Discover the incredible treasures of Vodnjan's sacral heritage

Vodnjan / Dignano, a town in southwestern Istria, is an area rich in history and ancient traditions, grew on the tracks of prehistoric forts that have existed in a wide area since ancient times.

In the interior of its historic core, this town has preserved its special medieval appearance with towers and narrow streets that meander irregularly between houses, with cobblestones and facades of worked stone, ancient streets over which rise palaces in recognizable Gothic-Venetian, Renaissance, Renaissance or and many - old and even older - churches which hide incredible treasures. Vodnjan is a magical labyrinth of narrow winding streets, crowded houses, hidden courtyards and arched passages, with many secrets and stories.

In the past, Vodnjan was divided into "counter"- a kind of settlement - and each counter had its own church, hence the large number of churches and chapels that bear the names of various saints and hide fairy tales, legends, relics and ancient stones. These bygone times left Vodnjan and its surroundings the largest number of churches and chapels in Istria, as well as a miraculous sacral treasure with the richest collection of saintly relics in the world.

She is one of them Church of St. Jacob or delle Trisiere in the old town, declared a parish church as early as 1212. Church of St. Jakov is considered to be the oldest, and important historical events took place in it a long time ago - in 1393, after the independence of Vodnjan, peace was made with Pula, and in 1492 the Vodnjan Statute was published.

Perhaps the most visited square in Vodnjan is the one in front Cathedral of St. Blaža, parish churches built on the remains of an early Romanesque church demolished in 1781. The church was dedicated in 1800, and boasts the title of "the largest Istrian parish church". It was built for 40 years and cost thousands of gold ducats. It also has the highest bell tower - 62 m high - which is very similar to the bell tower of the Basilica of St. Mark in Venice.

Behind the main altar of the Vodnjan parish church of St. Blaza is lying a wonder of the world. Protected by special glass chests, there are stored the bodies of saints that have remained incredibly preserved for years after death. These are saints who are mostly not Croats by birth, but their remains arrived in Vodnjan on June 23, 1818, thanks to the Italian academic painter Gaetano Gressler, in order to save them from destruction before the invasion of Napoleon's soldiers.

It is astonishing that in the Vodnjan Cathedral of St. As many as 370 relics, 786 bones or earthly remains of 266 saints were stored and listed, which are common to both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, because they lived before the church schism in 1054.

In Sv. Blaž also has 23 esteemed canvases and statues. Part of an extremely valuable inventory - such as the Low Relief Custody of 1451, wooden figures and paintings from the 16th to 18th centuries, works by great masters such as Paolo Venezianio, Jacopo Contarini, Jacobella del Fiore, Lazzar Bastiani, Gaetano Gressler, Aveneri Trevisano , Antonia dalla Zonca and others - can be seen in the museum which is an integral part of the church. There are a total of 730 works and objects covering the period from the 5th to the 19th century. Special features of the collection are items from early Christian basilicas, a collection of reliquaries made of Murano glass, precious metals and wood, as well as wooden statues and gilded retables from the 17th century, a reliquary containing a thorn from Christ's crown, and a reliquary of St. Simon the Prophet with a piece of cloth in which the Child was wrapped. The collection has recently become richer and for the valuable relic of the skull of St. Hubert, the patron saint of hunters, and a copy of the Shroud of Turin that is the same size as the original.

Church of St. You can visit Blaž all year round - out of season by appointment, and in season at certain times when it is open. You can get to know other nearby churches by seeing them only from the outside, because they are closed for visits except on open days.

U Church of St. Madonna Traverse from XIII. century there is a miracle made of wood: as many as eight carved altars from the 17th century. Legend has it that a small church of St. John the Baptist was originally built on this site in the 12th century. Marija od Izvor, next to which in 1229 St. Antun Padovanski and founded a small monastery next to it.

Acoustic the church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel make special the original paintings depicting angels playing various instruments, but also the statue of St. Peter of Alcantara, whose sermons on repentant poverty were remembered by the people of Vodnjan during periods of drought. Then the statue would be carried in a procession calling for rain.

Walls Church of St. Antuna Opata, the patron saint of domestic animals, fringed segments of frescoes from the 13th and 14th centuries. On the day of this saint, oxen and cows were brought to the yard around the church for blessing, and for other animals the blessing salt was brought home.

Church of St. Catherine once upon a time it lay outside the town of Vodnjan, but the town eventually reached and surrounded it. Inside, well-preserved medieval wall paintings have been discovered, as well as various engraved drawings of ships, coats of arms and stars, as well as graffiti written in Latin and Glagolitic.

U churches of st. Sunday the eternal resting place was found by the first pharmacist from Vodnjan, Domenico Cozzetti, and the interior of the church is hidden by Glagolitic graffiti from 1490.

U church of st. Crisis was the seat of the Brotherhood of Scourgers, Flagellants. Flagelants were a medieval religious heretical sect, ritually punishing themselves in public places by whipping to blood, modeled on similar sufferings that Jesus Christ went through, in order to convince others of the imminent coming of judgment and encourage them to change their behavior.

Belfry Church of St. Roka from the 17th century, 36 meters high, somewhat reminiscent of the one in Aquileia, and the coat of arms with a rampant lion is preserved above the door of the bell tower. In the niche of the apse, the protector against the plague of St. Rok, pushing adversity as far away from Vodnjan as he did for the merciless attacks of this severe disease in the 16th century.

Photo: Vodnjan Tourist Board

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