Lumbarda

Lumbarda sits at the eastern tip of Korcula on sandy ground, which is unusual for the island and produces both its beaches - Prizna and Bilin Zal among them - and its wine: Grk, a white variety grown essentially only here, whose vines have only female flowers and must be planted alongside another variety to fruit at all. The other distinction is a stone: the Lumbarda Psephisma, an inscription of about the third century BC found here, records the division of land among Greek settlers from Issa and is the oldest written document relating to any Croatian territory. The original is in the archaeological museum in Zagreb.

Background

Lumbarda is both a village and a municipality, seven kilometres from Korčula town by a road through pine woods and olive groves. The municipality covers 10.7 square kilometres and had 1209 residents in 2021. Many locals work in tourism, letting rooms and running boat trips to Mljet and Lastovo, while others still grow vines, fish or dress stone. Greek colonists founded a settlement here in the 3rd century, and the present name is first recorded in the statute of Korčula, first compiled in 1214. St. Barbara's church on Žabnjak probably dates from the late 13th century and was renovated in 1728 and again in the late 19th century. Beaches include Vela Pržina, Bilin Žal and Tatinja.

Source: Wikipedia, "Lumbarda"

What you'll find

• Sandy ground and beaches - unusual on a stone island.
• Grk wine grown only here - vines that need a pollinator to fruit.
• The Lumbarda Psephisma - a Greek land-division inscription of about 300 BC.
• The original in Zagreb - what is here is the site, not the stone.

When to go

June to September. Half a day.

What to expect

The inscription itself is in Zagreb - there is no display of it here. Beaches are small and busy in August. Grk producers are family operations and mostly need arranging. Parking near the beaches is very limited.

Nearby

Korcula town is west; Badija is offshore between them.

Key facts