St. Sebastian’s Church and Clock Tower

St. Sebastian's Church and Clock Tower occupy a prime corner of Trogir's main square, among the loggia, the cathedral and the grand stone palaces that make this little island town a UNESCO-listed old town. The church is small, and it is easy to walk past without noticing, but it is one of the best places in the square to read the story of how people in Trogir lived with fear and hope in the Middle Ages. It was built as a votive church, which means that it was raised to fulfil a promise made during a plague outbreak, in the late 1470s.

St. Sebastian is the saint traditionally invoked against plague in the Catholic world, and his image appears on churches in many European towns that suffered epidemics. In Trogir, the faithful turned to him in a period when outbreaks repeatedly struck coastal Dalmatia, and the church was the town's thanksgiving. On the facade, above the entrance, the figure of the saint is shown in a niche, and nearby is a carved figure of Christ giving a blessing, both fine examples of the late Gothic and early Renaissance sculpture that flourished along the Dalmatian coast, where local stonemasons absorbed Italian influence. The stone, like the stone of nearly everything in Trogir, comes from local quarries on the nearby island of Brač.

The clock tower beside the church is a landmark of the square. It rises beside the Town Loggia, the open arcaded hall where the town's judges once sat and where public announcements were made, and it adds a vertical accent to a space that is otherwise dominated by horizontal lines. Together, the church, tower and loggia show how the civic and the sacred shared one public stage in a Venetian-ruled Adriatic town.

The interior is small and often closed outside services or special openings, so most visitors admire it from the square, where the details of the facade are best seen in the soft light of morning or late afternoon. If you do find the door open, a short look at the simple interior is worthwhile.

The square is lively, with cafes and restaurants spilling onto the paving, and it is the natural starting point for a walk through the old town. Close by are St. Lawrence Cathedral, with its famed Romanesque portal, Cipiko Palace, the Kamerlengo Fortress and the waterfront promenade, the Riva. The church suits anyone interested in medieval history, religious art and the small details of urban life. Allow ten to fifteen minutes.