UNESCO
LACEMAKING IN CROATIA
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Lacemaking Lepoglava, Hvar and Pag are three Croatian destinations united by the same, yet diverse and unique beauty - lace. Those destinations are also the three main Croatian centers of lacemaking, a handiwork that originates back to the Renaissance in the Mediterranean and in Western Europe. Lacemaking, or the art of making lace, can be done with needles and interweaving with the help of lace bobbins. While in Europe lacemaking was an art form for nuns, middleclass women and noblewomen, in Croatia, it was handed down from generation to generation of female villagers in smaller rural areas. Lepoglava in Croatian Zagorje is recognizable for lacemaking with bobbins, Pag for needle lace, and Hvar is famous for its agave lace. Interestingly, agave lace in Croatia is only made by nuns in the Benedictine convent in the city of Hvar on the island of the same name. The skill of making lace from strands of agave, which is picked from fresh agave leaves using a special procedure, and has been present on Hvar since the mid-19th century, originates from the Canary Islands (Tenerife).
Prepared by: Željka Kunštek
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tipTravelMagazine August - October 2015
Lacemaking in Croatia was added to UNESCO's Representative List of Immaterial Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.