The seafront , including ponta and boat bindings , were private properties in the 19th century , characterized by traditional stone bindings , stone paving and stone sea-shores , with small gardens rich in Mediterranean vegetation . On the opposite side of the houses , there are elegant courts ( avlije ) with greenery , authentic stylish furniture and paved paths . Each ‘ avlija ’, or , artistic yard , has its own water well with a baroque stone hood ; the pavement from the house to the well features square plates of red and white stone , and each yard shows parts of artistic gardening masonry such as stone sinks and verandas on the stone pillars with capitals .
Today , many yards have been destroyed and rebuilt for accommodating tourists and expanding housing capacities . However , some gardens are still preserved as they were at the end of the 20th century . The entire area is an example of an authentic traditional urban settlement that had all the elements of urban character with a paved street , a jetty , a church and had a very strong influence on the cultural movements in this region . In the last decade , many palaces and captains ’ houses have been subjected to unprofessional restorations where traditional roofs have been opened in order to be turned into balconies , Baroque balconies have been divided by concrete slabs , houses have been constructed where they did not exist before , and the coastline has been rebuilt by development of new concrete ponta and jetties . For these reasons , today it is necessary to undertake the integral protection of this region so that its original artistic and historical value can be preserved and in order that it can be protected on a larger scale as a whole authentic ambient . Furthermore , it is extremely necessary to prepare an integral plan for the protection of the wider zone covered by Lukovic Street , which expands from the sea and the family docks , through the street front to the palace , with yards and fields behind the houses to the contact surfaces that touch the forests of Lekovina . All of these should be included in the whole area of cultural landscape protection so as to prevent negative visual impacts on Lukovic Street , and thus preserve its outstanding universal value .
THE HISTORICAL URBAN CORE OF THE SETTLEMENT PRCANJ
The historical centre of settlement of Prcanj which includes Our Lady ’ s Temple , the Franciscan Monastery and the Church of St . Nicholas , is the historical core of the settlement and the place where all important historical events occurred starting from 1730s when the monastery was built . The historical core of Prcanj settlement is characterized by a large concentration of houses and palaces in a small area lined up in the first row along the coastline . In some areas , the houses and palaces are placed on both sides of the street , which gives an impression of a very dense and very rich urban centre .
The Church of St . Nicholas ( 1728-1735 ), situated in front of a pedestrian promenade by the sea , was the historical core of the settlement ’ s culture during the 18th and 19th century . The monastery of St . Nicholas was at first a home to a primary school , and after that it housed a very famous nautical school , the first pharmacy in Prcanj and a public library founded in 1861 . The complete restoration of Franciscan monastery is currently underway and in the next few years it will be opened as the international ecumenical centre dedicated to the memory of Don Branko Sbutega ( 1952-2006 ), a catholic priest from Prcanj who was a great humanist , an intellectual and publicist .
Our Lady ’ s Temple , also known as the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary , is the most beautiful and one of the largest churches in the coastal area of the southern Adriatic . Bernardino Maccaruzzi , a Venetian architect , designed the church in the late Venetian Baroque style in 1789 . The construction of the church began in 1789 , but it was completed after 120 years , namely in 1909 . The construction of the Roman Catholic Church was funded by numerous donations of the wealthy captain families from Prcanj and finally it was completed with the aid of significant donations provided by the Austro-Hungarian government .
an integral approach towards protection of cultural landscape in Prcanj , Montenegro
31