Џамија/Mustafa-Pašina Džamija, Xhamia e Mustafa Pashës) is the largest and most beautiful in Stara Čaršija. It was built in 1492 as part of a donation from Mustafa Pasha, vizier (minister) to the sultans Bayezid II and Selim ^I. Situated on a small hill, it dominates the old Ottoman town with its 47 m-high minaret. The mosque was once part of a complex comprising a medersa (Koranic school) and an imaret (hospice). It was severely damaged during the 1963 earthquake, and its restoration was only completed in 2011 with financial assistance from Turkey. The building's architecture is simple. It has a square base and a dome 16.3 m in diameter. The ashlar and brick walls are pierced by multiple openings. The white marble porch is supported by four marble columns and covered by three small domes. At the entrance is the mausoleum (türbe) of Ima, Mustafa Pasha's daughter, the fountain for the ablutions of the faithful and the remains of the medersa and imaret. The garden contains the tombs of religious figures and rose beds. The interior is painted with floral motifs and decorated with sculptures. It also features panels bearing calligraphy of the names of Allah, Muhammad and the first four caliphs who succeeded the Prophet (Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, Omar ibn al-Khattâb, Othmân ibn Affân and Ali ibn Abi Talib).

This mosque (Мурат Пашаина Џамија/Murat Paša Džamija, Xhamia e Murat Pashës) is not of major interest, except for its three beautiful Ottoman(türbe) tombs in its cemetery, which date back to the ^18th century. It was built in 1802, on the site of a ^15th century mosque, destroyed during the bombardment of Skopje by the Italian general Piccolomini in 1689. It retains the minaret of the old building. Named after a local governor, it should not be confused with the Sultan-Murat mosque, which is located further east.

This open mosque (Ајдар Кади Џамија/Ajdar Kadi Džamija) was built around 1562 thanks to a donation from the cadi (Muslim judge) Gazi Haydar Kadi. With its 19 m-high dome and 1.4 m-thick walls, it was the only church with two minarets in today's North Macedonia. After the Turkish inhabitants left in 1912, the church fell into disrepair. Only one of its minarets (45 m high) was rebuilt during the major renovation financed by a Turkish Islamic fund in 2016.

This mosque (Татар Синан Бег Џамија/Tatar Sinan Beg Džamija, Xhamia e Sinan Pashës) is the oldest monument in the city. Named after the Ottoman dignitary who financed it, it was erected between 1520 and 1532. Despite several transformations, it retains its beautiful orange hues due to the stones from the valley of the Žegligovo, partly in neighboring Serbia. Today it is less used than the Great Mosque (Xhamia e Madhe), to the east, which dates from 2022, and the New Mosque (Xhamia e Re), to the southeast, built in 2020 with two minarets.

This mosque (Инќар Џамија/Inḱar Džamija, Xhamia e Hynqarit) is Debar's oldest. But it is awaiting renovation. It was erected in 1467 thanks to a gift from Sultan Mehmet II and bears the Turkish name of Hünkâr Camii ("Sovereign's Mosque"). Rebuilt in 1938, it is still used by the inhabitants of the old charchia district. However, the city's Muslims are more likely to frequent the "Clock Tower Mosque" (Xhamia e Sahat Kullës) built in 2013, 300 m south-west of Skanderbeg Square.

This mosque (Иса-Бегова Џамија/Isa-Begova Džamija, Xhami e Gazi Isa Beut) was built in 1475-1476 as a tribute to the governor of the Skopje sanjak, then first governor of Bosnia Isa Bey Isaković, son of Ishak Bey. It comprises two identical rooms, two vaulted side wings and a porch covered with five domes. The interior decoration was redone in 1966. The mosque's medersa (Koranic school), still in use today, is one of the oldest in the Balkans. The Sultan-Murat mosque and clock tower lie 300 m to the south.

This elegant little mosque (Хаџи Махмуд-Бег Џамија/Hadži Mahmud-Beg Džamija) was built in 1522 thanks to a donation from the fierce governor Hadji Mahmut Bey, nicknamed Tomruk Ağa ("prison guard" in Turkish). The mosque was renowned for its spirit of tolerance. It was home to a medersa (Koranic school) and Dervish poets. Damaged by German bombardment during the First World War and by an earthquake, which shattered its minaret, in 1996, it was renovated in 2023 thanks to funding from Turkey.

This mosque (Џамија Хаџи Торгут/Džamija Hadži Torgut, Xhamia e Haxhi Durgutit) is the oldest in the city. It was built in 1466 on the site of the Byzantine church Agia Kyriaki (Saint Dominic). Legend has it that its minaret collapsed several times, until the cross of the old church was installed at the top. Even today, the minaret (about 20 m high) is topped by a small stylized Christian cross, a unique case in the world. The building is nicknamed "Mosque of the Cross" (Крст Џамија/Krst Džamija).

This mosque (Алипашина Џамија/Alipašina Džamija, Xhamia e Ali Pashës) constitutes the heart of the sharia. Founded in 1573, it took its present name around 1823, when the pasha of Belgrade Maraşlı Ali Paşa extended his territory to here. Square in shape (15 x 15 m), it originally had two minarets, one of which was destroyed during the First Balkan War, the other during the Second World War. The interior has walnut elements and an inscription of the Shahada, the first pillar of Islam. It is the center of the Sunni community in Ohrid.

Located north of Stara Čaršija, next to the Bit Pazar, this mosque (Алаџа Џамија/Aladža Džamija, Allaxha Xhamia) was built in 1438 by the general and governor of Skopje Ishak Bey and enlarged by his son Isa-Bey Ishaković. It owes its name to the multicolored ceramics that adorned its walls: in Turkish, alaca means "colored". These were destroyed by fire in 1689. The mosque retains its 30 m-high minaret and richly sculpted doors. The interior features painted decorations, reliefs and ^15th-century parquet flooring.

This mosque (Исхак Челеби Џамија/Ishak Čelebi Džamija) dominates the city center with its 48 m-high minaret. It was built around 1506 thanks to a donation from the cadi (Muslim judge) Ishak Çelebi, and for a long time was the nerve center of Monastrir/Bitola, along with the Yeni mosque. Altered several times over the centuries, it features an interior mezzanine built by French workers in 1912. Recently restored thanks to Turkish funding, the mosque now serves as a tekké for a small Sufi community.

This Ottoman mosque (Чарши Џамија/Carši Džamija) is in a state of ruin. It was set on fire by local residents at the end of the civil war in 2001, and the municipality is opposed to its reconstruction. The building was constructed in the early ^15th century and retains most of its minaret, which originally stood 25 m high. The town also boasts another abandoned ^15th-century mosque, along the Prilep river, and a more recent mosque north of the town center.