Otok Brac Things to Do

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Sumartin and Selca lie just a few kilometres apart but seperated by a high hill, St Nicholas's Mount, at the eastern end of the island.

Inland Selca is known as "the town in love with stone". Everything here - houses, pavements, walls, stairs - even the gutters under the eaves - is built of the fine white stone from the surround quarries. It gives the town an appearance of being rather newer than it really is, an impression added to by the bright, white Church of St Cyril - the town's most prominent building. Built in 1919 in a completely alien Gothic architectural style that is at odds with the landscape, it looks like a transplant from the New World. The old parish church of Our Lady of Selca built in 1775 is much more at home with its simple facade and little campanile.

Two of Brac's tiny 10th century churches are to be found on the hills outside Selca - St Nicolas stands on the hill between Selca and Sumartin whilst others, St. Cosimus and Damianus, and St Thomas can be found more remotely on high Smrcevik to the south.

In actuality, although the town has a long history, much of what we see today is relatively new. Having seen hundreds of its people emigrate in the late 19th/early 20th century and many buildings fall into disrepair as a result, some 90% of the town's buildings were then destroyed in 1943 when the town was razed by enemy attack. Recent years have seen better times, population growth has followed the redevelopment of the quarries and today the town has an air of quiet prosperity.

There are some interesting monuments around the town - figures of local importance of course and, not too surprisingly in a Catholic country, Pope John Paull II. More unusual, and a point of pride for locals, is the bust of Russian writer, Leo Tolstoy. Selca's monument to him, erected in 1911, was the first anywhere in the world!

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It's appropriate that Brac's island museum is housed in what is historically the most important building on the island - the Radojkovic Tower complex in Skrip. The tower itself shows clearly three levels of stone masonry - huge Illyrian stone at the base, a Roman mausoleum built on these and finally the 16th century tower itself.

The Illyrian remains are of Cyclopean proportions, huge stones that formed the walls of a hill fort, part of the island people's defence against invading Greeks.

The might of the Roman Empire swept the Illyrians away and the island became part of their Dalmatian possessions. Villas and vineyards replaced the hillforts and bunjes of the Illyrians and whilst slave labour cut the white stone of Brac from the quarries, rich men lived comfortable lives here - the number of fine Roman tombs and sarcophagi around Skrip bears witness to that. The grandest tomb was constructed sometime in the 3rd century AD on a base of the Illyrian walls - a cube of finely dressed stone surmounted by two huge stone arches. Legend says it was built for one of Diocletian's ex-wives, or maybe for her and her daughter - the quality of the workmanship is certainly high enough for such an exalted burial but the empty chamber we see today is not giving any clues. A little ladder and a low door in the museum gives access to the mausoleum.

The rest of the museum is given over to a small but significant collection of Roman and mediaeval exhibits as well as the usual collection of furniture, folk artifacts and photos found in provincial museums. Although only a copy - the original is in the Archaeological Museum in Split - the Povlja Lintel, a 12th century church lintel, is of major significance as its lengthy inscription (along with the contemporary Povlja Charter) is the earliest use of Cyrillic Croatian script yet found on the island.

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The dedication of Skrip's parish church to Sveta Jelena (St Helena - the mother of Constantine I) tells of an old island tradition that the saint was born here in Skrip. True or not (other villages on Brac also claim the honour but in fact Bithynia in Turkey is more the usually accepted place by both the Catholic and Orthodox churches) it's a nice little legend and the church that bears her name is a particularly pretty one as befits an Empress and the mother of the man who officially turned Rome to Christianity.

The present church dates from 1768 and its curving lines and mellow creamy stone make for an harmonious contrast with the solid grey strength of the Cerenic castle beside it. Sadly, since two of the valuable altar paintings - the work of a pupil of Tintoretto, were stolen, the church is nearly always locked.

The little Church of the Holy Spirit in the cemetery at the other end of the village is much older, dating back in parts to the 9th century and to lie on the foundations of a 4th century AD Roman temple. It took on its current appearance in mediaeval times. Look carefully at the graves nearest to the church and you can just make out symbols of their occupants livelihood carved into them - anchors for sailors and chisels and hammers for stonemasons.

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Roman sarcophagi lying by the road through the hilltop village of Skrip are the first sign that this place was inhabited - and was important - long before the present houses and churches of the little town were built here. Walk around the base of the massive Radkovic Tower and you'll find evidence of an even older settlement. The tower shows three distinct stages of construction - at the bottom level, massive Illyrian blocks, above them distinctive Roman masonry (thought to be the walls of a wealthy man's family mausoleum) and finally, the 16th century defense tower raised by the islanders against the invading Turk.

