The Hadum Mosque, Gjakova's oldest building

If Gjakova has a ground zero, this is it. The Hadum Mosque sits where the Grand Bazaar’s two main streets cross, and everything else, shops, hans and tekkes, arranged itself around it. To my mind there is no better spot anywhere to begin reading the town.

A complex from 1585

The DTK dates the complex to 1585, in the 16th century, and says it was founded by Efendi Hadum Aga. It is more than a mosque. Within the same precinct you have the minaret, the Koranic school (the mejtep), the ablution fountain, an old cemetery and a library the record counts among the oldest in Kosovo. It has been under permanent protection since 19 February 1955.

The government tourism portal, read through its archive.org copy, presents it as the oldest surviving building in town and places it in the quarter that still bears its name, the Hadum mahalla.

Stone, lead and tile

What I like most is how readable the complex is. The mosque, minaret and library are of dressed stone; the roofs of the mosque and minaret are lead, those of the library and school traditional tiles. According to the DTK the building has not been altered since it was built, and the original interior decoration of the mosque and library was conserved after being damaged. The second photo on this page shows that interior.

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A working mosque

It is an active place of worship, and that shapes the visit, in Ramadan especially. I found no opening times or rules from an official source, so here is how I would go about it. Avoid prayer times, Friday midday above all, keep shoulders and knees covered, take your shoes off if you go in and ask before taking photos inside. If you are unsure about clothing or a headscarf, ask at the door before stepping in.

The town’s name

That archived portal also tells how, by local tradition, Hadum Aga obtained the plot from its owner, Jak Vula, and the settlement that followed took the name Jakovë. It is a story rather than a verified fact, but it says a lot about this building’s weight in Gjakova. In heritage terms it is protected as an ensemble, so the school, library and cemetery are covered as well as the prayer hall.

So you do not lose the morning at the ticket office, browse tickets and tours in Hadum Mosque on GetYourGuide.

Around it

Step outside and Hani i Haraqisë, the bazaar’s old caravan inn and today a working hotel, is next door, with the clock tower, 30 m tall and rebuilt after a fire in 1912, a few steps beyond. I cover all of that in the Gjakova Grand Bazaar. For Gjakova’s Sufi side, the 19th-century Gjakova tekke of Sheikh Danjolli keeps a ceremonial hall with wall paintings, according to the Ministry of Culture. If Ottoman mosques are your thing, I compare this one with those in Prizren, Peja and Pristina in mosques in Kosovo.

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