Ucka Nature Park

Fax.: 051 293 751

Info Telefon: 051 293 753
Besucher-Email: park.prirode.ucka@inet.hrwww.pp-ucka.hr, park.prirode.ucka@inet.hr

A mountain in the east of Istria, above the Kvarner Riviera.
 

Ethnographic Museum of Istria

mr. sc. Lidija Nikočević
Fax.: 052/624-351

Info Telefon: 052/622-220
Besucher-Email: emi@emi.hr
http://www.emi.hr...

Year of foundation: 1962.

"The Ethnographic Museum of Istria is located in the Castle of Pazin, a mediaeval fortress built above a karst chasm called Pazinska jama (the Gorge of Pazin). The fortress, massively built and well preserved, has a long and stratified architectural history (from the 10th to the 19th centuries AD). It was mentioned for the first time as Castrum Pisinum in 983. The Castle represents a unique example of feudal fortification architecture. Apart from having a defensive role, the Castle was also used as the seat of the authorities, and therefore had both public and residential use.

The museum keeps ethnographic material; it has more than 5,000 items in its holdings, primarily textiles, agricultural tools, and items of everyday use from the Istrian peninsula dated to the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century (pottery, carpenter’s and blacksmith’s products, and examples of traditional handicrafts). The museum also houses a large collection of souvenirs.

The ethnologist-curators specialise in the study of everyday life, including the areas of clothing, economy, children’s games, music, food, religion, housing, folklore, multicultural convergence, and modern cultural phenomena.

The permanent exhibition starts at the ground floor of the Castle where the carpenter’s and blacksmith’s workshops are located. The smithy exhibits a forge and various tools and products.

The museum's second floor houses exhibits such as the traditional clothing from Istria: costumes from Ćićarija and Labin whose elements reflect archaic influences; complete female attire of the Montenegrin population that settled in Peroj in the 17th century, and had maintained the authentic characteristics of traditional dress until the mid-20th century; and Vodnjan female attire which reflects Baroque influences.

Musical instruments, mostly wind instruments, were used to perform archaic music.

A traditional Istrian kitchen from the end of the 19th century has also been reconstructed.

Original Istrian hand-made products such as pottery, baskets, and textile art works typical of the regional culture follow. Basic economic branches of the pre-industrial area are also represented (agriculture, viticulture, cattle breeding, and fishing), some of which include cultural elements typical of Istria." (Text and picture: MDC)
 

Town Museum of Pazin

Denis Visintin
Tel.: 625-040, 616-866
Fax.: 052/625-040

Info Telefon: 052/623-054
Besucher-Email: muzej-pazin@pu.t-com.hr
http://www.muzej-pazin.hr...

Year of foundation: 1997.

"Pazin Town Museum was founded in 1996, when the Cultural and Historical Collection was separated from the holdings of the Ethnographic Museum of Istria. The museum is located in the Castle of Pazin, a medieval fortress built above Pazinska jama (the Gorge of Pazin), a karst chasm where the river Pazinčica disappears underground and which was described in the novel Mathias Sandorf by Jules Verne. The fortress, massively built and well preserved, has a long and stratified architectural history (from the 10th to the 19th centuries AD). It was mentioned for the first time as Castrum Pisinum in a 983 deed by the German Emperor Otto II. The Castle represents a unique example of feudal fortification architecture. Apart from its defensive role, the Castle was also the seat of the County of Pazin.

The museum's permanent exhibition consists of three sections:

Pazin and its Surroundings from Prehistory to the Early Middle Agesdisplays prehistoric, Antique, and early medieval archaeological pottery and metal finds, along with stone monuments.

Through the several thematic units of the exhibition The Castle of Pazin and the Serf's Uprisings of the 15th and 16th Centuries, visitors are informed about the history of the Castle, the County of Pazin, and the two serf's uprisings (the revolt which occurred in 1407 and 1408 when the peasants revolted against the tyranny of aristocrats, and the revolt which took place in 1571 and 1572 when the peasants reacted in protection of their rights).

