Editing Mostar (section)

==Architecture==
{{Main|Architecture of Mostar}}
[[File:View of Mostar 01.jpg|thumb|Old Town of Mostar]]
[[File:Mostar gimnasium.jpg|thumb|left|[[Gimnazija Mostar]], designed by architect [[František Blažek]]]]
[[File:Koski Mehmed Pasha Mosque, Mostar 01.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Koski Mehmed Paša Mosque]]
[[File:Mostar14BIH38.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Church of St. Peter and Paul, Mostar|Catholic church and Franciscan monastery of St. Peter and Paul]]]]
[[File:Sabornihram.jpg|thumb|[[Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, Mostar|Cathedral of the Holy Trinity]]]]

Mostar has architecturally noteworthy buildings in a wide range of styles. [[Historicist]] architectural styles reflected [[Multiculturalism|cosmopolitan]] interest and exposure to foreign aesthetic trends and were artfully merged with indigenous styles.<ref name="Zadro-Architecture of Historicism">{{cite web |author1=Sanja Zadro Ursić |date=2014 |title=Architecture of Historicism and Art Nouveau in Mostar |url=https://www.cidom.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Sanja-Zadro-Architecture-of-Historicism-and-Art-Nouve-in-Mostar.pdf |access-date=15 January 2024 |website=cidom.org |language=en}}</ref> Examples include the Italianate Franciscan church, the Ottoman [[Muslibegović House|Muslibegovića house]], the Dalmatian [[Birthplace of Svetozar Ćorović|Ćorović House]] and an [[Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, Mostar|Orthodox church]] which was built as gift from the Sultan.

The Ottomans used monumental architecture to affirm, extend and consolidate their colonial holdings. Administrators and bureaucrats – many of them indigenous people who converted from Christianity to [[Islam]] – founded [[mosque]] complexes that generally included [[Quran|Koranic]] schools, soup kitchens or markets.<ref name="Pasic, Amir 2004">Pasic, Amir. Conservation and Revitalization of Historic Mostar. Geneva: The Aga Khan Trust for Culture, 2004.</ref>
{{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
| WHS = Old Bridge Area of the Old City of Mostar
| Image = Stari Most viewed from North.jpg
| Caption = Old Bridge in the heart of the Old City of Mostar (viewed from the north)
| Criteria = Cultural: vi
| ID = 946
| Year = 2005
| Area = 7.6 ha
| Buffer_zone = 47.6 ha
}}

Out of the thirteen original mosques dating from the 16th and 17th centuries, seven have been lost during the 20th century for ideological reasons or by bombardment. One of the two 19th-century Orthodox churches has also disappeared, while the early 20th-century [[synagogue]], after suffering severe damage in the [[World War II]], has been converted into a theatre. Several Ottoman inns also survived, along with other buildings from this period of Mostar's history, such as fountains and schools.<ref name="whc.unesco.org"/>

The majority of administrative buildings are from the Austro-Hungarian period and have [[Neoclassicism|neoclassical]] and [[Secession (art)|Secessionist]] characteristics. A number of surviving late Ottoman houses demonstrate the component features of this form of domestic architecture – upper storey for residential use, hall, paved courtyard, and veranda on one or two storeys. The later 19th-century residential houses are predominantly in neoclassical style.<ref name="whc.unesco.org"/>

A number of early trading and craft buildings still exist, notably some low shops in wood or stone, stone storehouses, and a group of former tanneries round an open courtyard. Once again, the 19th-century commercial buildings are predominantly neoclassical. A number of elements of the early fortifications are visible, namely the Hercegusa Tower dating from the medieval period. By contrast, the Ottoman defence edifices are represented by the Halebinovka and Tara Towers – the watchtowers on the ends of the Old Bridge, and a stretch of the ramparts.<ref name="whc.unesco.org"/>

The oldest single arch stone bridge in Mostar, the [https://web.archive.org/web/20170306225556/http://www.bhtourism.ba/eng/whattoseeanddo.wbsp?wbf_mjesto=;2; Kriva Cuprija ("Sloping Bridge")], was built in 1558 by the Ottoman architect Cejvan Kethoda. It is said that this was to be a test before the major construction of the Stari Most began. The Old Bridge was completed in 1566 and was hailed as one of the greatest architectural achievements in the Ottoman  [[Balkans]]. The single-arch stone bridge is an exact replica of the original bridge that stood for over 400 years and that was designed by Hajrudin, a student of the great Ottoman architect Sinan. It spans {{cvt|28.7|m|abbr=off}} of the Neretva river, {{cvt|21|m|abbr=off}} above the summer water level. The Halebija and Tara towers have always housed the guardians of the bridge and during Ottoman times were also used as storehouses for ammunition. The arch is a perfect semicircle {{cvt|8.56|m|abbr=off}} in width and {{cvt|4.15|m|abbr=off}} in height. The frontage and vault are made of regular stone cubes incorporated into the horizontal layers all along the vault. The space between vault, frontal walls and footpath is filled with cracked stone. The bridge footpath and the approaching roads are paved with cobblestones, as are the main roads in the town. Stone steps enable people to ascend to the bridge from either side. During the armed conflict between Bosniaks and Bosnian Croats in the Bosnian War in the 1990s, the [[Stari Most|bridge]] was destroyed by the HVO (Croatian Defence Council).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sudetic |first1=Chuck |title=Mostar's Old Bridge Battered to Death |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/10/world/mostar-s-old-bridge-battered-to-death.html |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=29 June 2016 |date=1993-11-10 |archive-date=2016-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160719025542/http://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/10/world/mostar-s-old-bridge-battered-to-death.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Cejvan Cehaj Mosque, built in 1552, is the oldest mosque in Mostar. Later a [[madrasa]] (Islamic school) was built on the same compound. The Old Bazaar, Kujundziluk, is named after the goldsmiths who traditionally created and sold their wares on this street, and still sells authentic paintings and copper or bronze carvings of the Stari Most, pomegranates (the natural symbol of Herzegovina), or the [[stećak]]s (medieval tombstones).

The Koski Mehmed Paša Mosque, built in 1617, is open to visitors. Visitors may enter the mosque and take photos (price of entry is 10KM). The [[minaret]] is also open to the public and is accessible from inside the mosque. Just around the corner from the mosque is the Tepa Market. This has been a busy marketplace since Ottoman times. It now sells mostly fresh produce grown in Herzegovina and, when in season, the figs and pomegranates are extremely popular. Local honey is also a prominent specialty, being produced all around Herzegovina.