Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Complex, Vrbnik

The parish church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Vrbnik, in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, together with its associated buildings forms a complex that grew from the 14th to the 20th century. It is of interest to visitors because Gothic and Renaissance layers can be discerned in it through its reconstructions.

It is first mentioned in 1325 in the statute of the confraternity of St. John the Baptist, but it is undoubtedly older. Originally it faced from east to west. To the north stood the churches of St. John the Evangelist with the baptistery, St. Luke, and the Nativity of Mary from 1505, and only the latter has remained. In the 16th century the chapels of the Presentation of Mary and of Our Lady of the Snows were added next to the sanctuary, and in 1527 a bell tower was built to the west. In the reconstruction of 1585 the north wall was demolished, the nave was extended and the orientation turned by 90°. The new sanctuary was built between 1592 and 1595, and the old Gothic one was converted into the chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary. In 1825 the old portal was walled up and a new one opened on the south facade. Today the complex also includes the chapel of St. Mary the Lesser, the bell tower, and the Desetinec building with a gallery and the chapter library. Works since 2008 have revealed traces of Gothic and Renaissance construction.

A protected cultural good, entered in the Register of Cultural Goods of the Republic of Croatia under the code Z-6883.

Data: Register of Cultural Goods of the Republic of Croatia (Ministry of Culture and Media), Open Licence.