Isolarii – testimonies of European and Mediterranean identity of Croatia

Abstract

Numerous sources testify to Croatian affiliation to Europe and its rich cultural heritage. Isolarii (island books) make an important part of these sources. From a kind of homage to grandeur and glory of the Venetian Republic in the first half of the 15th century they developed into a scientific-literary genre which depicted in word and illustration various geographical regions relevant at the time to a wide reading audience. At the beginning isolarii adhered strictly to etymological meaning of the title of the genre describing exclusively insular regions. Their interest gradually spread to other coastal regions important in sailing terms which emphasized their relevance. Existence of this genre is characterized by constant development and improvement in almost three centuries of continuity. Bordone, Porcacchi, Camocio, Rosaccio, Coronelli were only some of authors in whose works Croatia got its recognizable place with its window to the world.