Supetar

Supetar, lying partly on a peninsula, is the tourist centre and the secret capital of the island. Not only because the skyline of the hotel complexes welcomes strangers from afar, but also because nature has blessed the town with a few particularly pretty bathing bays: beyond the hotel area there is the naturist section, and right in the town centre the gravel beaches are kept clean by the surrounding holiday complexes and equipped with water-sports gear for hire. But it is not only bathers who make themselves comfortable in Supetar: the town offers more nightlife, entertainment and culinary pleasures than any other place on Brač. Young people without children in particular amuse themselves here with shopping, snacks and - yes, that too! - sightseeing.

Archaeologists found the first settlements of Supetar where the cemetery is laid out today. Here, in the centuries around the beginning of our era, a lively little village established itself - and then vanished almost without trace. Only in the late Middle Ages was this dreamlike landscape rediscovered by people in search of a new homeland, and soon the new town outstripped old Nerezisca. Venetians, Austrians and rich Croatian families all contributed to the beautification of the townscape - which serves the place very well today, now that it finances itself in part through tourism. By now 3,500 people live in the former trading and administrative centre, and anyone not looking after guests from outside takes the ferry to Split to work and back every day. A further indication that life in Supetar is worth some effort too!

The mausoleum, built in 1914, is usually the first cultural building that arrivals get to see from the ferry. Some see in the mixture of styles a match for Supetar's wealth of variety - others are simply annoyed by the arbitrariness with which the "artist" Rosandić has joined ornaments, symmetries and materials to one another. So there can hardly be talk of a place of "rest" for the Petrinović family… be that as it may - it is one of the most original structures in Dalmatia, possibly also the most humorous cemetery building, and where else does one find so many architectural styles in one place?

Above the harbour basin, right next to the towering town tower of the town hall, you will find the church of Saint Peter, built in 1604 and dedicated to the patron saint of fishermen and seafarers. Unfortunately this close connection to water did not protect the old building from being completely destroyed by a fire. But in 1733 the town's citizens erected the successor building, in which you can view a colourful glass-bead chandelier, lovingly worked grave slabs, holy water fonts and altar paintings, as well as a sundial on the outer wall to the left.