St. Martin's Church, Split, Croatia

St. Martin's Church was built into a small space (an early guardhouse) within the ancient Golden Gate of Diocletian's northern wall. One of the oldest churchs in the city, Today St. Martin's Church is one of Split's tourist attractions and known for its fine 11th centery chancel screen. It is currently in the care of the Dominican sisters, who have a monastery next door. The church itself is open to the public to visit.

Architecture

Church central area divided into two parts altar screen, made of marble and covered in vines, grape vines and griffon; on the space with an altar that was intended for the clergy and boat that was intended for laymen. On the altar wall of the altar, the only preserved in situ in Dalmatia, there is an inscription with the dedication of the Virgin Mary, St. Gregory the Pope and Blessed Martin.

The pre-Romanesque stage, probably built in the 9th century, belongs to the barrel vault, an altar in the apse with a carved cross of early Christian denominations and a small trance, set in the middle of large, buried antique openings on the southern wall. The later pre-Romanesque stage of the 11th century belongs to the altarpiece and the bell tower, which was later destroyed.

References:

Wikipedia

Religious sites in Croatia

User Reviews

June Yang (2 years ago)
The smallest church I have been with only 2 seats. Great history, nice place.

Ravi K. Kalra (2 years ago)
Classic

Brady Santoro (3 years ago)
This might be the smallest and/or narrowest church in the world. It is about 5 ft. across, and it is difficult to enter and exit in a crowd. We found this church looking for the old synagogue, and ended up going inside this church. The church is governed by Benedictine nuns, I believe, and it can only be accessed by a narrow staircase. This church is right inside the Old City walls, perhaps even built into it, and is rather Gothic/Romanesque in appearance. There is a beautiful medieval stone altar screen, behind it the altar, and a golden devotional picture of the Holy Grail (or chalice). On the wall is a wooden crucifix, and next to it, the floor plan of the church. There is usually one or two nuns supervising the church, and they do appreciate donations to keep the church running.

Patricia J (3 years ago)
An absolute must visit. This tiny closet church in the sentries walkway of the old walled city. Built 285-305 this simple church is special.

Olaf van der Hee (4 years ago)
Tiny but very historic chappel/church in the former waiting area for Roman soldiers situated in the old Roman gate. Entrance is 5 Kuna. Worth a look.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Varvara_R

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Trinity Sergius Lavra

The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is a world famous spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church and a popular site of pilgrimage and tourism. It is the most important working Russian monastery and a residence of the Patriarch. This religious and military complex represents an epitome of the growth of Russian architecture and contains some of that architecture’s finest expressions. It exerted a profound influence on architecture in Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe.

The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, was founded in 1337 by the monk Sergius of Radonezh. Sergius achieved great prestige as the spiritual adviser of Dmitri Donskoi, Great Prince of Moscow, who received his blessing to the battle of Kulikov of 1380. The monastery started as a little wooden church on Makovets Hill, and then developed and grew stronger through the ages.

Over the centuries a unique ensemble of more than 50 buildings and constructions of different dates were established. The whole complex was erected according to the architectural concept of the main church, the Trinity Cathedral (1422), where the relics of St. Sergius may be seen.

In 1476 Pskovian masters built a brick belfry east of the cathedral dedicated to the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles. The church combines unique features of early Muscovite and Pskovian architecture. A remarkable feature of this church is a bell tower under its dome without internal interconnection between the belfry and the cathedral itself.

The Cathedral of the Assumption, echoing the Cathedral of the Assumption in the Moscow Kremlin, was erected between 1559 and 1585. The frescoes of the Assumption Cathedral were painted in 1684. At the north-western corner of the Cathedral, on the site of the western porch, in 1780 a vault containing burials of Tsar Boris Godunov and his family was built.

In the 16th century the monastery was surrounded by 6 meters high and 3,5 meters thick defensive walls, which proved their worth during the 16-month siege by Polish-Lithuanian invaders during the Time of Trouble. They were later strengthened and expanded.

After the Upheaval of the 17th century a large-scale building programme was launched. At this time new buildings were erected in the north-western part of the monastery, including infirmaries topped with a tented church dedicated to Saints Zosima and Sawatiy of Solovki (1635-1637). Few such churches are still preserved, so this tented church with a unique tiled roof is an important contribution to the Lavra.

In the late 17th century a number of new buildings in Naryshkin (Moscow) Baroque style were added to the monastery.

Following a devastating fire in 1746, when most of the wooden buildings and structures were destroyed, a major reconstruction campaign was launched, during which the appearance of many of the buildings was changed to a more monumental style. At this time one of the tallest Russian belfries (88 meters high) was built.

In the late 18th century, when many church lands were secularized, the chaotic planning of the settlements and suburbs around the monastery was replaced by a regular layout of the streets and quarters. The town of Sergiev Posad was surrounded by traditional ramparts and walls. In the vicinity of the monastery a number of buildings belonging to it were erected: a stable yard, hotels, a hospice, a poorhouse, as well as guest and merchant houses. Major highways leading to the monastery were straightened and marked by establishing entry squares, the overall urban development being oriented towards the centrepiece - the Ensemble of the Trinity Sergius Lavra.

In 1993, the Trinity Lavra was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

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