Ferhat Pasha Mosque (Ferhadija)

Ferhadija, or Ferhat Pasha Mosque, is the most famous and most beautiful mosque in Banja Luka, located in the very heart of the city, near Kastel Fortress. It was built in 1579 by order of the powerful Bosnian governor Ferhad Pasha Sokolović, in the classical Ottoman style, and is one of the most accomplished architectural achievements of the 16th century in this region.

Tradition holds that it was built by a pupil of the famous Mimar Sinan, and the funds came as a ransom the pasha received for a captured Austrian nobleman. The mosque is graced by a harmonious dome and a slender minaret over forty metres tall, and beside it stand a fountain, türbes and an old cemetery, with a nearby clock tower added later. Faithfully restored to its original plans and reopened in 2016, it unites Ottoman splendour with the calm of a sacred place. Listed as cultural heritage back in 1950, it is an essential stop on any visit to Banja Luka.