HRVATSKA	CROATIA
županija: Dubrovačko-neretvanska

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The oldes traces of settlements in the vicinity of Dubrovnik date from the times of Illyrian and Roman rules. During the 7th century, the inhabitants of the island of Epidaurum (today Cavtat) had to flee from Awars and Slavs and founded a village on the rocky island of Lausa. The name later changed to Rausa and became the origin of the Italian name, Ragusa. About at the same time a slav village called Dubrava developed on the foot of the hill Srđ (Srdj). Both villages merged and formed an independent city state which only formally was under Byzantine sovereignty. In 1205, the Republic of Venice eventually managed to conquer the city. In 1358, after the Peace of Zadar, the city regained its independence, this time under formal Croat-Hungarian rule which lasted until 1526. From the 14th until the 16th century, the city was an important trading nation in the adriatic sea. At the end of the 16th century the city state kept a fleet of 200 ships and 5000 seamen. In 1808 the independece of the city state was ended by Napoleon. At the Congress of Vienna 1815 Dubrovnik/Ragusa became part of the Austrian Empire where it remained until 1918. The rich history and the perfect condition of the old town earned Dubrovnik the name 'Pearl of the Adriatic'. Despite being declared a World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO in 1979 (see also list of other UNESCO heritage sites depicted on glasses of this collection), Dubrovnik suffered damage during the Yugoslav Wars of Secession in 1991. Seven palaces in the historic town centre were destroyed completely and many other historic buildings were damaged by the bombardement by the Yugoslav Army. Major restoration works are in progress since then.

The only building easily recognizable on the small picture on glasses no. 3840 [left] and no. 328 [right] is the  cathedral Sveta Gospa (Ascension of Our Lady) [centre] with its large cupola. Archeological finds prove the existence of a church from the 7th century on this spot. The next church was a Romanesque cathedral built in the 11th/12th century. According to a legend, this church was built with the money that the English King Richard the Lionhearted donated for having been saved when became shipwrecked on the island of Lokrum on his return from the crusade in 1192. This church was destroyed by the large earthquake of 1667. The new cathedral was built between 1673 and 1713 in Italian Baroque style. The interior contains important paintings by Tiziano, Andrea del Sarto and Parmigianino and others. The treasury of the cathedral was one of the largest in Europe until the earthquake of 1667. It still contains more than hundred reliquiaries from the 9th century onwards. The most valuable pieces are the reliquiaries of the hand and skull of the town's patron, St. Blaise (Blasius, in Croatian: Vlaha), dating from the 11th and 12th century.

The Rectors' Palace [left, no. 2832: right], one of the most significant monuments of profane architecture on the Croatian coast, was the administrative centre of the Dubrovnik Republic. Its style is basically Gothic, with Renaissance and Baroque reconstructions. In the 15th century the Palace was destroyed twice in gunpowder explosions. Restored in late Gothic style after the first explosion in 1435, the Palace got its present-day size with the central atrium and front portico. The second gunpowder explosion in 1463 destroyed the western façade of the Palace, which was subsequently restored in Renaissance style. After the earthquake of 1667 the atrium was partially reconstructed with an impressive Baroque staircase. During his one-month mandate the Rector of Dubrovnik lived in the Palace, which also housed the Minor and Major Council hall, the Rectors residence, the courtroom, administration office, prisons, an arsenal and gunpowder store-house. Today the Rectors Palace houses the Cultural-historic Department of the Dubrovnik Museum. [http://www.tzdubrovnik.hr/eng/vodic_novost.php?id=1539&id_main=1517#.UfDYSaxqeSo]

The Sponza Palace [left, no. 2832: background centre], which also served as the mint and arsenal, was constructed in the 16th century. The Palace was the liveliest commercial centre of the City, and in the 17th century it became the meeting place of members of the Academy of the Learned, who used to discuss literature, arts and science. Today the Sponza Palace houses the Dubrovnik Archives, considered to be among the richest in Europe. [http://www.tzdubrovnik.hr/eng/vodic_novost.php?id=1534&id_main=1517#.UfDMbqxqeSo]

