Žrnovo, Dalmatia, Croatia

Description:

The town has over 1000 inhabitants today and was first mentioned in the early Middle Ages. It is located 4 kilometres from Korcula and is accessible by a wide paved highway. The highway connecting the island goes through the town which stretches out onto the surrounding hills, and is made up of several villages: Prvo Selo, Kampus, Postrana and Brdo. Next to the old houses with their verandas and tiled courtyards are small barns built of dry stone walls and covered with stone tiles. There are also several summer homes and villas built by Korcula's noblemen and landowner. Not far from the town centre and main highway, on a rocky mountain surrounded by trees, is the parish Church of St. Martin from the 14th century, which was later expanded. In the village Postrana, at the bottom of the hill, is the Church of St. Rok, located on the tiled square where the old "Kostila" trees grow. This is where the traditional fencing game Mostra is held. Further from the village is the graveyard and the Church of St. Vid from the 13th century, and there are several small, old chapels in the village. The Villa Banicevic, built by the well known noble family in Postrana, is well maintained. The façade bears a plaque with the crest and Latin phrase on the most respected member of the family, Jakova, who lived in the 16th century and was a well known European humanist. In the past, the inhabitants of Zrnovo worked in agriculture (wine making, olive growing, vegetable growing) and stone quarrying. Now many are employed in construction and tourism. In the nearby inlets (on the northern coast) Banja, Medvidnjak, and Vrbovica, there are several modern family bed and breakfasts and campgrounds located on the sea side. In the town, the cultural-artistic society Misnice presents amateur drama and folklore, while the society Bratska sloga mainly deals with village traditions and folklore. In Zrnovo, several modern Croatian painters and sculptors were born (Radoslav Duhovic, sculptor; Nikola Skokandic, graphic artist; Ante Radovanovic, Frano Cebalo, Abel Brcic, painters), as well as the most distinguished Croatian literary academic, Petar Segedin.

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