Reconstructions of serfs' tools (scythes, pitchforks, sickles, axes, small sickles - rankuns, flails, and clubs), medieval weapons (knives, halberds and similar), and torture devices are also exhibited.

The Collection of Church Bells displays 23 bells from Istrian churches dating from the 14th to the 19th centuries (the Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and Austro-Hungarian periods). Of particular importance are the Gothic bells with Glagolitic inscriptions.

The Castle also houses a permanent exhibition of the life and work of Juraj (Giorgio) Dobrila, a bishop and reformer. The permanent exhibition Juraj Dobrila/ Life and Work is located in Dobrila's native house in the village of Veli Ježenj." (Text and pictures: MDC)
 

Antonio Smareglia Memorial Room

Fax.: 052/214-603

Info Telefon: 052/213-888, 388-831
Besucher-Email: skpu@unipu.hr
http://www.skpu.hr...

Sveučilišna knjižnica u Puli

„In 2004, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Istrian composer Antonio Smareglia (1854-1929), the composer's Memorial Room at his native home in Pula was opened to public.
The permanent exhibition is located on the ground floor. It features letters, photographs, music scores, audio recordings, publications, paintings, graphics, and so on, which allows the visitors to get acquainted with the composer's life and work. The exhibits include photographs and works of art dedicated to the composer, as well as opportunities for visitors to listen to audio and video recordings of some of Smareglia's compositions.
Antonio Smareglia's operas left a significant mark on Central European music, as his works were performed in many European cities. In 1871 he started working in Italy, seeking a new kind of musical theatre modelled on Wagner, but the Italian audience did not quite accept his works. He returned to Istria in 1894 and composed the opera Nozze Istriane (Istrian Wedding, 1895), the content of which is related to the town of Vodnjan. It is his most performed opera and has a hint of Istrian melodies.“ (MDC)
 

Archeological Museum of Istria

Darko Komšo
Fax.: 052/351-333

Info Telefon: 052/351-300
Besucher-Email: arheoloski-muzej-istre@pu.t-com.hr
http://www.ami-pula.hr...

Jan-April and Oct-Dec 9-14 h weekdays only!
May-Aug 9-20 h, on weekends 9-15 h.

Year of foundation: 1902.

"The Archaeological Museum of Istria is the successor of the City Museum (Museo civico della Città di Pola) founded in 1902, and the Royal Museum of Istria (Il Regio Museo dell’Istria) founded in 1925. The Museum has operated in the building of the former Austrian gymnasium (secondary education school built in 1890) since 1930, and under its current name since 1947. It is located on the eastern outskirts of the prehistoric hill fort and the ancient colony of Pola. The museum is accessed through the Twin Gates (Porta Gemina), past the lapidarium, a park, and then via a wide staircase. The remains of the Small Roman Theatre are located immediately behind the museum building.

The permanent collection displays the development of life in Istria from prehistory to the Middle Ages.

The collection of stone monuments comprises items from Antiquity (from the 1st to the 4th centuries AD), Late Antiquity, and the Middle Ages (from the middle of the 4th century to the 9th century AD). Most of the artefacts are Roman inscriptions, medieval architectural decorations, and stone church furniture from Pula and its surrounding area.

The first floor of the museum is dedicated to the Paleolithic, Neolithic, Copper, and Bronze Ages, and particularly to rich finds from the necropoleis of the Histri from the last millennium BC. Prehistoric material from Istria, dating from the Early Stone Age to the Roman period, is exhibited in units following chronological order throughout five halls. A necklace made of amber beads, a bronze sceptre, ceramic urns, an Etruscan urn from the site of Picugi near Poreč, a “fertility goddess”, and a horseman from the site of Nesactium are among the most significant of the exhibited items. Prominent among the metal finds are fragments of a bronze situla depicting a naval battle, cistae, and other vessel shapes, also from Nesactium.

The exhibited items from the Roman period include ceramic lamps, pottery, glass and metal items, marble statues, fragments of architectural decorations, and mosaics from Roman buildings.

