Radovan

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Radovan was a sculptor and architect who lived in Dalmatia (Croatia) in the 13th century. He is also referred as Majstor Radovan (eng. Master Radovan).

Portal of Trogir cathedral done by Radovan in 1240

Virtually no information exists about the personality and career of this artist, save for his opus, monumental Romanesque portal of the Trogir cathedral.

Radovan has inscribed his name and the year of making of the main portal, 1240, on the lunette above the entrance:

FUNDATUR VALVE POST PARTUM VIRGINIS ALME PER RADUANUM CUNCTIS...

This, not exactly self-effacing text, informs us that master Radovan was the best in the art of sculpture and that the project was completed in the time when a Tuscan, Treguan from Florence, had been the bishop of Trogir.

That Radovan was a native son of Trogir is attested, among other things, by his Slavic-Croatian name which figures frequently in Trogir's municipal archives in the 13th century. Radovan's masterwork - Main portal of Trogir cathedral is the greatest and the most important monument of medieval sculpture, not only in Croatia but also in all Balkans. It consists out of four parts: surrounding, on door jamb, are naked sculptures of Adam and Eve on both sides, carried by lions; and inside are numerous reliefs with every-day scenes organized in monthly calendar, and scenes from hunting; and finally in the middle are scenes from the life of Christ: from Annunciation to Resurrection – positioned in arches around tympanum. Finally, in tympanum is the Birth of Christ. The way the figures are formed is very realistic, calling on new gothic humanism, on the trail of the highest achievements of French sculpture (of that in Chartres). Radovan is oriented toward human counterpart in art; best seen in selection of main scene in the tympanum – instead of usual Romanesque motif of Last Judgement he had chosen The Nativity.