Built in the late first century BC, the Villa of Naniglio reached its maximum splendour in the third century AD. The main attraction of the villa is a huge, well preserved water reservoir, comprised of a central nave and two lateral aisles.
The Naniglio is an underground structure consisting of a central nave and two side aisles, with a ceiling made of crossed vaults supported on eight square columns arranged in two rows. This structure is so well preserved that it is possible to fully appreciate its characteristics and architectural quality. At the ends of the reservoir, in fact, are two rooms with multi-coloured mosaic floors featuring geometric patterns and walls covered with plaster.
References:The Church of St Donatus 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. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.