The Kasumi Mosque

The Kasumi Mosque, with its front facade oriented to the north, is located in the town of Rahovec, on Bekim Sylka Street. In the vicinity of the mosque are: Republika Square, the old fountain in the square, the Sokoli Mosque, the Tower House (Kulla) of Hajrullah Çanta, as well as old traditional houses all around.
According to the residents of Rahovec, the Kasumi Mosque was built in the 19th century, in 1826, by the Haxhimustafa family with the support of the residents, while the land was donated by the benefactor Kosum Shtatvica.
From an architectural point of view, the mosque was built on sloping terrain, with a rectangular floor plan, and consists of the prayer hall: square in shape with dimensions of 677×657 cm and a height of 625 cm; the hayat (porch): half-open and covered with a roof, which serves as the entrance to the mosque, with an irregular floor plan; and the annex: built later on the eastern side of the mosque, rectangular in shape, with dimensions of 577×360 cm and a height of 240 cm.
The prayer hall has a gallery, or mahvil, built with a wooden construction and supported by two wooden pillars, and enclosed by a wooden railing or balustrade. The construction of the mahvil and the pillars are covered with white plaster (gypsum). Access to the mahvil is provided through the stairs of the minaret.
Also, in the prayer hall there are the Mihrab, set into the wall, the Minbar, and the Kursi, made of wood.
Inside the mosque, namely in the dome, there are mural paintings with geometric and floral decorations. The minaret of the mosque has one sherefe (balcony), and access is provided through an opening in the wall, located at the level of the prayer hall.
The foundations of the mosque are presumed to be of stone, while the walls of the prayer hall, 70 cm thick, are of fired bricks bound with cement mortar, and the walls of the hayat and the annex are of concrete blocks, 25 cm thick. The minaret of the mosque is built of tuff stone (siga), plastered on the outside with cement mortar, and was repaired after 2000 as a result of damage from shells during the last war in Kosovo in 1998-1999.
Immovable furnishings: the Mihrab; the Minbar, made of wood with geometric decorations, which was transferred from the Çarshia mosque with a gallery, demolished in 2000; the Kursi, made of wood; the wooden fence of the mahvil; mural paintings with geometric and floral decorations in the dome;
Movable furnishings: prayer beads (tespih); a large wooden clock; the base of a capital, carved from local stone, which is located in the mosque courtyard;
The mosque has historical value because during the 1990s it served as a secondary school for pupils of the Municipality of Rahovec; during nationwide demonstrations and protests it served for demonstration gatherings and 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 KLA fighters.
Throughout this whole time the mosque has served, and still serves, as a mosque, a place of Islamic worship for the residents of Rahovec.