The City Bell-Tower [left, no. 2832: background right] was built in 1444. The large bell was cast in 1506. The two famous figures called Zelenci, who strike the hours with their hammers, were cast in bronze at the same period. The Tower was damaged in the earthquake of 1667. In order to prevent the collapse, the old Bell-Tower was rebuilt in 1929 and the original figures of Zelenci were replaced by their copies. The originals are now exhibited at the Sponza Palace Atrium. [http://www.tzdubrovnik.hr/eng/vodic_novost.php?id=1533&id_main=1517#.UfDMlqxqeSo]

The church of St. Blaise [left, no. 2832: background left] was constructed in 1706–1715 in the flamboyant Venetian Baroque style on the site of a previous, 14th century Romanesque church. Damaged during the earthquake for the first time, the old church had been destroyed completely by the devastating fire in 1706. Everything disappeared in flames, apart from the silver statue of St. Blaise. After years spent in exile at the Church of St Nicholas at Prijeko, the statue was returned to its old place when the new church was completed in 1715. St. Blaise (sv. Vlaha) has been honoured as the patron saint of Dubrovnik from the 10th century. According to the chroniclers of Dubrovnik, St. Blaise saved the people of Dubrovnik in the 10th century when the Venetians anchored their ships in Gruž and in front of the Island of Lokrum. [http://www.tzdubrovnik.hr/eng/vodic_novost.php?id=1556&id_main=1548#.UfDY-KxqeSo]

The fortress St. Lawrence (trđava Lovrijenac) [left, no. 3498] is located outside Dubrovnik's western wall on a rock about 37 m above sea level. Famous for its plays and importance in resisting Venetian rule, it overshadows the two entrances to the city, from the sea and by land. The fortress was built in the 11th century (some sources mention that it had been built within just three months in 1018 or 1038). The first mention in a docuent, however, only dates from 1301. Further additions date from the 14th, 15th and 6th centuries. Due to its triangular ground plan it is popularly called the 'Gibraltar of Dubrovnik'. Since the 1950s it is the site of the annual Dubrovnik summer festival. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovrijenac, https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festung_Lovrijenac]

The Minčeta Tower [right, no. 3686] is part of the Dubrovnik's historic city walls and dates from the 15th century. It was built in 1463, at the height of the Turkish threat. Originally as a strong four-sided fort, it is the most prominent point in the defensive system towards the land. The tower's name derives from the name of the Menčetić family, who owned the ground upon which the tower was built. By its height and impressive volume, the tower dominates the northwestern high part of the city and its walls. In the middle of the 15th century, a new round tower was built around the earlier quadrilateral fort, joined to the new system of low scarp walls. The tower was completed in 1464 and became the symbol of the unconquerable city of Dubrovnik. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walls_of_Dubrovnik]

The island depicted in the background of the picture on glass no. 2748 [left, no. 2748] is Lokrum (Italian: Lacroma), loacted about 600 metres from the city of Dubrovnik. The first written mention of Lokrum was in 1023 when the Benedictine abbey and monastery were founded. The name Lokrum comes from the Latin, acrumen, meaning sour fruit. This derives from the tradition of cultivating exotic plants on the island, a tradition started in the time of the Benedictines. The last Benedictines left the island in 1808. Archduke Maximilian Ferdinand of Habsburg had a mansion built on the island in 1859 with a magnificent garden laid out, criss-crossed with pathways, full of amazing plants and botanical wonders. The island was originally purchased by Maximilian's wife, Archduchess Charlotte of Austria (Princess of Belgium), with part of her marriage dowry, and she retained ownership of the island even after she and her husband became Emperor and Empress of Mexico. After the Emperor Maximilian's execution the island was surrendered to the Habsburg Family in a deal struck between Franz Joseph I of Austria and Leopold II of Belgium. The island was given to Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria as part of her marriage dowry. Yugoslavia claimed it under the Treaty of Saint-Germain. Princess Elizabeth stated that she was no longer a Habsburg, having renounced her rights on the occasion of her marriage and, therefore, Yugoslavia had no right to sequester the property. The case was finally settled by a payment of $575,000 to the Princess. In 1959 a Botanical Garden was founded on Lokrum which contains native and imported, tropical and subtropical plants, and other vegetation originating from Australia and South America. The island is also inhabited by families of peacocks brought over by Maximilian from the Canary Islands.