Radovan ( la, Raduan) was Croatian

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

who lived in

Trogir Trogir (; historically known as Traù (from Dalmatian language, Dalmatian, Venetian language, Venetian and Italian language, Italian: ); la, Tragurium; Greek language, Ancient Greek: Τραγύριον, ''Tragyrion'' or Τραγούριον, '' ...

in the 13th century. In Croatian he is commonly referred to as ' or "Master Radovan". Virtually no information exists about the personality and career of this artist, save for his monumental Romanesque

portal Portal often refers to: *Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel Portal may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...

of the Trogir cathedral. Radovan inscribed his name and the year of making of the main portal, 1240, on the

lunette A lunette (French ''lunette'', "little moon") is a half-moon shaped architectural space, variously filled with sculpture, painted, glazed, filled with recessed masonry, or void. A lunette may also be segmental, and the arch may be an arc taken ...

above the entrance: The text informs us that master Radovan was the best in the art of sculpture and that the project was completed in the time when a Tuscan, Treguan from

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

, had been the

bishop of Trogir Tragurium, Ancient Latin name of a city in Dalmatia (coastal Croatia), now called Trogir, was a bishopric until 1829 and a Latin titular bishopric until 1933.

. That Radovan was a native son of

''(Traù)'' is attested, among other things, by his name, which figures frequently in Trogir's municipal archives in the 13th century. The portal consists of four parts: on the

doorjamb A jamb (from French ''jambe'', "leg"), in architecture, is the side-post or lining of a doorway or other aperture. The jambs of a window outside the frame are called “reveals.” Small shafts to doors and windows with caps and bases are known ...

, the nude figures of

Adam Adam; el, Ἀδάμ, Adám; la, Adam is the name given in Genesis 1-5 to the first human. Beyond its use as the name of the first man, ''adam'' is also used in the Bible as a pronoun, individually as "a human" and in a collective sense as " ...

and Eve, supported by lions; inside are numerous reliefs depicting the Labors of the Months as well as hunting scenes; and finally in the middle are scenes from the life of Christ: from the

Annunciation The Annunciation (from Latin '), also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the biblical tale of the announcement by the ang ...

to the

Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, whic ...

– positioned in arches around the tympanum. Finally, in tympanum is the Birth of Christ. The figures are very realistic, recalling French Gothic sculpture, including the sculpture at

Chartres Cathedral Chartres Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres), is a Roman Catholic church in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the Bishop of Chartres. Mostly con ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Radovan 13th-century Croatian people Romanesque artists Croatian art Croatian sculptors History of Trogir

See also

References