Editing Bitola (section)

==Main sights==
[[File:Apteka Calovski, Bitola, Manaki.jpg|thumb|The building of Calovski pharmacy, glass disk (c. 1930)]]
The city has many historical building dating from many historical periods. The most notable ones are from the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman age]], but there are some from the more recent past.

===Širok Sokak===
{{Main|Širok Sokak}}
Širok Sokak ({{langx|mk|Широк Сокак}}, meaning "Wide Alley") is a long [[pedestrian street]] that runs from [[Magnolia Square]] to the City Park.
[[File:Bitola 053.JPG|thumb|Traditional architecture in Bitola]]

===Clock Tower===
{{Main|Clock Tower (Bitola)}}
{{unreferenced section|date=January 2022}}
[[File:The Clock Tower in Bitola town - Republic of Macedonia.jpg|thumb|left|The clock tower in Bitola.]]
[[File:Magnolija_square_in_Bitola_(Магнолија,_Битола).jpg|thumb|[[Magnolia Square]] with Russian Consulate]]
[[File:Хамам_Дебој_(Битола).jpg|thumb|Hamam Deboj-[[hammam]]]]

It is unknown when Bitola's [[clock tower]] was built. Written sources from the 16th century mention a clock tower, but it is unclear if it is the same. Some believe it was built at the same time as St. Dimitrija Church in 1830. Legend says that the Ottoman authorities collected around 60,000 eggs from nearby villages and mixed them in the [[Mortar (masonry)|mortar]] to make the walls stronger.

The tower has a rectangular base and is about 30 meters high. Near the top is a rectangular terrace with an iron fence. On each side of the fence is an iron console construction which holds the lamps for lighting the clock. The clock is on the highest of three levels. The original clock was replaced during World War II with a working one, given by the Nazis because the city had maintained German graves from World War I. The massive tower is composed of walls, massive spiral stairs, wooden mezzanine constructions, [[pendentive]]s and the dome. During the construction of the tower, the façade was simultaneously decorated with simple stone plastic.

===Church of Saint Demetrius===
The Church of [[Saint Demetrius]] was built in 1830 with the voluntary contributions of local merchants and craftsmen. It is plain on the outside, as all churches in the [[Ottoman Empire]] had to be, but lavishly decorated with [[chandelier]]s, a carved bishop throne and an engraved [[iconostasis]] on the inside. According to some theories, iconostasis is a work of the [[Mijaks|Mijak]] engravers. Its most impressive feature is the arc above the imperial quarters with modelled figures of [[Jesus]] and the apostles.

Other engraved wood items include the bishop's throne made in the spirit of Mijak engravers, several [[icon frames]] and five more-recent pillars shaped like thrones. The frescoes originate from two periods: the end of the 19th century and the end of [[World War I]] to the present. The icons and frescoes were created thanks to voluntary contributions of local businessmen and citizens. The authors of many of the icons had a vast knowledge of iconography schemes of the [[New Testament]]. The icons show a great sense of color, dominated by red, green and ochra shades. The abundance of golden ornaments is noticeable and points to the presence of [[late-Byzantine]] artwork and [[baroque style]]. The icon of Saint Demetrius is signed with the initials "D. A. Z.", showing that it was made by iconographer Dimitar Andonov the [[zograph]] in 1889. There are many other items, including the [[chalice]]s made by local masters, a darohranilka of Russian origin, and several paintings of scenes from the New Testament, brought from Jerusalem by pilgrims.

The opening scenes of the film ''[[The Peacemaker (1997 film)|The Peacemaker]]'' were shot in the "Saint Dimitrija" church in Bitola, as well as some ''[[Welcome to Sarajevo]]'' scenes.

===Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart===
{{main|Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Bitola}}

===Heraclea Lyncestis===
[[Heraclea Lyncestis]] ({{langx|mk|Хераклеа Линкестис}}) was an important ancient settlement from the [[Hellenistic period]] till the early Middle Ages. It was founded by [[Philip II of Macedon]] by the middle of the 4th century BC. Today, its ruins are in the southern part of Bitola, {{convert|2|km|0|abbr=on}} from the city center.

===The covered bazaar===
[[File:Bitola.1914 01.jpg|left|thumb|The Monastir bazaar in 1914]]

Situated near the city centre, the covered [[bedisten]] ({{langx|mk|Безистен}}) is one of the most impressive and oldest buildings in Bitola from the Ottoman period. With its numerous cupolas that look like a fortress, with its tree-branch-like inner streets and four large metal doors it is one of the biggest covered markets in the region.

It was built in the 15th century by [[Kara Daut Pasha Uzuncarsili]], then [[Rumelia Eyalet|Rumelia]]'s [[Beylerbey]]. Although the bazaar appears secure, it has been robbed and set on fire, but has managed to survive. The bedisten, from the 15th to the 19th centuries, was rebuilt, and many stores, often changing over time, were located there. Most of them were selling textile and other luxurious fabrics. At the same time the Bedisten was a treasury, where in specially made small rooms the money from the whole Rumelian Vilaet was kept, before it was transferred into the royal treasury. In the 19th century the Bedisten contained 84 shops. Today most of them are contemporary and they sell different types of products, but despite the internal renovations, the outwards appearance of the structure has remained unchanged.{{citation needed|date=November 2015}}

===Gazi Hajdar Kadi Mosque===
The [[Gazi Hajdar Kadi Mosque]] is one of the most attractive monuments of Islamic architecture in Bitola. It was built in the early 1560s, as the project of the architect [[Mimar Sinan]], ordered by the Bitola kadija Ajdar-kadi. Over time, it was abandoned and heavily damaged, and at one point used as a stare,<ref>{{cite book|title=The settlements with muslim population in Macedonia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zMCWdjCBjQYC&pg=PA206|year=2005|publisher=Logos-A|isbn=978-9989-58-155-7|pages=206–}}</ref> but recent restoration and conservation has restored to some extent its original appearance.

===New Mosque, Bitola===
[[File:2011 Bitola, Meczet Jeni 01.JPG|thumb|upright|[[New Mosque, Bitola]]]]
The [[New Mosque, Bitola|New Mosque]] is located in the center of the city. It has a square base, topped with a dome. Near the mosque is a minaret, 40 m high. Today, the mosque's rooms house permanent and temporary art exhibitions. Recent archaeological excavations have revealed that it has been built upon an old church.

===Ishak Çelebi Mosque===
The [[Ishak Çelebi Mosque]] is the inheritance of the kadi [[Ishak Çelebi]]. In its spacious yard are several tombs, attractive because of the soft, molded shapes of the sarcophagi.

===Kodža Kadi Mosque===
===The old bazaar===
The old [[bazaar]] ([[Macedonian language|Macedonian]]: ''Стара Чаршија'') is mentioned in a description of the city from the 16th and the 17th centuries. The present [[bedisten]] does not differ much in appearance from the original one. The bedisten had eighty-six shops and four large iron gates. The shops used to sell textiles, and today sell food products.

===Deboj Bath===
The Deboj Bath is an [[Ottoman Empire]]-era [[hamam]]. It is not known when exactly it was constructed. At one point, it was heavily damaged, but after repairs it regained its original appearance: a façade with two large domes and several minor ones.