ZAGREB CHARACTERISTICS

Church of St. Mark’s
The Church of St. Mark’s is one of the oldest architectural monuments of the City of Zagreb, and is also the oldest parish church in the city. It is located on Mark’s Square in the Upper Town. Its first historical reference was in 1256, however the basic form is from the Romanesque period. Today’s St. Mark’s Church stems back to the 14-15th century, and it was renovated in the 19th century (by Schmidt), when the Church received its internal appearance. As of the Schmidt renovation, the church has three altars, previously it had more (8 in the 15th cent., 12 in the 17th cent.). In the period between the two World Wars, the church was further ornamented under the leadership of Joze Kljaković (1936-37). Ivan Meštrović also had significant influence in the renovation.

The church has three naves, each ending in an apse. It is 36 meters long and 15.5 meters wide. The vaults were gilded in the 1937 renovation. The floor was once brick, but at the end of the 17th century, the brick was replaced with stone. The choir deck was once walled and narrow, standing upon four stone pillars. Schmidt expanded it, while Meštrović removed it and replaced it with a wooden choir. The Church of St. Mark’s already possessed an organ in the 14th century. On the exterior of the northwestern wall is a stone carved crest of the City of Zagreb from 1499. Schmidt covered the roof with colored tiles, and created a new roof structure for the nave and sacristy. The south side of the roof was ornamented with two crests: the crest of the Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia and the crest of the City of Zagreb. Through the centuries, the bell tower was heavily damaged in earthquakes and was always rebuilt, destroyed several times by fire, and again rebuilt. The basis is Gothic. It received its current Baroque appearance in the period 1677-1725, and in 1841 it was covered in copper. The bells date back to 1706.