Statue of the Girl with the Seagull

The Girl with the Seagull is the best-loved statue in Opatija and the unofficial emblem of the town. It is a small bronze figure of a young woman with a gull perched on her raised arm, standing on a rock at the edge of the sea beside the Lungomare, the coastal promenade that runs through the resort. Postcards, souvenirs and the logos of local businesses all carry her image, and visitors usually find her without difficulty by following the shore path past the harbour. In local speech she is simply the Maiden with the Seagull.

The statue was made by the sculptor Zvonko Car and put in place in 1956. It is a modest work in scale, quite different from the grand monuments of the Habsburg era, with soft, flowing lines and a calm, gentle expression. The figure looks out over the Kvarner Bay, where the islands of Cres and Krk lie on the horizon, and the light on the water behind her makes it one of the most photographed spots in Opatija, especially around sunset. The rock on which she stands is washed by waves, so spray reaches the base in rough weather.

The story of the place is older than the statue. A monument to the Virgin Mary, known as the Madonna del Mare, once stood on a rock near here, put up in the nineteenth century as a memorial to a man who drowned in a storm in the bay. That earlier statue was damaged over time, and the Girl with the Seagull was placed at the site in its stead. The original Madonna was restored, and a version of it can be seen in the town, so that the sea setting carries two layers of memory, one religious and one secular.

The statue is part of a trail of small sights along the promenade. Near the harbour, you can see the Port of Opatija, with its small boats and the memorial to the old boatmen, and a short walk away are the Casino Rosalia, Park Angiolina and the Croatian Walk of Fame, which are listed in this guide. The Carmen Sylva Forest Promenade offers a walk into the woods behind the town. The Lungomare itself is the great attraction, a promenade of about twelve kilometres running along the rocky shore between Volosko and Lovran.

The statue can be visited at any time and there is no charge. Early morning is best for photographs without crowds, and in summer the promenade is busy in the evening. Be careful on wet rocks if you climb down to the water for a better view. The visit takes only a few minutes, but it is a pleasant stop within a longer walk.