Euphrasian Basilica

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Porec Old Town, Porec, Croatia

Description: It took us 40 minutes to drive to Porec from Rovinj - a relatively easy drive and well signposted. Most parking spaces in Porec were metered, we found a space close to the centre quite easily and it cost £4 to park for the whole day.

Porec is quite a nice resort - it has a big marina and lots of large yachts. This is the most popular resort in Istria. Tito planned to use resorts like Porec to draw in much needed currency from tourists from all over Europe. It worked and thousands of visitors came. The war did dent tourism but did not leave any physical damage. Numbers are climbing to pre-war levels and it is again a busy resort. It has lots of cafes, restaurants, bars and boats offering day trips.

The main reason to visit Porec is the Basilica of Euphrasius. It is UNESCO protected , well preserved and really worth a visit. It's known for its gold mosiacs - supposedly some of the finest in Europe. It was built between 543 and 554 AD by Bishop Euphrasius and has 9 naves, marble columns imported from Constantinople and fine sculptures. The church has a nice hushed and reverential atmosphere - you feel you are in a special place. Inside you can get up close to everything.

The entrance has a lovely open atrium with columns and arches and a square in the centre. Inside the church there are older mosiacs close to the main door that have been uncovered below floor level. These have been dated back to the fourth century. The wooden pews are from the 15th century.

We climbed the 120 steps of the steeple for a lovely panoramic view of Porec and the surrounding areas. It costs £1.00 to do this but the views are beautiful.

Porec has a small aquarium - we went there - give it a miss. It costs around £2.50 to get in and you can see everything they have there in less than 5 minutes.

The coastal drive from Porec back to Rovinj is lovely - Limski Fjord is a really nice place to stop. Lots of boat trips go here from the resorts, but you can drive right to the waters edge and park and enjoy the views from the land. The water is amazing - greeney blue and so clear.Close

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Porec rooftops from the bell tower in the Basilica Photo - Euphrasian Basilica, Porec, Croatia

User Reviews

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Porec and the Basilica of St Euphrasius

by Joy S

Manchester, England, United Kingdom

July 4, 2006

Best of IgoUgo It took us 40 minutes to drive to Porec from Rovinj - a relatively easy drive and well signposted. Most parking spaces in Porec were metered, we found a space close to the centre quite easily and it cost £4 to park for the whole day.Porec is quite ...Read more It took us 40 minutes to drive to Porec from Rovinj - a relatively easy drive and well signposted. Most parking spaces in Porec were metered, we found a space close to the centre quite easily and it cost £4 to park for the whole day.

Porec is quite a nice resort - it has a big marina and lots of large yachts. This is the most popular resort in Istria. Tito planned to use resorts like Porec to draw in much needed currency from tourists from all over Europe. It worked and thousands of visitors came. The war did dent tourism but did not leave any physical damage. Numbers are climbing to pre-war levels and it is again a busy resort. It has lots of cafes, restaurants, bars and boats offering day trips.

The main reason to visit Porec is the Basilica of Euphrasius. It is UNESCO protected , well preserved and really worth a visit. It's known for its gold mosiacs - supposedly some of the finest in Europe. It was built between 543 and 554 AD by Bishop Euphrasius and has 9 naves, marble columns imported from Constantinople and fine sculptures. The church has a nice hushed and reverential atmosphere - you feel you are in a special place. Inside you can get up close to everything.

The entrance has a lovely open atrium with columns and arches and a square in the centre. Inside the church there are older mosiacs close to the main door that have been uncovered below floor level. These have been dated back to the fourth century. The wooden pews are from the 15th century.

We climbed the 120 steps of the steeple for a lovely panoramic view of Porec and the surrounding areas. It costs £1.00 to do this but the views are beautiful.

Porec has a small aquarium - we went there - give it a miss. It costs around £2.50 to get in and you can see everything they have there in less than 5 minutes.

