I’ve just come back from Zagreb after presenting a paper at the VIIth European Conference of Egyptologists. Although I’ve visited Croatia before, this was the first time I’d been to Zagreb and, as the weather was also wonderful, I took the opportunity in our extended lunch breaks to explore the city.
I’ll start at the venue where the conference was held – The Croation Institute for History – which formerly a palace built in 1840 for an aristocratic family of the time. The building itself still retains its palatial ambience and is the most elaborate venue in which I’ve presented a paper. They obviously knew that I was coming as the front door featured rosette motifs, and the panels of the ceiling in the lecture hall were bordered with rosettes!!
Walking from the conference venue into the town, I was soon aware of the number of rosettes used on doors, railings, lamp-posts, and on architectural reliefs. I’ve shown a few examples here:
One of my main passions when visiting any town or city, either in the UK or abroad, is to visit as many churches as possible. I am fascinated by the detail of the architectural elements and as well, obviously, as the symbolism and iconography of the stone- and woodwork. The cathedral in Zagreb was no exception. The first impression as I entered the cathedral was the wonderfully ornate bronze doors prominently featuring rosettes, and then secondly, their widespread depiction across the tiled floor which extended throughout the cathedral.
You can also see the rosettes in various forms on the ends of pews and other wood carvings.
From the cathedral, it was a relatively short walk to the Archaeology Museum which featured a collection of artefacts dating from the prehistoric period of many major cultures, and up to the twentieth century with a collection of coins and medals. Like the conference venue, the Archaeology Museum is located in a former palace – Art Nouveau in style and dating to the latter part of the nineteenth century. Spread over three floors, it is best to start your tour on the top floor which features the earliest exhibits, and work back downstairs.
I have chosen a few assorted objects to show you here:
Fired clay Kylix 425-400 BC
Marble wall inlay 2nd century AD
Ceramic oil lamp 1st century AD
Dagger First-half of first century AD
Dagger First-half of first century AD
Apulian column krater 4th century BC
Ptolemaic Period mummy cover 330-30 BC
Silver buckle
La Tene culture
2nd-1st century BC
Miniature vessel
Third millennium BC
Vucedol culture
I hope you’ve enjoyed this whistle-stop tour of Zagreb.
You can find more images from the city on my Facebook ‘The Rosette Lady’ page at
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Rosette-Lady/757705117678393?ref=aymt_homepage_panel
Look forward to seeing you here again soon.
therosettelady 