Tombs under the Linden Tree with a Drinking Fountain: Ottoman Funerary Monuments in Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Site at a Glance
- Popularity
- Low
- Country
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Primary era
- Early Modern
- Eras represented
- Early Modern
- Civilizations
- Ottoman
- Site type
- Burial
- Remains
- Tomb
On this page9 sections
History
The Tombs under the Linden Tree with a Drinking Fountain are Ottoman funerary monuments in Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The group includes tombs associated with three pashas, senior Ottoman officials and military commanders, and a fountain connected with Travnik’s water supply.
Abdulah Pasha Muhsinović
Abdulah Pasha Muhsinović served as governor of Bosnia during four periods: from 1720 to August 1727; from 11 October 1733 to November 1735; from 1740 to 1741; and from 5 May 1748 until his death on 25 April 1749. His tomb was built soon afterward. Its inscription also records that he served for a time as grand vizier, the Ottoman Empire’s chief minister.
Perišan Mustafa Pasha and the fountain
Perišan Mustafa Pasha became governor of Bosnia on 28 December 1796 and arrived in Travnik on 28 May 1797. He remained in office until his death on 14 February 1799. In 1797 he built the fountain between the tombs. Mehmed Pasha Kukavica, an Ottoman official, constructed the water supply for it and other fountains in Travnik.
Hafiz Ali Dželaludin Pasha and later changes
Hafiz Ali Dželaludin Pasha was appointed governor on 8 December 1819 and reached Travnik on 29 March 1820. He held office until 28 November 1822 and died suddenly not long afterward. Street regulation later prompted the relocation of Fatima’s headstone from the space between the tombs into the tomb shared by Abdulah and Hafiz Ali. The two pashas’ tomb, together with Perišan Mustafa Pasha’s tomb, is designated a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Remains
The group is arranged around two open-sided tombs, with the fountain between them. Both tombs use stone columns to support open domes, but their plans, dimensions, and painted decoration differ. The tomb of Abdulah Pasha Muhsinović and Hafiz Ali Dželaludin Pasha stands in the center of the Upper Bazaar.
Tombs and fountain
Tomb of Abdulah Pasha Muhsinović and Hafiz Ali Dželaludin Pasha
The tomb’s base measures 5.25 by 5.20 metres. Eight round stone columns, each 2.28 metres high including its decorated top, support semicircular arches and an upper section of stonework. The arches carry an open dome 4.09 metres across, whose ribs consist of flat iron sections woven together with wire. Wrought-iron railings span the gaps between the columns. Tendrils, small flowers, and leaves are painted across the tomb’s surface. At its western side is a second sarcophagus with grave markers belonging to Fatima.
Tomb of Perišan Mustafa Pasha
This tomb has an almost regular six-sided plan, with sides approximately 3.65 metres long. Its structure rests on six round stone columns that narrow toward the top and are richly decorated. A wrought-iron railing, one metre high, fills the spaces between them. Curved triangular supports called pendentives carry an open dome about 3.70 metres in diameter. Its ribs are made of interwoven flat iron sections. Lilies, grapevines, and carnations decorate the exterior.
Fountain
The fountain is situated between the two tombs.
