Korcula island uses European funds for a new tourist offer

Thanks to European funds, a new tourist offer is being created on the island of Korcula, enabling visitors to get to know the rich history, cultural heritage, and social life that brought together various intellectuals, musicians, and writers in this area.

According to Otoci.eu, new tourist offers realized with the help of European funds are Korčula City Museum, Depolo Furniture Restoration Crafts and the Museum of Gold and Silver in Smokvica.

Korčula City Museum

The City Museum of Korčula is located in the Renaissance Ismaeli-Gabriellis Palace built in the 16th century, in the old town of Korcula. Part of the museum exhibits the cultural-historical material that includes testimonies of the historical and urban identity of Korcula, documents that represent the centuries-old Korcula crafts such as stonemasonry and shipbuilding as well as objects that sailors in the past brought to their homes.

Besides, the museum shows photographs of the social life of Korcula and the knight’s game Moreška, a living room from ancient times and a 201-year-old piano owned by the Boschi family, which is one of the few pianos preserved in Croatia. The fun fact is that Beethoven’s friend also played on it.

Depolo Furniture Restoration Crafts

Depolo Furniture Restoration Craft is located in the very center of Korčula. Mihovil Depolo is a “master of wood” who returned from Zagreb to his birthplace Korcula where he is engaged in restoration. His knowledge and the money of the EU funds with which he procured a fine sandblasting machine helped to enrich the Korcula Museum. Depolo is a museum restorer and conservator, and with this, he has greatly strengthened the competitiveness of the Craft and cooperation with the City Museum of Korcula. Especially the offer and presentation of traditional skills.

Museum of Gold and Silver in Smokvica

Just half an hour’s drive from the center of Korcula, there is a Museum of Gold and Silver in Smokvica where valuable jewelry collections will soon be exhibited. They testify to the cultural and civilizational achievements of the natives in whose lives religion and jewelry played a significant role. The idea for opening this type of museum is a rich collection of gold and silver owned by the parish church of the Purification of Mary, over 300 years old. The new church was built on the foundations of the old church from the 16th century and they are lucky to have preserved a lot.

The most valuable item to be exhibited in the museum is a chasuble from the 17th century, and gold from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries will also be on display. The Museum is scheduled to open on July 1st. With the museum, the mayor hopes to complete the tourist story where Smokvica has so far been recognized as the homeland of Pošip wine, but also as a cycling destination.

Korcula and Mljet islands – Winter Med project

For the area of Dubrovnik-Neretva County, as part of the WINTER MED project, an expert basis “Integral protection of cultural and historical units of existing settlements in island landscapes as a prerequisite for sustainable and responsible year-round tourism” is being prepared.

In order to respond to the main challenges related to the sustainability of maritime and coastal tourism, namely the reduction of extremely high tourist seasonality, the project develops plans for six pilot areas: Balearic Islands, Cyprus, Tuscany, Aegean, Corsica and, in our county, Mljet and Korcula islands.

The goal of the WINTER MED project is to promote sustainable and responsible year-round tourism on the islands in the Mediterranean area while preserving and valorizing cultural and natural heritage.

Source: Otoci.eu