Rockin’ the Baroque in Dubrovnik Cathedral

The Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary, Katedrala Marijina Uznesenja, Dubrovnik, Croatia

It’s amazing just how often I find it impossible to get into churches: they’re either closed or they’ve got services going on.  We tried a couple of times to force our way into Dubrovnik Cathedral, but didn’t have any luck until we were walking past randomly and finally grabbed our chance to get in there.

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The first cathedral built on this site was from the 7th century, and a series of rebuilds have taken place, including the 12th century Romanesque version which was partially funded by King Richard I – as in Robin Hood’s buddy (you can read why in my post about Lokrum).

The earthquake of 1667 destroyed the cathedral, and the Italian architect Andrea Buffalini sent in plans for a new Baroque style church, very much in fashion at the time.  Building work started in 1673 and several Italian master-builders worked on the project until it was completed in 1713.  Rather like the St Ignatius Church up the road, the design was influenced by the Jesuit Il Gesù in Rome, but its current appearance owes much to Tommaso Napoli, who spent the longest time working on the project and made major changes to the design, including making it more open.

The 1979 earthquake and damage caused during the Siege of Dubrovnik in 1991 required repairs, but now the biggest problem the cathedral faces is with damp – a problem in most of the churches we visited in the city.

The altarpiece is said to be by Titian and his workshop – but Sister-Chickpea and I think it was definitely more workshop than Titian.

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So In Summary

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