Restoration of the Rotunda of the Assumption, Koper

Restoration of what is believed to be the oldest building in Koper - the Rotunda of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary (Koper, 4 June 2024)

Next Friday, 14 June 2024, the restoration of the former baptistery, the Rotunda of Our Lady of Koper (Rotunda of Blessed Elijah), will be completed with the presentation of the interior.

Today's presentation was opened by a representative of the investor Dr Primož Krečič, the cathedral parish priest, who stressed the importance of such spiritual spaces for the citizens and the city today and throughout time, and the reasons that led the parish to approach the renovation of the baptistery.

This lesser-known central sacral building is probably one of the oldest in Koper, and according to her, the baptistery could have stood on the site as early as the 5th or 6th century, the conservation councillor told the media at the meeting Dr Mojca Marjana Kovač (ZVKDS OE Piran), which led the renovation. This started with non-destructive GPR surveys carried out before the works started in 2021, which detected the remains of the baptismal pool under the existing pavement.

The renovation, which took place from 2022 and was co-financed by the Ministry of Culture, Dr Mojca Marjana Kovač said, included: replacing the roofing and preserving the roof structure, removing the early 20th-century wooden suppressed dome and presenting the exterior as an unplastered façade.

In 2023, restoration surveys were carried out on the inner lining, which revealed fragmentary preserved wall paintings on the sides of the previous window openings, which can be dated to the 14th and 15th centuries on the basis of the floral decoration. The church had four windows at that time, two of which retain paintings.

In 2023 and 2024, a presentation of the interior was held, co-financed by the Municipality of Koper. The project included the installation of lighting and the installation of paintings of the saints of Koper and the cork, a former altar partition dating back to the 6th century, discovered during the installation of the new choir and organ in the cathedral.

For more information on how the renovation took place, see the author's text, which is available here: St Mary's Rotunda - ZVKDS

The restored rotunda will exhibit icons of saints and blesseds of Koper, specially designed and painted for this space by the iconographer Dr Pavel Orlando.

In the final part, some of the events that will take place in June as part of the celebrations of St Nazarius and the 1500th anniversary of Koper, among others, were presented:

• 7 June, opening of the exhibition of portraits of the bishops of Koper (Baptistery of St John the Baptist),
• 8 June, Mass and presentation of the new Mass vestments (Cathedral of Koper); and

• 14 June, inauguration of the renovated Rotunda of Our Lady (Rotunda of Blessed Elijah) with paintings.