Zgodovina nekdanje plemiške palače in njenih vrtov v Valdoltri : od benediktinskega samostana in samostanskih vrtov do hotela Convent in hotelskih teras v Ankaranu

slovenian

2015

volume 25, issue 3

architectural garden   Benedictine monastery   designed garden   landscape garden   monastery garden   summer residence

Zgodovinsko društvo za južno Primorsko
(Obvezni izvod spletne publikacije)

In the Middle Ages, a church was built in the bay where today's settlement Ankaran is located, and this church was the reason for the establishment of the Benedictine monastery S. Nicolo d'Oltra. The church was initially dedicated to S. Apollinaire, but - after 1072, when it became a part of the Venetian Benedictine monastery S. Nicolo del Lido - its patrocinium was gradually replaced by that of S. Nicholas. In the 16th and 17th centuries, both the architecture of the monastery and its garden were created. Archival documents show that the purpose of the monastery garden was mainly to grow herbs and fruit. In1774 the monastery property in Valdoltra was acquired by the family Madonizza, a noble family from Koper, who rearranged the monastery complex into a summer residence. The building and its surroundings were rearranged in the thirties and in the late 19th century - the architecture remodelled in this time could be classified as neo-baroque in style, and the designed garden as a late landscape garden. In the first half of the 20th century, the family Madonizza wanted to transform their property in Valdoltra into a hotel complex. The plans were prepared by the architect Giovanni Madonizza, but their execution was interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War. The idea of a hotel complex in Valdoltra later materialized - in the new Yugoslavian state. In the late 1950s and 1960s, plans for the rearrangement of the palace into a hotel were commissioned from different architects, such as Vinko Glanz, Anton Bitenc, Edo Mihevc and others. The focus of this project was on the building; however, the immediate surroundings of the hotel were included in the plans, and the hotel garden would have an architectural character, if the plans had been fully realized. Despite the many past alterations, today's Convent Hotel has retained its historical appearance, while the hotel garden is mostly unmaintained and has lost its former design. However, one can still discern some elements of past garden designs and the connection of the terrace garden with the broader surroundings.

10.06.2016