All Travel Guides

Provided by: slizard/Shutterstock.com

Our travel guides are free to read and explore online. If you want to get your own copy, the full travel guide for this destination is available to you offline* to bring along anywhere or print for your trip.

*this will be downloaded as a PDF.

Price

€4,95

Purchase

Europe Croatia Vodice Do & See The Vrančić Mansion

Overview

The Vrančić Mansion

The guide was updated: 2024-09-16

The island of Prvić, with its two villages, Prvić Luka and Šepurina which are connected by a road, was inhabited in 11th century from people who run away from Turks. The land on Prvić island was mostly owned by noble families from Šibenik who built country houses on the island. Among them is also the mansion of the famous Vrančić family.

Useful Information

Address: Šepurine
Website: www.vodice.hr
Phone: +385 22 443 888
Email: info@vodice.hr

Our travel guides are free to read and explore online. If you want to get your own copy, the full travel guide for this destination is available to you offline* to bring along anywhere or print for your trip.

*this will be downloaded as a PDF.

Price

€4,95

Purchase

Small church of St. Cross

Small church of St. Cross

This small Gothic church was built in 1402 and was dedicated to St. Cross in 1421 when it was a parish church. It represents a typical example of the rural sacral architecture. A valuable detail is the old Romanesque-Gothic holy-water font on the pillar, a unique specimen in this part of Dalmatia.

The Parish church of St. Cross

The Parish church of St. Cross

The church was built 1725 by Ivan Skok, a famous master of the Dalmatian Baroque. The chapel has a big altar, harmonious facade with a Baroque portal and a magnificent rosette. The side walls have oval Baroque windows. A famous painter of decorative frescos Eugenio Moretti Varese is the author of the altarpieces. The church was consecrated in 1760.

Wells

Wells

Vodice was developed next to the water springs. On the square, under the parish church, there used to be two wells around which the whole rural life was developed. From the upper well (closer to the parish church) drinkable water was taken, and the lower well contained water of less quality which was used for washing laundry and other household needs.

Okit

Okit

The panorama of Vodice is dominated by the Okit hill and the church of Our Lady of Carmel built on the foundations of an old small chapel. Today, the Way of the Cross leads to the hill with fourteen small chapels and each designates one station of the Way. The modern appearance of the church of Our Lady of Carmel is the work of Nikola Bašić, an architect from Zadar.

The Čorić Tower

The Čorić Tower

The tower is a unique example of a fortified tower that dates back to 1533 when Hyeronimus Saracenis concluded an agreement with Ivan, a stone-mason from Hvar, to begin construction. The initials H S, which stand for Hieronymus Saracenis, are inscribed on the coat of arms that is displayed on the eastern wall. The tower frequently changed ownership and at one time in the 17th century it was in the possession of the Fondra noble family from Šibenik that used the tower as their place of residence.

The Church of St. John The Baptist

The Church of St. John The Baptist

Rakitnica settlemnt was mentioned in 1311 and today are still discerned the remains of the former houses and walls built in a dry-wall. A local church of St. John the Baptist, located close to the village, was built in 1445 when the parish of Rakitnica was founded. Masses are held twice a year, on the holidays of St. John the Baptist.

St. Mary's Church of Our Lady of Mercy

St. Mary's Church of Our Lady of Mercy

St. Mary's Church of Our Lady of Mercy is located on the small island of Prvić and is dedicated to the Merciful Mother. It is known when the works of the monastery started (1461), but it's still unclear when they finished. The monastery was reconstructed many times and completely renovated after the big fire in 1884. If you're planning to pay a visit to the church, know that the island can be reached by ferry from Vodice or from Šibenik.

The Vrančić Mansion

The Vrančić Mansion

The island of Prvić, with its two villages, Prvić Luka and Šepurina which are connected by a road, was inhabited in 11th century from people who run away from Turks. The land on Prvić island was mostly owned by noble families from Šibenik who built country houses on the island. Among them is also the mansion of the famous Vrančić family.

The Church of St. Rocco or St. Helen

The Church of St. Rocco or St. Helen

In the centre of Šepurina, near the coast, there is The Church of St. Rocco or St. Helen built and consecrated in 1620. Inside the church, there is a wooden altar of St. Rocco, richly embellished with Baroque ornaments.

The Church of Our Lady's Childbirth

The Church of Our Lady's Childbirth

The Church of Our Lady’s Childbirth was built in 1479 and was raised by the Ambrozović family from Šibenik. It was expanded and renovated in 1878. There is one altar in the church, and there is a well in front of the church. The church is not in function nowadays.

The Church of Assumption of The Virgin Mary

The Church of Assumption of The Virgin Mary

The Church of Assumption of the Virgin Mary was built in 1878 on the hill above the village. At the main facade there is an inscription: Hoc templum aedifigatum A. D. 1878. The church was restored twice, in 1898 and in 1938.

Roman Prižba in Srima

Roman Prižba in Srima

By the excavations in 1969-1976 the archaeologists found two roman one-nave basilicas built in different times. They're called basilicae geminatae or “the twin churches” and their purpose is not clear. One idea is that the basilicae geminatae are a conjunction of the congregational churches that serve for the public worship mass and memorial ones intended for the cult of relics.

Faust Vrančić Memorial Centre

Faust Vrančić Memorial Centre

At the Faust Vrančić Memorial Centre, you can get to know the life and work of Faust Vrančić, a man whom the world today mostly remembers as the inventor of Homo Volans - the flying man, but he was a lot more. Take a look at the collection of the models of his inventions, some of which are real life-size, and his more important written works. The multimedia displays also provide educational games for the youngest visitors.

Velika Mrdakovica - Arauzona

Velika Mrdakovica - Arauzona

On this rich archaeological site from the pre-Roman and Roman times about a hundred tombs have been discovered, out of which some date back from the 4th century B.C. According to the found artefacts and records of the Roman writers, experts identify this settlement as Arausona, a Liburnian-Roman settlement mentioned by Pliny. Tombs of the older layers of necropolis date back from the 3rd to the 1st century B.C., and they were made under the Hellenistic influence. A complex of blocks of houses made of fine carpeted stone, joined with clay, and later with mortar was also found here. The settlement was surrounded by defensive walls, made from the fractal stone, and was divided by streets. Some buildings had water tanks incised into the bedrock for collecting the rain-water.

Roman Cistern

Roman Cistern

Nearby Arauzona there is still a natural catchment, coved in Roman times, which domestic people today call Roman cistern and which served for the water supply of the local inhabitants, while the livestock watered in a puddle in the field, north of the settlement.

Island of Prvić

Island of Prvić

Beautiful, quiet, old, noble, stealing breath in front of every house. Solid, stone, steep streets, stone houses, each capturing attention with its particularity, still forming a harmonious, single whole story. It is a story of glitter and wealth that used to be, and laughter that once resounded along these streets. Population of Sepurine used to be greater than that of Vodice. Today unfortunately, it shares the destiny of all the places on the island. Prvić, with its two settlements, Sepurine and Prvić Luka, was first mentioned in the 11th century. It was substantially inhabited by people from Srima and Vodice who fled here in fear of Turks. In the 16th century, the island became a fashionable resort for Sibenik nobility, building their villas and summer residences on it.

Next section

Next Section