The coastal drive from Porec back to Rovinj is lovely - Limski Fjord is a really nice place to stop. Lots of boat trips go here from the resorts, but you can drive right to the waters edge and park and enjoy the views from the land. The water is amazing - greeney blue and so clear. Close

From journal 2 Weeks in Istria

Basilica of Euphrasius

by Owen Lipsett

New York, New York

August 7, 2005

Best of IgoUgo Considering the importance that tourism and religion have in literally and figuratively nourishing Croatia respectively, it’s either highly ironic or singularly fitting that Croatia’s most beautifully decorated ecclesiastical complex is located at ...Read more Considering the importance that tourism and religion have in literally and figuratively nourishing Croatia respectively, it’s either highly ironic or singularly fitting that Croatia’s most beautifully decorated ecclesiastical complex is located at the heart of its largest (and ugliest) resort. Indeed, the juxtaposition may serve the further purpose of demonstrating just how thoughtfully the externally austere Basilica of Euphrasius was designed nearly 15 centuries ago. The complex takes its name from Bishop Euphrasius of Poreč, who ordered its construction between 535 and 550 in an effort to ensure the church’s survival in Istria, which had endured six decades of nominal rule by the pagan Ostrogoths.

The first three years of construction occurred under Ostrogothic rule, which may help to explain the Basilica’s relatively plain appearance when seen from Eufrazijeva ulica, the pedestrianized street from which it is entered through a small archway. This is something of a nod to the site’s history, as it originally contained the Oratory of St. Maur, a meeting point for clandestine worship when Christianity was banned throughout the Roman Empire. When the Romans themselves adopted Christianity, they erected a church on the same site, which the Ostrogoths destroyed, although the remains of both structures have been incorporated into the Basilica. The location’s past history is further memorialized by the repeated use of the sign of the fish, which indicated such a secret gathering place, in the church’s floor mosaics.

Once inside the Atrium, the arcaded courtyard formed by the Baptistery, Bishop’s Palace, and Basilica itself, the harmony of the complex as a whole becomes readily apparent. In recognition of Istria’s incorporation into the Byzantine Empire, Euphrasius sought to create a complex that would marry the refined linear harmony of classical architecture with the more ornate and curved elements that had begun to develop in the East. Nowhere is this synthesis better illustrated than in the Basilica’s mosaics, considered on a par with those produced in Ravenna at the same time, and in all probability, by the some of the same artists, as Istria was part of the Exarchate of Ravenna.

The mosaics themselves, whose gilt tiles quite literally illuminate the apse of the otherwise austere Basilica, are reason enough to travel several hours to Poreč, even if (like me) its more hedonistic delights do not appeal to you. The Virgin Mary occupies the center of the tableau, rather than Christ himself, a Byzantine iconic innovation that here appeared in the Latin Europe for the first time. She holds the baby Jesus, flanked by three anonymous martyrs, Saint Maur, Bishop Euphrasius (who holds a model of the Basilica), the Archdeacon Claudius (Euphrasius’ brother), and Claudius’ son Euphrasius. This inclusion of living individuals, now commonplace, was also innovatory. Additional mosaic hierarchies memorialize Jesus and various saints, as well as portraying the Annunciation and Visitation in a rather lifelike manner, right down to an eavesdropping servant in the latter!

Open daily 7 am to 8 pm, except during services. Admission is free. Further information: http://www.istra.com/porec/eng/bazilika.html.

From journal Istria: Between Italy and the Balkans

Euphrasian Basilica

by Timone

Warwick, United Kingdom

September 5, 2003

This is one of the world's best preserved Euphrasian basilicas and has UNESCO protection, with some of the world's finest intact Byzantine art. Built on the site of a fourth-century basilica and fifth-century church, the complex includes the church, ...Read more

From journal Sunny Porec, Croatia

Porec Old Town

by Timone

Warwick, United Kingdom

September 5, 2003

Porec Old Town is a quaint cobbled town with a medieval feel. There is the superb and UNESCO-classed basilica (see separate entry). But there is also the second-century Temple of Neptune, which stands hidden away at the sea end of the main street. ...Read more

From journal Sunny Porec, Croatia

Euphrasian Basilica

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