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Berat: Red Mosque of Berat: One of Albania’s First Mosques

The Red Mosque in Berat’s “Kala” quarter has served as a Cultural Monument since 1961.

The mosque includes a prayer hall, a portico with a shorter side, and a minaret.
Ruins stand near the acropolis walls and the surrounding fortifications.
The minaret remains better preserved.

Experts consider the Red Mosque one of Albania’s first mosques.
Evliya Çelebi described it during his second visit to Berat in 1671.
His account helps identify and date the mosque.

Scholars debate its construction date.
Some base their opinions on the mosque’s name or the minaret.
Kiel argues that builders constructed it right after the Ottomans captured Berat in 1417.

The 835 H (1431–1432) tax register records the mosque.
It lists a “fortress imam” in Berat named Haxhi Fakih.

Gjergj Frashëri and Sulejman Dashi studied the site.
They concluded that this mosque represents Berat’s earliest Islamic monument.
They date its construction to the late 14th century under Bayezid I (1389–1402).

The Regional Directorate of Cultural Heritage in Berat also cites scholar Aleksandër Meksi.
Meksi challenges arguments for an earlier date.
He says the minaret’s design and other architectural examples do not match.

Future documents and archaeological excavations will clarify the mosque’s true age.

/a.c/

 

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