One of the Last Paradise Oases of the Mediterranean cape of the stončica bay with the lighthouse BOSNIA AND Geographical HERCEGOVINA definition of ADRIATIC CROATIA the area SEA The Vis Archipelago is the central maritime zone in the Adriatic. This triangle-shaped area comprises the island of Vis, its nearby uninhabited islands vis (Ravnik, Budihovac, Veli Paržanj, Mali Paržanj, Gre- ben, Host, Veli Barjak and Mali Barjak), the further removed, open-sea island of Palagruža (40 sea miles south of Vis), inhabited only by a lighthouse keeper, and the islet of Jabuka rising like a black pyramid above the sea (some 30 sea miles west of Vis). Within this triangle-shaped zone spread- ing across approximately 6,000 square kilometers, there are also the islands of Sveti Andrija, Brusnik and Biševo, the latter being the only inhabited is- land among the three. ITALY Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago 3 Geology Among as many as 1,200 islands scattered across deep rooted faults in the Earth’s crust during the the Adriatic coast, the islands comprising the Vis first period of the Age of Dinosaurs, the Triassic, Archipelago have the most heterogenous rock some 220 million years ago, during the breakup formations. In addition, these islands are also of the supercontinent Pangaea and the opening the youngest and the oldest Adriatic islands. The of the Tethys Ocean. youngest in the sense that they are still rising, and the oldest in the sense that they are composed of Triassic rocks were deeply buried in the Earth’s volcanic, salt and sedimentary rocks formed along crust beneath a few thousand-meter thick cov- Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago 5 gaće cave, southern coast of vis libri location on the island of biševo with sedimentary rocks rising from the bottom of the sea er of layered sedimentary rocks of the Adriatic part of the Earth’s crust was deformed and partly During the Ice Ages the sea level was 140 meters Carbonate Platform (ACP), deposited in the area eroded during the slow rise of the islands, which lower than today, and the hills were surrounded during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. The feature spectacular cliffs built of layered carbon- by the Adriatic steppe. The sand from the steppe wider Adriatic area was then situated along a trop- ate rocks resembling “stone books” in which each was blown by strong winds up to the hills, forming ical belt within the western Tethys Sea, on a small layer contains the geological record from the time sand plains and the present-day substrate for the drifting continent called the Adriatic plate or Adria. of its deposition. In the Quaternary period, the highest quality vineyards, and some of the most During the last few million years, the lighter Trias- two-kilometer wide “head” of the “mushroom” pro- beautiful sand beaches along the predominantly sic salt and associated volcanic and sedimentary truded through more resistant uplifted carbonates, rocky coast. After the last Ice Age the sea flooded rocks began to uplift and pierce through the cover and was eroded by the rain and sea, forming the the steppe, turning the hills into islands, while sub- of carbonate rocks forming a salt diapir — a few present-day Komiža Bay. merged caves became the most beautiful natural kilometer tall subsurface “mushroom.” The upper phenomena in the Adriatic. 6 Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago 7 The Vis Archipelago and its submarine The wondrous world of the corallogenic reefs the red The Vis Archipelago area are included in the ecological net- Along the steep underwater reefs of the Vis Ar- coral in the ecological work EU Natura 2000. The main goal of chipelago, in spots with poor visibility and strong this program is to maintain or improve currents, a heterogenous coralligenous bioceno- sis has developed, filled with gorgonias, stone the condition of preservation of target- network EU corals and spiny lobsters. A characteristic feature ed biological species and their habitats. of the Vis Archipelago is the presence and pres- Natura 2000 This is particularly important for the is- ervation of the commercially highly exploited land of Vis which is, along with its open Red Coral (Corallium rubrum) at shallower than sea islands, a bird migration corridor usual depths, and Black coral (Antipathes sp.), between the Adriatic shores. very rare in the Adriatic, found at greater depths. Corraligenous reefs are part of the ecological net- work Natura 2000. Birds of open-sea islands Bottlenose Dolphin The Vis Archipelago is habitat to 11 bird species ob- The area of the ecological network “The Vis Ma- anica) is endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, it is served within the ecological network Natura 2000. rine Area” is a habitat of the Bottlenose dolphin the lungs of the Mediterranean and a home to These are some of the characteristic open-sea spe- (Tursiops truncatus). The size of its