Selected Muslim Historic Monuments and Sites in Bulgaria

The following report summarizes activities and findings on behalf of the United States Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad during the course of selecting, visiting, and reporting on architectural monuments and sites associated with the Muslims in the Republic of Bulgaria. The report includes information on Muslim monuments in Bulgaria and explains their historical and architectural significance. Some of the material was prepared by Professors Mark Stefanovich and Evelina Kelbetcheva of the American University in Bulgaria in 2003. Additional material was prepared by Stephen Lewis, as part of a field survey of selected sites in the country. Mr. Lewis prepared a database of sites. From this information, he arranged a series of itineraries, which allowed examination and documentation of almost 50. These included selected Sunni mosques, present and former heterodox tekkes, and selected Sunni and heterodox mausoleums and cemeteries. Mr. Lewis based his initial list on his earlier work on the subject. He also made use of material presented to him by the late Nikola Mushanov, a restorer of Muslim architecture in Bulgaria. Mr. Mushanov’s restoration projects include two sites covered in this survey: the mosque at Samokov and the Imaret Mosque at Plovdiv. Most important, Mr. Lewis used writings of Prof. Dr. Machiel Kiel (formerly of the University of Utrecht and the Netherlands Oriental and Historical Institute, Istanbul), an expert in the history and architecture of the Ottoman Balkans. For additional information, Mr. Lewis turned to Bulgarian researcher Lyubomir Mikov, whose writings have since formed the basis for a book, Izkustvoto na Heterodiksnite Myusyulmani v Bulgaria (Art of the Heterodox Muslims in Bulgaria), Sofia, 2005. From all of the sites, Mr. Lewis identified, he and Commission staff chose a small but representative selection of Sunni and heterodox sites in certain regions of the country to visit. The large and important Rodope mountain region and the far southeast of the country were, however, not visited. The survey does not cover ethnic-Turkish and SlavicMuslim (Pomak) minority sites. Whenever possible, Mr. Lewis attempted to inspect the interior as well as exterior of each monument visited. 

Selected Muslim Historic Monuments and Sites in Bulgaria.pdf