Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Part 1: Ottoman Old Town (Baščaršija)
(Baščaršija)
“Pigeon Square”: Though it's nicknamed for its many winged residents, this square is
officially called Baš č aršija. Literally translated as “Main Marketplace,” this unmistakably
Ottoman-flavored square has given its name to the entire Old Town. The fountain (notice
thesmallfaucetatthebase),called Sebilj, isaniconofSarajevo.Accordingtolocallegend,
visitors who drink water from this fountain will return to Sarajevo someday. The original
was built in 1753, but this restored version dates from the 19th century. Although it's the
centerpiece of the “Turkish” Old Town, the fountain is more Persian in style. The Ottoman
Empire (of which Sarajevo was a part) enjoyed influences from throughout both the Islamic
and the European worlds: art, literature, and poetry from Persia (today's Iran); religious in-
fluence (i.e., SunniIslam) fromthe Arabic world; diplomacy fromthe Germanic world; and
herbal pharmacology and music from the Jewish world.
Turn with your back to the fountain and walk down the cobbled square. Look for the
tight little lane on the left, just before the mosque. This is the wonderfully authentic Cop-
persmiths' Street (Kazandžiluk), where craftsmen still carry out their work, hammering
beautiful works of art out of copper—you can hear their little hammers tapping from their
workshops. It's just the place to buy a copper Bosnian coffee set that you'll never use. This
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