Lubenice, Medieval fort settlement on Cres Island, Croatia
Lubenice is a settlement with stone buildings that rise along narrow streets atop a limestone cliff roughly 380 meters above the Adriatic Sea. The houses are tightly grouped together and look out toward the water below.
The settlement began roughly 4000 years ago when early inhabitants fortified this location. During Roman times the site was known as Hibernitia and served as a fortified position.
The Church of the Visitation of Virgin Mary sits among roughly forty traditional stone structures that follow Mediterranean building patterns. This architectural style shapes how the settlement looks and reveals how inhabitants adapted to their surrounding environment.
Visitors must take a ferry to Cres Island and drive up winding roads to reach this location. Services and facilities here are limited, so planning ahead is important.
Only about six people live here permanently and keep the place alive. Two preserved gates mark the northern and southern entrances to the settlement and recall its earlier fortifications.
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