Ambassador
Jurica speaks at the Croatian Embassy at the seminar opening reception
Ambassador
Jurica speaks at the Croatian Embassy at the seminar opening reception
Washington, D.C., March 4-5, 2005 – A Smithsonian seminar “Beyond Venice: Hidden Jewels of the Adriatic” was held on March 4 and 5 in Washington. The event was launched Friday evening with a reception at the Croatian Embassy, which co-sponsored the seminar. Director of Smithsonian Associates, Ms. Mara Mayor, opened the event by thanking the Croatian Embassy for its contribution to the project.
At a day-long seminar on March 5, it was stressed that although the Italian city of Venice is the well-known “Queen of the Adriatic,” the Croatian side of the Adriatic boasts its own hidden jewels, such as the well-preserved cities of Pula, Poreè, Split and Dubrovnik.
Located on one of the major trading routes between Asia and Europe, the Adriatic Sea has for millennia been a meeting place for a rich variety of societies and cultures, and its history, stretching back to ancient times, has left the cities along its coastline with a rich heritage, said George Washington University Professor of History Hugh Agnew, speaking at the seminar.
Larry Butler, Professor of Art History at George Mason University, noted that the cities along the Adriatic – whose architecture and culture was throughout the ages influenced by the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Venetians, and Croatians, who arrived in Dalmatia in the 7th century – possess a treasure chest of well-preserved historical and cultural landmarks, telling a tale of human effort and persistence.
Professor Butler highlighted “spectacular” historical landmarks, including the Pula Arena, Diocletian’s Palace in Split, the Euphrasian Basilica in Poreè, and Old Town Dubrovnik, one of the most influential city-states of the Middle-Age Mediterranean era.
Efforts by Croatian authorities to protect and preserve the architectural treasures of its coastal cities, while at the same time adapting them to make room for modern life, were hailed by professors Agnew and Butler.