The best walks and hikes around Općina Sveti Petar u Šumi

The Church of St. Michael in Žminj was built in the 16th century and has been one of the most important religious buildings in the area ever since. It boasts exquisite craftsmanship, with colored stones sourced from a mine in nearby Gradišće.

Beautiful view of the adjacent wooded gorge

Delicious Croatian cuisine, excellent service and warmth characterize this restaurant. Highly recommended.

The church was built in the 15th century and is a simple Gothic church located on the north side of the parish church of St. Michael the Archangel. Interestingly, in the past it was a free-standing church in the Žminj Castle. It is built of stone blocks of local limestone and its roof is covered with slate. A new door and two rectangular windows on the front were built in 1601, as can be seen from the doorpost record above the entrance. It is painted with frescoes and similar ones can only be seen in neighboring Slovenia, in Kranjska. The frescoes depict scenes from the life of Christ; childhood, flight to Egypt, the fall of the Egyptian idols, the slaughter of innocent children, the return of the Holy Family from Egypt, baptism in Jordan, banishment of the temple merchants, last supper, Christ on the Mount of Olives, Judas' kiss, Christ before Pilate, resurrection, holy woman at the empty tomb, Christ appearing to the eleven disciples, doubting Thomas, ascension into heaven. The models for these paintings come from the Bible pauperum; Bibles of the poor from the Middle Ages, dominated by illustrations, with or without short text. Some paintings are the only exhibits in the entire corpus of preserved Istrian wall paintings, such as the Kiss of Judas, which contains a beautiful depiction of St. Peter, one of the most beautiful figures in Istrian wall painting. The frescoes were restored in the 1970s, and to view them it is necessary to enter the parish church of St. Michael. Source: https://www.tzzminj.hr/index.php/de/kultur/kirchen-und-kapellen/die-heilige-dreifaltigkeitskirche

At the top of the hill on which Zminj is built is the parish church of Archangel Michael. Once surrounded by the mighty walls of the Zminj castle, the church and the 34 m high church tower from the 18th century now dominate the townscape of Zminj. The Carniolan frescoes in the Holy Trinity Chapel are worth seeing, as is the landmark of Zminj, the hackberry tree, which is located directly in front of the church on the church square. Source: https://www.kroati.de/kroatien-istrien/zminj.html

The church was built in the 16th century at the western entrance to Žminj. It has a rectangular floor plan and no apse. The front of the church is decorated with a bell, and to the right of the entrance to the church there is a stone sprinkler. Source: https://www.tzzminj.hr/index.php/de/kultur/kirchen-und-kapellen

Directly opposite the parish church of Archangel Michael is a small square with the public cistern. The historic fountains are no longer in use, but the picturesque little square is often used as a meeting place and as an event location for the Bartulja folk festival, among others. Source: https://www.kroati.de/kroatien-istrien/zminj.html

In the Middle Ages, Zminj was protected by mighty city walls and several round towers. The towers were renovated in the 15th century. In the 18th century, large parts of the city walls and two of the round towers were demolished. Of the former Zminj castle, only the round tower from the 9th century at the parish church of Archangel Michael and part of the south wing remain. Unfortunately, data on the construction period of the so-called "Fortica" are no longer known. Source: https://www.kroati.de/kroatien-istrien/zminj.html