Gracisce

Gracisce is a walled village on a spur east of Pazin with a compact set of buildings that have not been much altered: the Salomon Palace with its Venetian gothic windows, a bishop's residence, and the church of St Mary on Placa of 1425, which holds a painted interior and stands just inside the gate. The village looks over the Cepic field towards Ucka. It holds a wine festival in spring and otherwise goes about its business with a few dozen residents. Like most of the interior, it is a place where the interest is a set of stone buildings in an unspoiled arrangement rather than any single monument.

History

The prehistory of Gračišće is little known, though a Bronze Age grave was found at Salamunišće and pottery at several sites around it; in the Iron Age the Histri lived in this part of Istria. After Rome's war with the Histri ended with the fall of Nesactium in 177 BC, the area came under Rome; the interior around Gračišće later became imperial property, managed from Pula from the 3rd century, and its hills gained value as defensive positions in the 3rd and 4th centuries. Byzantine emperors ruled Istria until 751, Carloman brought it into the Frankish realm in 788, and from 803 it belonged to the March of Friuli. Gračišće is first named in writing in 1199, as Gallinianum; while Venice gradually took the coast, the interior around Pazin, with Gračišće, stayed with the counts of Gorizia and in 1374 passed to the Habsburgs (Wikipedia, Gračišće).

What you'll find

• The Salomon Palace - Venetian gothic windows on the square.
• St Mary on Placa of 1425 - painted inside, just within the gate.
• A bishop's residence - part of the same small ensemble.
• A view to Ucka - across the Cepic field.

When to go

May to October; a wine festival runs in spring. Two hours.

Practical notes

Churches are usually locked and need the keyholder. The village is tiny with one or two places to eat. There is no museum or interpretation on site. It is a quick stop rather than a day.

Nearby

Pazin and its chasm are west; Draguc is north.

Key facts