WOMEN'S PRAYER SPACE IN THE CASE STUDIES OF THE HISTORIC MOSQUES IN THREE BALKAN COUNTRIES.

Full or partial access of women to the mosque in various historical periods has influenced the architectural type and setup, especially in the mosque interiors in the form of women's prayer space (maksura) reserved for women. This study examines women's access to the mosque, particularly with emphasis on the architectural typology of women's prayer space in sixty mosques from 15th to 19th centuries located in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Macedonia as specific case studies, which has often remained relatively unrecognized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]