February 10th, 2022 - Surely one of the most charming cultural attractions in Croatia, the museum dedicated to Rovinj’s traditional 'batana' boats is set to reopen after a two-year renovation

The award-winning House of Batana in Rovinj closed its doors in late 2019 so that the building could undergo a series of renovation works. As reported by TCN at the time, the attraction was set to transform into a 21st-century museum and get a new exhibit that was to be fully digitized.

Two years later, the museum has got a new facade and fixtures, and the only thing left to do is for the new permanent exhibit to be installed in its place. If all goes according to plan, the attraction is supposed to reopen in April 2022, reports Morski.hr.

In 2016, the Batana Ecomuseum project was inscribed in the UNESCO’s World Register of Good Safeguarding Practices. It was recognised for its unique approach to preservation of the tangible and intangible heritage of Rovinj, based on local initiatives and expert-led development projects. Read more about the old exhibit in our dedicated feature.

The traditional wooden vessel gets its name after the Italian verb battere (hit, beat), associated with the sound of waves hitting the flat bottom of the boat. The batana was entered in the Register of Cultural Heritage of the Republic of Croatia in 2008.

The renovation of the museum building cost around 2 million kuna. The equipment and the multimedia fixtures were partially funded through the project Culturecovery Interreg Central Europe, whereas the project Arca Adriatica Interreg Italy-Croatia helped finance the graphic design and multimedia.

Revamped and fully modernised, the House of Batana is supposed to open its doors at the end of April, and visitors can look forward to a number of new attractions; for example, old traditions of Rovinj and its natural heritage will be presented through the use of VR. The new exhibition will tell the story of batana and Rovinj-Rovigno in a modern and inspiring way, pushing its own boundaries and opening new horizons.

The objects from the original permanent exhibit were restored in cooperation with the Rovinj Civic Museum.

Calling all art lovers! Every week, we'll be introducing a fine example chosen from the rich trove of museums and galleries on the coast, and we kick off with a perfect sailing-related destination: the Eco-museum Batana in Rovinj.

At the annual session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO which was held from 28 November to 2 December in Addis Ababa, the Rovinj Batana Ecomuseum has been included in the register of best practices in preserving the intangible and cultural heritage of the world, reports HRTurizam on 16 December 2016.