The exhibition of Late Antique and medieval archaeological finds is housed in the last two halls on the second floor. There are jewellery items and costumes from Slavic necropoleis (Buzet, Vižinada and other towns) and different metal, glass and ceramic items from Early Croatian graves in Pula and Istria (Žminj). Prominent among them are: a polychromatic mosaic from the south tomb chapel of the Maximian basilica (mid 6th century AD) and a fragment of an arch with wattle and an inscription (from the Church of St. Eliseus near Fažana).

The museum has published a specialised review, Histria Archaeologica, since 1970.

In addition to the main building, which houses the prehistoric, ancient, medieval, and Modern Age collections, the museum also houses collections at different locations in Pula (the Amphitheatre, the Temple of Augustus, and the Franciscan monastery) and in Nesactium.

Amphitheatre
The amphitheatre is a very particular Roman building of large dimensions in the form of an ellipse. It was used for the staging of gladiatorial combats, wild animal fights, and other games popular throughout the Roman world. The construction of the most monumental building in the history of Pula was probably started during the reign of Emperor Augustus. The exterior circuit of walls, with large arched openings on two stories, stylistically dates to the reign of Emperor Claudius, in the first half of the 1st century AD. The third story was built in about 80 AD, marking the last building phase and the completion of the amphitheatre, and is attributed to Emperor Titus Flavius Vespasianus.

This geometrically regular structure is 133 m long, 105 m wide, and reaches 32.5 m in height where the walls face the sea. The spectator area could accommodate 20,000 people. It extended around the very arena where combats took place, and ascended in concentric rows of stone seats. The four side towers had dual staircases leading to the upper stories.

A permanent exhibition about olive cultivation and viticulture in Istria in Antiquity can be viewed in an underground area of the amphitheatre. The exhibited stone items are originals, brought from sites such as Barbariga, Betika and others, while the wooden elements of oil mills and presses have been reconstructed according to the descriptions made by Roman writers.

The last segment of the exhibition presents the land and sea transport of Istrian products to different, often distant, markets.

The Temple of Augustus
The Temple of Augustus is a well preserved Roman temple built between 2 BC and 14 AD. It is located in the north-west of the Forum, adjacent to the City Hall. The temple consists of a large, closed main room (cella), and a smaller portico with four frontal columns and one side column on each side. It was originally dedicated to the goddess Roma (the personification of the Roman state) and the Emperor Augustus, who was venerated as a deity. The temple houses Roman stone monuments (sarcophagi, funerary monuments, architectural elements, fragments of imperial statues, portraits, and other items) and small sculptures (votive bronze figurines, marble figures, fragments of reliefs, and votive ceramic sculptures).

Nesactium
Nesactium or Vizače is an archaeological park with preserved architectural remains from Antiquity and Late Antiquity. The site is surrounded by a belt of archaeologically investigated defensive walls. A once rich prehistoric necropolis is located at the very entrance to the city, between the Roman gates and the prehistoric gates. The excavated urns and funerary gifts found in graves indicate multiple layers of inhumation from the 11th century BC until the Roman conquest. Local products and imported luxury goods attest to the connections between the Istrian culture (with Nesactium at its centre) and other cultures from all over the Mediterranean and Central Europe.

After the siege laid in 177 BC, the Romans destroyed the city and built a new one in its place. The new city had well organised urban architecture. A forum with three temples, spacious thermae, and other public and private buildings were erected on the central plateau. The remains of luxurious private buildings can be observed on the slopes, while a rich necropolis extended along the road leading to Pula. Items of high artistic value reflect the impressive cultural level the city reached during the Roman period.

With the gradual decline of the Roman state, visible changes took place. The city was transformed from an ancient municipium into a fortified Late Antique settlement. The luxurious thermae were converted into residential quarters and production facilities, while their southern facilities were turned into two basilicas.

The northern basilica and the larger southern basilica represent a valuable contribution to the understanding of early Christian archaeology. The city survived the fall of the Roman Empire and the rise of Christianity but could not resist the barbaric attacks in the early 7th century AD.

