Draguć: frescoes and four churches

Updated October 13, 2026.

Walk through Draguć to St Roch's Church and Anton's frescoes. The House of Frescoes in the former school opens by appointment.

Along the main street to the square

Draguć stands on a ridge in the municipality of Cerovlje, between Pazin and Buzet. Follow the main street between the stone houses to the square, the parish Church of the Holy Cross and its bell tower of 1844. An old stone table stands beneath the hackberry trees. At the edge of the square, a viewpoint overlooks Grimalda and Lake Butoniga. Stop here before continuing to St Roch's at the far end of the village.

Four churches and their art

Inside St Roch's Church, the painter Anton from the Istrian Padova, in the area now known as Kašćerga, painted the walls in 1529 and 1537. He also recorded his work in inscriptions. Local residents built the church in the early 16th century at what was then the entrance to Draguć, invoking protection from the plague. Conservators repaired the building and restored its wall paintings between 2018 and 2023.

St Elisha's, the cemetery church, contains an earlier cycle: Romanesque wall paintings by an unknown artist from the late 13th century. Before entering, look at the regular bands of differently coloured stone on the exterior.

The other two churches hold works of sacred art. The Church of Our Lady of the Rosary houses wooden altars and paintings from Draguć's churches. In the parish Church of the Holy Cross, you can see an altarpiece by Venerio Trevisan, a painter from Vodnjan.

What is the House of Frescoes?

The former school on the main street houses the House of Frescoes, a department of the Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria. An information point and small gallery occupy the ground floor, with a lecture room upstairs. Specialists collect documentation on Istrian wall painting, conduct research and organise exhibitions and educational programmes. The original frescoes you have come to see remain in the churches.

Arranging a visit

Visits to the House of Frescoes require an appointment with the Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria. Arrange church visits with the parish.

Distance from Bale: 42 minutes driving

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