Asseria, Vol. 2 No. 2, 2004.
Original scientific paper
GLAGOLITIC INSCRIPTION FROM ASSERIA AS RECORDED IN NIN
Slavomir Sambunjak
Abstract
From the wall of the medieval church of St Mark, later dedicated to the Holy Spirit, in Podgrađe/Asseria near Benkovac, the fragments of the three Glagolitic inscriptions, very likely from 1426, were recently pulled out, one of them bearing clearly the year. The other mentions probably the same year as only a part of it is preserved; the third fragment having only letters whose morphology indicates the concurrent time of writing as on the two other inscriptions. Inscriptions are being preserved on the stone fragments, that is, they were cut into tablets of which five fragments have been discovered up to now. All the inscriptions are more or less damaged, one missing few letters, another badly damaged with a possibility of reconstruction, while the other one is completely illegible. From the archaeological point of view these finds are rather valuable because the preserved fragments represent the oldest Glagolitic inscriptions throughout the wider Zadar area. The value arises from the fact that there is an archival material witnessing the time of these inscriptions. Thus we come to know that at the turn of the 17th c. to 18th c. these inscriptions were incorporated within the walls of the church during one of its numerous reconstructions and what is more then, they were complete and visible. We know for sure that the bishops from Nin, visiting Podgrađe (part of their bishopric) saw the inscriptions (or at least one of them) read them and recorded the year from the inscription into their Latin - script report on visitation. By doing so they pointed out the importance of these inscriptions of which we know a little but hope to know more after deciphering their meaning. For the moment we can only offer the transliteration of fragmented inscriptions. According to the transliteration we can state that they represent 1) the grave inscriptions 2) the graves of the priests 3) and the year 1426.
Keywords
GLAGOLITIC INSCRIPTION; ASSERIA; NIN
Hrčak ID:
24543
URI
Publication date:
26.2.2004.
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