1568 CROATIA (Istria) - City of Motovun (UNESCO WHS - Tentative List)

Located in central Istria, on an elevation that dominates over the valley of the Mirna River, Motovun is in nowadays only a village with 531 inhabitants, but it was a medieval town that grew up on the site of an ancient city called Kastelijer. On the inner walls are several coats-of-arms of different Motovun ruling families and two gravestones of Roman inhabitants (dating from the 1st century). In the 10th and 11th centuries it belonged to the Bishop of Poreč, but from 1278 it was taken over by Venice and surrounded by solid walls which are still intact today. All three parts of the town are connected by a system of fortifications containing elements of Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance styles, being a typical example of Venetian colonial architecture.

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