Church of Saint Nicholas | |
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Croatian: Crkva svetog Nikole | |
44°13′52″N15°10′41″E / 44.231°N 15.178°E | |
Location | Nin |
Country | Croatia |
Denomination | Roman Catholic |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Active |
Style | Pre-Romanesque |
Years built | 12th century AD |
Specifications | |
Length | 5.90 metres (232 in) |
Width | 5.70 metres (224 in) |
Height | 6 metres (240 in) |
Materials | Stone |
Administration | |
Archdiocese | Zadar |
The Church of St. Nicholas (Croatian : Crkva svetog Nikole) is a late 11th or early 12th century Pre-Romanesque style Roman Catholic church located in the field of Prahulje, one mile from Zadar, between Zaton and Nin in Croatia. It was built on the earthen pyramid mound on top of the Liburnian prehistoric tomb.
The church is the only surviving example of early Romanesque architecture in all of Dalmatia. It is dedicated to Saint Nicholas.
The Church of St. Nicholas was built in form of a fortress. It has a trefoil plan with four branches arranged around a central circular core, three of which form the apse, and the fourth the input branch. Its dome-shaped vault is reinforced with circular-ribbed arches above which 8 small towers with battlement as a lookout were built in the 16th or 17th century during Hundred Years' Croatian–Ottoman War.[ citation needed ] Flanges that are resting on pilasters that are abutting onto the pylons between the apses are placed under the dome. Input branch is rectangular and roofed with a mezzanine leaning on squinch, while three other branches of semicircular conch are translated with semi calotte. The church was built of small stones and has a smooth outer surface. It has very small dimensions; length: 5.90m, width: 5.70m, height= 6m. [1]
In 1603, Church of St. Nicholas was visited by Priul who found neatly kept Glagolitic registers of baptisms and marriages, as well as two Glagolitic missals. At the time of his visit, Brotherhood of the Holy Spirit with 28 members was active in the parish. Priul ordered brotherhood to write its rules that had to be approved by the local bishop. [2]
Since the Church was constructed, Mass was celebrated in it on the feast of St. Nicholas on December 6. In recent times, Mass is celebrated on the day of Saint Mark on April 25.
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe characterized by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 11th century, this later date being the most commonly held. In the 12th century it developed into the Gothic style, marked by pointed arches. Examples of Romanesque architecture can be found across the continent, making it the first pan-European architectural style since Imperial Roman architecture. The Romanesque style in England and Sicily is traditionally referred to as Norman architecture.
The architecture of cathedrals and great churches is characterised by the buildings' large scale and follows one of several branching traditions of form, function and style that derive ultimately from the Early Christian architectural traditions established in Late Antiquity during the Christianisation of the Roman Empire.
In architecture, an apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an exedra. In Byzantine, Romanesque, and Gothic Christian church architecture, the term is applied to a semi-circular or polygonal termination of the main building at the liturgical east end, regardless of the shape of the roof, which may be flat, sloping, domed, or hemispherical. Smaller apses are found elsewhere, especially in shrines.
A rotunda is any roofed building with a circular ground plan, and sometimes covered by a dome. It may also refer to a round room within a building. The Pantheon, Rome is the most famous and influential rotunda. A band rotunda is a circular bandstand, usually with a dome.
Pre-Romanesque art and architecture is the period in European art from either the emergence of the Merovingian kingdom in about 500 AD or from the Carolingian Renaissance in the late 8th century, to the beginning of the 11th century Romanesque period. The term is generally used in English only for architecture and monumental sculpture, but here all the arts of the period are briefly described.
Church architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of churches, convents, seminaries etc. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by borrowing other architectural styles as well as responding to changing beliefs, practices and local traditions. From the birth of Christianity to the present, the most significant objects of transformation for Christian architecture and design were the great churches of Byzantium, the Romanesque abbey churches, Gothic cathedrals and Renaissance basilicas with its emphasis on harmony. These large, often ornate and architecturally prestigious buildings were dominant features of the towns and countryside in which they stood. However, far more numerous were the parish churches in Christendom, the focus of Christian devotion in every town and village. While a few are counted as sublime works of architecture to equal the great cathedrals and churches, the majority developed along simpler lines, showing great regional diversity and often demonstrating local vernacular technology and decoration.
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The Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio is an ancient Romanesque-style, Roman Catholic church in the center of Milan, region of Lombardy, Italy.
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Croatian art describes the visual arts in Croatia, and art by Croatian artists from prehistoric times to the present. In Early Middle Ages, Croatia was an important centre for art and architecture in south eastern Europe. There were many Croatian artists during the Medieval period, and the arts flourished during the Renaissance. Later styles in Croatia included Baroque and Rococo.
Saint Donatus, also called Donato of Zara, was a Dalmatian saint who became a bishop and a diplomat for the Dalmatian city-state of Zadar (Zara). His feast day is celebrated on 25 February.
The Church of St. Donatus is a church located in Zadar, Croatia. Its name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum.
Croatian Pre-Romanesque art and architecture or Old Croatian Art is Pre-Romanesque art and architecture of Croats from their arrival at Balkans till the end of the 11th century when begins the dominance of Romanesque style in art; that was the time of Croatian rulers.
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Church of Holy Trinity is a Pre-Romanesque style Roman Catholic church located in Split, Croatia. Out of all early-medieval architectural monuments in Dalmatia, which historians date back to the period between 8th and 11th century, Church of Holy Trinity, with its original shape and rich findings, has a very important place. This small central edifice with six-leaf structure of semicircular arches strung around irregular circle has become one of the most precious heritage monuments of Split and Dalmatia.