Veli Lošinj
Encyclopedia
Veli Lošinj is a village on the island of Lošinj
in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County
in western Croatia
.
Veli Lošinj has a mild climate and caters to tourists. It is located 5 km from the town of Mali Lošinj
. It was an important port and fishing centre until the late 19th century. Today it is known as a tourist and aromatherapy
centre.
on northern Lošinj which counted 20,000 inhabitants at that time. For a period Veli Lošinj was the seat of the bishopric due to the plague visiting nearby Osor. After a single year, the bishopric was disbanded and merged with the bishopric of Krk
.
church of Sv. Nikola (Saint Nicholas) from 14th century. The town grew along agricultural alignments, not along lais-out city streets. In the 15th century the still-standing defensive tower was built, erected to defend the harbour and the settlement, but also to protect the locals from pirate attacks.
In the 17th century the town continued to develop in a circularl form around the bay of Veli Lošinj. It became urban in appearance and Baroque in style with a central square near the sea and two main streets of which one leads to Velo Selo, and the other to the settlement of Rovenska, where a fishing village with stone houses was erected.
The City church of Sv. Antun Opat Pustinjak (Saint Anthony of Egypt) was built in place of an earlier smaller church in the 15th century. In the 17th century the old church was demolished and construction of a larger basilica began in 1774. It was built on the foundations of its predecessor and still stands this day in all its Baroqye glory. The church contains one of the richest collections of work by Italian masters on the Kvarner islands, for instance by: Bartolomeo Vivarini, Bernardo Strozzi
, Lattanzio Quarena, Francesco Hayez
, Francesco del Cossa
, F. Polenzo.
Not far from harbour in Veli Lošinj the church of St. Marija (Saint Mary's, also known as the "Gospe od anđela" or Our Lady of the Angels church) built in 1510. Later, the church was refurbished in the Baroque style. It contains an art collection by Venetian painters: "Saint Francis and Saint Hildebrand" by F. Fontebasso, eight paintings by G. A. Pellegrini, and a few paintings from the 16th to 18th centuries. One of these is a work by Titian
.
Lošinj
Lošinj is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, in the Kvarner Gulf. It is almost due south of the city of Rijeka and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County
Primorje-Gorski Kotar County
Primorje-Gorski kotar County is a county in western Croatia that includes the Bay of Kvarner and the surrounding Northern Croatian seacoast, and the mountainous region of Gorski kotar...
in western Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
.
Veli Lošinj has a mild climate and caters to tourists. It is located 5 km from the town of Mali Lošinj
Mali Lošinj
-Mayors:*Hrvoje Lesic - *Mario Hofmann - *Dragan Balija - Alliance of Primorje-Gorski Kotar *Gari Capelli - Croatian Democratic Union -References:...
. It was an important port and fishing centre until the late 19th century. Today it is known as a tourist and aromatherapy
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses volatile plant materials, known as essential oils, and other aromatic compounds for the purpose of altering a person's mind, mood, cognitive function or health....
centre.
History
Antiquity
The area of the present village was mostly unpopulated, and resorted under the rule of the city of Osor onon northern Lošinj which counted 20,000 inhabitants at that time. For a period Veli Lošinj was the seat of the bishopric due to the plague visiting nearby Osor. After a single year, the bishopric was disbanded and merged with the bishopric of Krk
Krk
Krk is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
.
Middle Ages
The first mentioning of the town dates back to 1398 by the name of "Velo selo". The oldest core of the city was built between the 13th and 14th centuries around the RomanesqueRomanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
church of Sv. Nikola (Saint Nicholas) from 14th century. The town grew along agricultural alignments, not along lais-out city streets. In the 15th century the still-standing defensive tower was built, erected to defend the harbour and the settlement, but also to protect the locals from pirate attacks.
In the 17th century the town continued to develop in a circularl form around the bay of Veli Lošinj. It became urban in appearance and Baroque in style with a central square near the sea and two main streets of which one leads to Velo Selo, and the other to the settlement of Rovenska, where a fishing village with stone houses was erected.
The City church of Sv. Antun Opat Pustinjak (Saint Anthony of Egypt) was built in place of an earlier smaller church in the 15th century. In the 17th century the old church was demolished and construction of a larger basilica began in 1774. It was built on the foundations of its predecessor and still stands this day in all its Baroqye glory. The church contains one of the richest collections of work by Italian masters on the Kvarner islands, for instance by: Bartolomeo Vivarini, Bernardo Strozzi
Bernardo Strozzi
Bernardo Strozzi was a prominent and prolific Italian Baroque painter born and active mainly in Genoa, and also active in Venice.-Biography:Strozzi was born in Genoa. He was probably not related to the other Strozzi family....
, Lattanzio Quarena, Francesco Hayez
Francesco Hayez
Francesco Hayez was an Italian painter, the leading artist of Romanticism in mid-19th-century Milan, renowned for his grand historical paintings, political allegories and exceptionally fine portraits.-Biography:...
, Francesco del Cossa
Francesco del Cossa
Francesco del Cossa was an Italian early-Renaissance painter of the School of Ferrara.-Biography:...
, F. Polenzo.
Not far from harbour in Veli Lošinj the church of St. Marija (Saint Mary's, also known as the "Gospe od anđela" or Our Lady of the Angels church) built in 1510. Later, the church was refurbished in the Baroque style. It contains an art collection by Venetian painters: "Saint Francis and Saint Hildebrand" by F. Fontebasso, eight paintings by G. A. Pellegrini, and a few paintings from the 16th to 18th centuries. One of these is a work by Titian
Titian
Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio Tiziano Vecelli or Tiziano Vecellio (c. 1488/1490 – 27 August 1576 better known as Titian was an Italian painter, the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near...
.