population is many commercially exploited and protected zoo- cies such as Eleonora’s Falcon (Falco eleonorae), a minimum of 250 specimens. The Vis maritime logical species. Its role in the maritime eco system Cory’s Shearwater (Calonectris diomedea) and the zone is an area in which the Bottlenose dolphin is indispensable. Due to widespread underwater Levantine Shearwater (Puffinus yelkouan). Eleonora’s raises its young. Posidonia meadows, some of which are a couple Falcon in particular is an important species due to of hundred and even thousands of years old, the that fact that it is almost nowhere to be found in Posidonia — the lungs of the Mediterranean area of the Vis Archipelago is part of the ecological eleonora’s falcon Croatia save on its open-sea islands. The Posidonia seagreass species (Posidonia oce- network Natura 2000. 8 Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago 9 CROATIA The Vis Archipelago — the Adriatic Blue Corridor šolta brač hvar jabuka svetac vis budihovac The World Wildlife Fund, an ecological organization based in Rome, brusnik ravnik biševo korčula has included the Vis Archipelago in the Adriatic Blue Corridor (2003) pelješac due to the biodiversity of its terrestrial and marine flora and fauna. mljet sušac lastovo The WWF provided the following explanation for their decision: “The geographical and historical isolation are a reason for the exceptionally heterogeneous and preserved flora and fauna both on the shore and beneath the surface.” palagruža 10 Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago 11 The Blue Cave A geomorphological monument of nature Protected natural areas of the Vis Archipelago The Blue Cave on the island Biševo The Monk Seal Cave on the island Biševo The island of Jabuka The island of Brusnik The Green Cave on the island of Ravnik The island of Ravnik The Stiniva Cove The Monk Seal Cave The island of Jabuka A geomorphological A geomorphological monument of nature monument of nature The eastern The Green The coast Cave on the Stiniva of the island Cove Brusnik island of Ravnik A significant A geomorphological landscape monument of nature Issa The precursor of the present-day town of Vis was the settlement Issa, founded by Greek colonists from Syracuse in Sicily in the early 4th century BC. Issa was the center of urban civilization along the eastern shores of the Adriatic – its settlers first started to use money as means of payment, devel- oped literacy and art and created an orderly land registry. Their economic power was demonstrat- ed through their expansion to the neighboring lands and the island of Korčula where they further artemide’s founded their colonies. The remains of Hellenis- amphorae for the transportation of wine, head, 4th late 2nd / early 1st century bc, century bc tic necropoli, residential architecture and streets, archeological museum in the town of vis theatres and Roman baths as well an many other archeological sites, of which Artemide’s bronze head is most notable, bear witness to the advanc- ed civilizational and cultural development of this gruža and the Komižan Bay, to the eastern shore of architectural historical heritage. The port of Vis was Cultural and Adriatic polis. the Adriatic. a favorite rural getaway for nobility from the island of Hvar, who erected a number of their Renaissance historical Diomedes’ Route Architectural Cultural Heritage and Baroque summer residences there. The pictur- The island of Vis has been the crossroads of maritime In the exceptionally heterogeneous urbanistic and esque residential and economic units from the early identity of the routes since Antiquity. The oldest trans-Adriatic route architectural designs of the towns of Vis and Ko- modern period in Komiža were built from blocks was named after the Trojan hero Diomedes, who miža, always cleverly adjusted to the local topogra- carved from breccia, layered sedimentary rocks with Vis Archipelago sailed from the Gargano Peninsula in Italy, via Pala- phy, we can find a number of prime examples of traces of sea life, which the uplift of the salt diapir 18 Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago Aspiring Geopark Vis Archipelago 19 the stone fish, southern coast of vis a few billion years ago in the Komižan Bay pushed the island of Vis developed, based on the tradit- up high above sea level. The facades of many stone ion which had been in place since Antiquity. houses in Komiža were created from life from the Wine-growing and trade have become the corner- sea bottom, and are thus an exceptional geo-archi- stones of the economy, in addition to the fishing tectural attraction. industry in Komiža. The oldest fish cannery in the Mediterranean was built in Komiža in 1870. Vis — “The Gibraltar of the Adriatic” The golden age of the island’s economic prosperity Vis — an unconquered territory in WWII was between 1810 and 1815, while Vis was under Due to its strategic position, the island of Vis was English rule.