Maps of Power

Island of Koločep, Church of St. Nicholas (St. Vitus)

Crkva Sv. Nikole (Sv. Vida), Црква Св. Николе (Св. Вида)

Begin between 01.01.0800 and 31.12.1000

Properties

ID 117971
System Class Place
Case Study Beyond East and West: Sacred Landscapes Duklja and Raška
Dedication Saint Nicholas
Evidence Existing Monument
Ground Plans Single Nave Basilica with a Dome
Place Existing Church
Stylistic Classification Pre-Romanesque
Administrative unit Dubrovnik Neretva County , Croatia

Description

The Church of St. Nicholas is situated on a small plateau, halfway between Donje and Gornje Čelo. It was probably built between the 9th and the 11th century. Judging by the archival documentation from the 13th century, the Church was dedicated to Saint Vitus. On the other hand, fresco decoration indicates othervise.
Its a single nave edifice with a dome on pendantives, an apse which is semicircular inside and rectangular on the outside and has facade divided by lesenes. Inside, the edifice is divided with two lesenes in three bays. Fragments of the original doorpost decorated with a motif of double three-bar knots have been found, and were later used as building material. Parts of the altar screen, that probably belonged to the original Church, are decorated with various braided motifs of geometric design.
Remains of early medieval frescoes, that date to the end of the 11th century, represent figures of saints and have been preserved on the walls and on the vaults of the Church. Some researchers have found stylistic similarities with frescoes of the Church of St. John (Ivan) on the Island of Šipan.
On the Western side of the Church is a bell-tower with a bronze bell made in the 16th century by Ivan Krstitelj Rabljanin, which was brought from the Church of St. Mary in Donje Čelo in the 20th century.
Thorough conservation and archeological works were carried out in the 20th century so the Church of St. Nicholas is still in use, primarily as a cemetery church.

Files

The Church of St. Nicholas on the Island of Koločep (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0)
The Church of St. Nicholas on the Island of Koločep (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0)