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Photographer’s Note

MARINA IN TROGIR

The extraordinary medieval town seen in this photo is Trogir, on the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia. During the 3rd and 4th centuries BC, Greek settlers first colonized the site, which in the 1st century AD became the Roman municipality, ‘Tragurium Civium Romanorum.’ Then, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, Trogir developed as an independent city. During the medieval years, there were frequent altercations with the Venetians who tried to annex it. To no one's surprise the city sided with the Hungarians who offered it independence.

The period of rising prosperity would come to an abrupt halt when the Venetians finally vanquished the city in 1420. The subsequent occupation would last almost four centuries, a period during which the city would be allowed to languish. Trogir would gain its independence one more time, in 1797, but this would be short lived, with Napoleon's forces invading and occupying the city next — another short period. The next invasion would come from the Austrians, who would conquer and dominate it during the hundred-year period, 1814-1914. Democratization began in Trogir in 1848, but thirty years later the inhabitants of the town would be dominated by the Croats. Following WWI, Trogir and the larger Croatia would become part of the State of South Slovenes. Not until the 1970s, however, would the quality of life begin to improve significantly, when the shipbuilding industry began to flourish, offering employment to over 50% of the inhabitants of Trojir. It was this industry, coupled with an accelerated growth of tourism that brought prosperity to the citizens. Finally, with UNESCO's acknowledgement of Trogir as a World cultural Heritage in 1997, and an ongoing process of integration into the European Community, the city’s and Croatia’s future appears truly promising, its long history of frequent vicissitudes finally vanishing into its history. During the medieval years, the style of architecture of its monumental buildings, including its cathedral, was Romanesque or Gothic, recognizable by interlaced ornamentation in its arched doorways.

In 2007 I had posted a pair of images shot on the same occasion: “The Red Boat” and "Green Net...Red Boat". This is now a third photo showing the lovely marina. Unlike the other two images, this one does not have a prominent focal point like the "red boat," but the overall composition should present the port's most salient features. One thing I've learned from my experience in the past year is to minimize the size of the frames.

For the record, the legendary 13th century traveler, Marco Polo, originally hailed from Korcula, Croatia, not far from Trogir, and moved to Venice, from where he started his expedition to the Far East. And the modern necktie had its origins in Croatia, as "cravat."

In early August 2006, the cruise ship Crystal Symphony, on which I was serving as the enrichment lecturer, anchored off the coast of Split. In a rented car, we traveled the less than half-hour distance to Trogir.

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Additional Photos by Bulent Atalay (batalay) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4532 W: 295 N: 6777] (20810)
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