Primosten

Primosten was an island fortified against the Ottomans and joined to the mainland in the sixteenth century, first by a drawbridge and then by a causeway that gave it its name in 1564, and the old town still fills the whole knob of rock with lanes spiralling up to the church of St George at the top. Behind it on the slopes of Bucavac is the thing that has travelled furthest: a hillside of vineyards where every vine is set in a pocket of soil enclosed by dry stone, built up over generations of clearing rock by hand, forming a lacework pattern across the whole hill. The technique of dry stone construction was inscribed on the UNESCO intangible list in 2018, with Croatia among the states party to it.

History

Primošten once stood on an islet just off the mainland. During the Ottoman invasions of 1542 it was protected by walls and towers, with a drawbridge to the shore; when the Ottomans withdrew the drawbridge was replaced by a causeway, and in 1564 the settlement was named Primošten, from the Croatian primostiti, "to bridge". The parish church of St George on the hilltop was built in 1485 and restored in 1760, beside the old graveyard with its wide view over the sea (Wikipedia, Primošten).

What's there

• A town on a former island - bridged by 1564, hence the name.
• Lanes spiralling to St George - the whole rock covered by the old town.
• The Bucavac vineyards - dry stone pockets in a lacework across the hill.
• A technique on the UNESCO list - dry stone construction, inscribed 2018.

When to go

May to September. Half a day.

Good to know

The old town is crowded in July and August and parking is on the mainland with a walk in. The vineyard pattern reads best from a viewpoint or from the air, not from among the vines. Beaches nearby are pebble and busy.

Nearby

Sibenik is north; Trogir and Split are south-east along the coast.

Key facts