SIbenik Cathedral

On the way to Zadar, we took a side trip for lunch in Sibenik famous for its magnificent Cathedral of St James, a World Heritage Site that dominates the city. It’s considered the most important Renaissance building in Croatia and is the only Cathedral in Europe constructed entirely of stone – no wood was used in its construction – hard to believe when you look up at the dome. Commenced in the 15^th century, it took more than 100 years to build, this due to funding issues and resulting change of architects.

Sibenik Cathedral Heads

Its most unique features are the more than 70 heads that pop out of a frieze around the exterior. They are remarkably well-preserved, vibrant, portrayals of ordinary people, associates of the original architect George of Dalmatia (Juraj Dalmatinac in Croatian); peasants, fishermen, soldiers, even children. They made me think of the wall ornaments (Bossons Chalkware heads) that decorated my Auntie Queen’s walls in the 1960’s, but these have lasted more than 500 years. A good opportunity for fridge magnets, although a lot smaller…

The statues of Adam and Eve that frame the northern portal or Lion Gate court some controversy. Each standing above a lion, Adam is covering his chest while Eve is concealing her stomach, although not well enough to hide her superfluous belly button – the Bible says she was made from Adam’s rib, rather than born of woman.

Unfortunately, the cathedral was under renovation when we visited but the splendour of the interior shone through the scaffolding. Carol stopped to light a candle for her friend, as she often does, before we descended into the baptistery where I was struck, not by the font, but by the lacey carvings in the ceiling. Walking back down the aisle we stopped to look at the perfectly symmetrical stained glass rose window above the main entrance.

As we headed to lunch an ancient lion emerged from the ground, as if preparing a surprise attack. We stopped for lunch on the river, overlooking the luka (harbour). No surprise to anyone, but an emerging theme of our holiday, was the amount I drank. Marc always ordered a large Ojusko, while I ordered a small one. The surprise in Sibenik was we finally realized that my beer was almost the same price as Marc’s. From that point on we both ordered large and we shared mine.

Large or small, the beauty of Sibenik was well worth the detour.

Sibenik Cathedral - Baptistery Ceiling