The Lumbarda tablet
A Greek colony''s land division, inscribed 2,400 years ago.
Martin Brož — CC BY 3.0 · August Dominus — CC BY-SA 3.0 · August Dominus — CC BY-SA 3.0
It occupies the sixteenth-century **Gabrielis Palace** directly opposite the cathedral, one of the grandest noble houses in the town. The collection is small but arranged over four floors to tell the island''s story through what it lived on: At the bottom, **stone**: Korčula was a major source of limestone, and its carvers worked in Dubrovnik and Venice. Displayed here is a **fourth-century BC inscribed tablet** recording the division of land in the Greek colony at Lumbarda — **the oldest written document in Croatia**. Then **shipbuilding**: the island''s second trade, with models and tools. Then the nobles'' living rooms with their furniture, and a kitchen in the attic reassembled as it was. Note: **the Lumbarda tablet is the reason to come** — a piece easily walked past if you are not looking for it, and by far the most important thing in the museum. Note: the museum is small — an hour covers it.
A Greek colony''s land division, inscribed 2,400 years ago.
The island''s first trade, its carvers working as far as Venice.
Reassembled as it was, at the top of the palace.
St Mark''s Square, opposite the cathedral, Korčula
A stone inscribed in Greek, found at **Lumbarda** east of the town, dating from the **fourth century BC**. Its content is administrative rather than literary: it records the **division of land** in a new Greek colony among the settlers, naming them, their plot boundaries and the agreement reached with the local Illyrian inhabitants. It matters because it is **the oldest written text found on Croatian soil**, and direct evidence of an organised Greek colony here — the same kind of document that explains the **Stari Grad Plain** on Hvar. ⚠ The piece is small and visually unremarkable and easily passed among the displays, so ask for it specifically. ⚠ Lumbarda itself is still planted with vines, and is the only place in the world where the **Grk** grape grows.
Sign in to write your review of this place.
No reviews yet — be the first.