The threat of the Turk was very real and so the tower is not the only defensive structure in the village - Cerinic Castle near the church is the largest fortified building on the island.

Amateur archaeologists will enjoy a wander through the village, identfying the remains of the different stages of sttlement. The Illyrians may have left just their wall which extends a short waybeyond the Radojkovic Tower in a north-easterly direction but of the Romans there is considerably more evidence. Apart from the sarcophagi and the masonry in the tower I've already mentioned, across from the cemetery you'll find a dressed-stone pond (the lovka), one of several they built in the area and the museum contains not only sculptures and other artifacts but it also gives you the chance to see the inside of the mausoleum in the base of the tower.

There are other pleasures to be found in a walk around Skrip - gardens bursting with fruit and flowers, ancient olive presses set into the ground, views across the surrounding countryside, the sound of chickens clucking, sun on old stone walls, the pretty curves of a baroque church facade - timeless sights and sounds that are part and parcel of village life.

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The only town on Brac's south coast, and the only town on the island not tucked away into a sheltered cove, Bol is the the island's most popular holiday destination and one of the earliest settlements. The choice of such an unprotected stretch of coastline for the settlement is easily understood once you know that there is a fresh water spring here - a most precious thing on an island almost completely without fresh water.

Bol's other treasure is what brings the tourists - the magnificent beach at Zlatni Rat, arguably the most beautiful - and certainly the most photographed beach in all Croatia. Looking down on it all is Vidova Gora - the highest point on all the Adriatic islands -and, to complete the picture-postcard -perfection of it all, Gothic and Renaissance houses stand side by side with cafes, restaurants and galleries around the harbourside where pleasure craft bob in the clear waters. The 17th century Baroque Church of Our Lady of Carmel is usually closed but do take a look at the carving over the door . A representation of an angel hold Veronica's veil, it is a relic from an earlier church on the site.

The town lies between Zlatni Rat (at the western end) and the Dominican Monastery to the east on Glavica, now a small peninsula though it was once a small island. A pinetree-shaded 2km pathway to Zlatni Rat is lined with small stalls selling souvenirs and the usual tourist tat - fun for browsing and you're bound to find something you just can't leave behind. For more up-market mementos, the shops and galleries along the harbour front have plenty of choice.

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Like Pucisca, Lozisca has a lovely, elegant bell tower that stands tall over all the houses, but this is an inland village, no harbour here, rather steep sides of as rocky ravine where the houses, in their serried ranks, one row above the other, all face south to catch the sun. Unlike most of the island's churches, Lozisca's Church of SS John and Paul was only built in the 19th century, but the bell tower is regarded as undoubtedly the loveliest on the island.

Despite the grandeur of its beltower, the village was always poor and saw massive emigration during the latter part of the 19th century until quite recent years. This depopulation has meant that the village has retained much of its traditional character as so many buildings are deserted and empty and there has been very little new building for a very long time.

You'll pass Lozisca on the way to Milna - Brac's main sailing centre. To get into the village you have to take a detour across the ravine but even if you only stop for a moment to take in the sight of the village across the valley, I'm sure you'll agree, it's one of the most impressive sights on the island.

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The village of Postira was founded in the 16th century, but right beside the parish church of St John the Baptist lies evidence of a much older settlement here - the foundations of a 2-aisled early basilica, most probably the church of a monastery that occupied this land in late Roman times. Ruins of Roman country villas in the area support the knowledge of this early occupation.

The layout of the church can be seen quite clearly - the two aisles of the church leading to the apse and, to the side, in a seperate section - the baptistery - the cross-shaped font sunk into the ground. In these early days of Christianity, baptism followed the example of Christ's baptism by immersion in the waters of the River Jordan. Adult converts had to be baptised before they could enter the church itself, so the font was housed outside the main body of the church. It was only when the whole populace was Christian that the practice of infant baptism saw the font being brought into the church itself.

This area of the island is particularly liberally scattered with the remnants of building of this period - Brac was famed for its olives even then and what could have been more pleasant for a retired Roman soldier that living in a villa on this beautiful island surrounded by an olive grove?

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On the high plateau in the centre of Brac, the village of Praznica is known to have been in existence by the 12th century. Its parish church,dedicated to St Anthony the Abbot was begun in 1400, and even in this most rural and isolated (as it would certainly have been in past centuries), populated by shepherds living in scattered simple houses, faith and affection for their beloved saints saw the building a fine church with some beautiful adornments.

Brac's patron saint is St Jerome (born in this region, he is credited with devising the ancient Croatian script) and the church at Praznica has a elaborate, if naive, side altar dedicated to the saint. The carving of Jerome has a Croatian -style church outside the cave and the fine painted ceiling sets some of its scenes in a local landscape