The history of investigations at the site of Nesactium is presented in a building located at the site." (Text and pictures: MDC)
 

City Art Collection of Pula

mr. sc. Erik Lukšić
Fax.: 052/222-662

Info Telefon: 052/222-662
Besucher-Email: sanja.krelja@pula.hr, eros.cakic@pula.hr
http://www.zbirka-antun-motika.com/...

Grad Pula - Upravni odjel za društvene djelatnosti

Year of foundation: 1972.

"Valuable collections of art works by Istrian artists and artists from the territory of former Yugoslavia have been created as a result of the organized exhibition activities in the city of Pula since 1970.

In 2006 the Art Collection of the City of Pula was enriched by a donation of works by Antun Motika (1902-1992), the most eminent painter in Pula and Istria, as well as one of the most significant Croatian painters of the 20th century. The collection of Antun Motika contains works of a documentary nature from his pre-academic period and pieces belonging to his mature opus: watercolours, gouaches, temperas, and oils created in the period between 1929 and 1940, and later, larger drawings, the majority of which are sketches and models for sculptures in glass and ceramics. The donation also consisted of four sculptures, bronze medals, aluminum foils, and 50 painting experiments. A special segment of the Collection has 20 albums with drawings, photo collages, photo experiments, and two illustrated stories created during the time he attended the Pazin High School." (MDC)
 

Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria (ex: Museum of Istrian History)

Gracijano Kešac
Fax.: 052/211-566

Info Telefon: 052/211-566
Besucher-Email: pmi@pmi.hr
http://www.pmi.hr...

Year of foundation: 1955.
The Museum has occasional exhibitions.

"The museum was founded in 1955 as a museum of the National Liberation Struggle and socialist revolution; in 1990 its activities extended to the field of history. It is situated in the centre of Pula, in the Kaštel fortress, which was built by the authorities of the Republic of Venice for defensive purposes. The fortress, designed by French military engineer Antoine de Ville, was built from 1630 to 1633.

The holdings of the museum include more than 50,000 items of cultural and historical value, created in the time period between the the 15th century and the present. The museum's main areas of interest are the history of the city of Pula, the mediaeval history of Istria, and the history of the Modern Age in Istria.

Maps of Istria made by famous European cartographers, Valvasor's panoramas of Istrian towns, and a very valuable panorama of the city of Poreč by Erhard Reuwich, made between 1486 and 1502, stand out among the exhibits. Decorations, medals, plaques, certificates, awards, and emblems reflect the historical trends and the various states which have alternated in the role of ruler over the territory of Istria from the 16th century to the present.

Numerous and diverse objects from the fields of pharmacy, education, and the activities of individual companies attest to everyday urban life in Pula and Istria between the 18th and 20th centuries.

The holdings related to the maritime and shipbuilding tradition in Pula and Istria between the 18th and the 20th centuries include: pieces of cutlery from the Pula Naval Casino; old shipbuilding tools dated to the late 19th century, used in the “K.u. K. Seearsenal“ (Imperial and Royal) naval base in Pula; and utility items discovered during investigative scientific expeditions conducted at two protected underwater sites (the site of the Austro-Hungarian passenger steamship Baron Gautsch and the site of the Italian destroyer Cesare Rossarol).

Particularly valuable are maritime flags of the Austrian Lloyd and Austro-Hungarian merchant fleet, naval flags of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Kingdom of Italy, and the German Empire, and flags from countries that have had their naval bases in the area of southern Istria throughout its turbulent history.

The museum also stores more than 5,000 photographs and postcards, films, and video recordings, with additional materials about the public life of Pula and Istria, ethnographic materials, and other items.

The four casemates on the eastern side of the fortress house a selection of the museum's holdings: period furniture, Art Nouveau glassware, souvenirs from the turn of the 19th and the 20th centuries, pieces of naval officers' and non-commissioned officers' cutlery, gunsmith Pavao Bačuga’s sailor's chest dating from 1868, a docking book, blueprints of the warships built in the Pula Arsenal, and a display of the pharmacy from the former Imperial and Royal Naval Hospital.

