Sokol Mosque, Rahovec

The Sokol Mosque, with its main facade oriented to the west, is located in the town of Rahovec, on Bekim Sylka Street near Republika Square. Nearby are: the Tower House of Hajrrullah Çanta, the old fountain in Republika Square, the Kasum Mosque, the Clock Tower (Sahat Kulla), old traditional houses, etc.
According to the residents of the town of Rahovec, the Sokol Mosque was built at the beginning of the 19th century, in 1824, before the Kasum Mosque, by Sylë Sokoli with the support of local residents.
Architecturally, the mosque is built on sloping terrain, with a rectangular floor plan, and consists of the prayer hall: quadrangular in shape with dimensions of 732×738 cm and a height of 695 cm, as well as the hayat, which is within the frame of the prayer hall and is covered with a flat roof. The space of the hayat, with an irregular floor plan, dimensions of 739×205 cm and a height of 351 cm, was built later and serves as the entrance to the prayer hall (mosque) from the western side of the mosque.
In the prayer hall there is the Mihrab, set into the southern wall of the mosque, the Minbar and the Kursi, made of wood. Inside the mosque, specifically in the dome, there are mural paintings with geometric and floral decorations. The minaret of the mosque, placed on the western side of the mosque, has a polygonal floor plan, with one balcony (sherefe), and access is provided through an opening in the wall, which is located at a certain height from the level of the prayer hall.
Within the courtyard of the mosque there are these accompanying structures: the fountains for ablution (abdest), the accompanying space of the mosque, sanitary facilities and a new annex building – ground floor plus one upper floor, serving the mosque. The courtyard of the mosque is paved with broken stones.
The foundations of the mosque are presumed to be of stone, while the walls of the prayer hall, 60 cm thick, are of baked bricks bound with cement mortar. The minaret of the mosque is built of pumice stone (siga), plastered on the outside with cement mortar, and was repaired after the year 2000 as a result of damage from shells during the last war in Kosovo, in 1998-1999.
The roof of the mosque is hipped (four-sided), covered with flat tiles, while the covering of the minaret is of sheet metal.
Immovable furnishings: the Mihrab, set into the southern wall of the mosque; the Minbar, made of wood; the Kursi, made of wood; mural paintings with geometric and floral decorations in the dome;
Movable furnishings: a large wooden clock; prayer beads (tespih);
The mosque has historical value because during the 1990s of the 20th century it served as a secondary school for students of the Municipality of Rahovec; during nationwide demonstrations and protests it served for demonstration gatherings and as shelter for them; and during the last war in Kosovo in 1998-99 it served as a depot for food and clothing, for supplying the fighters of the KLA.
Throughout the entire time, the mosque has served, and still serves, for Islamic worship activities for the residents of Rahovec.