July 16, 2018 — A monastery off a tiny islet off Ugljan will offer a rare look into its cultural artifacts and rarities.
A Franciscan monastery on a small islet off the coast of Ugljan will open its doors to visitors this summer, showcasing its collection of treasured books and rare artifacts, according to Zadarski List.
The Monestary of St. Paul in the Desert, on the secluded island if Galevac, was declared a cultural treasure by the Croatian government in 2016. It owes its renowned to a unique collection of rare books, misals in Croatian’s original written form Glagolitic and Roman breviaries, books which used to dictate a different Catholic service for each day of the year. The library has over 7,000 books and periodicals in total, including works from the 16th to 18th centuries.
The collection goes beyond books. There are also artworks, including two religious pieces by famed Zadar artists Ivan Skvarčina and Ivan Žmirić, as well as several Baroque pieces of unknown origin.
Interest for the monastery’s collection was unexpectedly high last year, according to local tourism board’s director Ivan Košta. The organizers this year decided to include a brochure for visitors, printed in Croatian, English, German, French and Italian.
The monastery will be open every day, from July 5 until the end of August, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. then again from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Entrance is a symbolic 10 kuna ticket.
The tourism board will also have organized tours of the monastery of St. Jerome, on the neighboring island of Ugljan, every Tuesday and Friday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