The only preserved boat of the TOP-Topo type, once a typical vessel in the northern Adriatic (built early in the 20th century, sailed until 1974), is exhibited in the courtyard." (Text and picture: MDC)
 

Istrian Museum of Contemporary Art

Gorka Ostojić Cvajner
Fax.: 052/382-910

Info Telefon: 052/423-205
Besucher-Email: msui.luc@gmail.com
http://www.msu-istre.hr...

„The museum (established in 2008) is temporarily housing its exhibition activities on the first floor of the abandoned Old Printing House, which is situated at an attractive waterfront location in Pula. The Austro-Hungarian building of the Old Printing House is a monument to industrial architecture (1862) in itself. The new museum building is scheduled to open in 2020 at the location of Kaštel, in the very historical centre of the city.
The initial holdings of the museum consisted of works by contemporary Istrian artists including K. Paliska, Q. Bassani, E. Kokot, G. Mocceni, J. Diminić, B. Šumonja, R. Pauletta, Đ. Božić, E. Čakić, F. Juričić, and M. Zrinščak.
In the meantime, the museum has expanded its interest on those works of art created from the second half of the 20th century to the present, or more precisely, on the works that are paradigmatic, or have yet to become such; this is important for the development of contemporary art in Istria, Croatia, and this part of Europe. So far, four collections have been formed: the Collection of Contemporary Art, the Collection of International Art, the Collection of Design and Posters, and the Collection of Photographs. The holdings contain works by the following artists: M. Šutej, G. Žuvela, D. Sokić, B. Bućan, A. Korkut, N. Ivezić, A. Floričić, B. Cvjetanović, M. Vesović, A. Garbin, T. Brajnović, J. Hadžifejzović, T. Gotovac, D. Jurić, A. Božičević, B. Balić and others. The holdings of the Collection of Design and Posters are also compelling, consisting of some three hundred works by Istrian, Croatian, and foreign designers.
Once a year, during the summer months, the museum presents its new acquisitions to the public.
MSUI/MAC is designed as an umbrella institution for culture and arts, mainly for Istrian artists, but also as a place open to multicultural encounters.“ (MDC)
 

Mijo Mirkovic - Mate Balota Memorial Collection

Info Telefon: 052/571-058 (općina Mar&#

Year of foundation: 1968.

„The collection is located in Rakalj (Castelvecchio), a small town in southern Istria. It is housed in the native home of Mijo Mirković – Mate Balota and is one of the locations that attest to the four hundred year history of the town.
The collection was established in 1968. It is a transformation of the writer’s works into a museum collection, which presents the region in relation to the writer’s life and work. During the subsequent years, the collection has been reorganized several times and has been supplemented with donations made by local residents and the Mirkovic family.
Mijo Mirković (1898 – 1963) was an academician and a professor at the Faculty of Economics in Zagreb. He published a substantial number of books, scientific studies, and articles on economics and Croatian cultural history, many of which are pioneering works in different scientific disciplines. He was deeply involved in journalism and literature and is the author of various scientific monographs on Matthias Flacius Illyricus. Prominent among his literary works are: Dragi kamen (1938), poems in Chakavian dialect; the novel Tijesna zemlja (1946); and chronicles related to Istrian themes. His poetry, characterised by a powerful social tone, is related to the Istrian people and their land.
The permanent exhibition (2005), with its ethnographic material, photographs, personal items, documents and audio recordings, aims to depict the complex creative life of Mijo Mirković. The story of his life and work is told through four thematic units: Mijo Mirković and Rakalj, Life Path,Literary Motifs, and The Legacy of Mate Balota (with a special unit on traditional pottery from Rakalj). A segment of the exhibition is suited to school-age visitors. It is guided by a particular pedagogical approach and presents numerous photographs and documents.“ (Text and picture: MDC)
 

Herbarium of the Marine Centre (Private institution)

Nevenka Zavodnik

Info Telefon: (385 52) 811 544; 811 567

Rudjer Boskovic Institute

Foundation: 1900.
Herbarium: Marine flora of n. Adriatic.
Important collection: A. Zaratin.