Construction ahead of its time
In the 18th century, Andrija Gelpi, a noble and God-loving man, moved from the Italian Bergamo to Tisno, where in 1731 he built a wonderful house, baroque in construction, entirely built of hewn stone. A portal decorated with profiled stone thresholds and a lintel with floral ornaments gave it grandeur. The house is decorated with a stone balcony and consoles with a wrought iron fence. Gelpi was delighted by the three luminaries on the eastern facade and the inner courtyard, which to this day makes Tisno’s bird's eye view beautiful. The year of construction is indicated by the inscription "AD 1731" and the motif of a Gothic rod in the vestibule. The house was cleverly built - water was collected on the roof from the compartment, and then stored in a cistern in the yard.
Adrija Gelpi was a very religious man, so there is an assumption that it was he who founded the celebration of Our Lady in Tisno. This is evidenced by the fact that the people of Tisno allowed him to build a family tomb in the parish church in 1737. Gelpi significantly helped the people of Tisno in their worship of Our Lady of Karavaj, because before the shrine on the Brošćica hill existed, Our Lady was worshiped in one of the Tišnjan churches; and even today one can imagine him greeting his fellow citizens of Tišnja from the balcony.
IMPORTANCE OF THE GELPI FAMILY
The importance of the Gelpi family for the history of Tisno is obvious. This is confirmed by the architectural heritage, including the Gelpi house itself. Sometime later, in the 19th century, someone added another building oriented towards the sea to the house, but the trace of Andrija is forever present, and even today one can imagine him still greeting his fellow citizens of Tisno from the balcony.
Sources:
Josip Ćuzela, Ivo Šprljan (2019) Otok Murter: pogled na baštinu. Općina Tisno.
Branko Pavlov (2021) Tisno i Tišnjani kroz stoljeća.
