The Republic of Dubrovnik was a crossroad of important trade routes in the Mediterranean Basin. The most important was along the Adriatic Sea, connecting East and West. The Dubrovnik region was also an interface with the interior of the Balkans, traversed by the Dinaric Mountains. It brought manufactured goods from Europe, salt, and wheat in exchange for metals. Indeed, the Dinaric mountains have a great concentration of metals: copper, iron and especially silver. Money was important for the cities because they all minted their own currency. This explains why the Croats of the coast were great goldsmiths. Each territory has developed its own design to distinguish itself from the others by a trademark. So just by looking at the jewelry worn by wealthy traders, captains, and women, it was possible to determine their home territory.
Jewelry is thus a sign of identity, but for women its significance is even greater. Indeed, the jewelry was passed from mother to daughter during marriage and served as a dowry. The main purpose of the dowry was to prove that the woman came from a good family. It also provided life insurance if anything bad happened to her husband. Indeed, she could then sell her jewelry to support the family. The jewelry made it possible to carry one’s wealth on oneself. Women wore them in the fields, which was safer than leaving them at home.
Today, the importance of jewelry as a symbol of identity has practically disappeared everywhere on the Croatian coast. Only two territories have retained the tradition of wearing the original jewelry: the Rijeka region in the north of the country and the Dubrovnik region in the south.
The Republic of Dubrovnik will experience a wide variety of styles according to the different micro-territories that made it up. The Konavle region is the southernmost region, bordering Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. It created the earrings named Verižice, a recumbent half-moon with indentations inside the loop and a small dangling bead. More than in the other territories of Dubrovnik, the wearing of Verižice is a strong sign of identity even today. Its elegance and finesse have made it a remarkable product from Croatia, which can be found for purchase nowadays and in other towns across the country. It remains nevertheless one of the most typical and original souvenirs of the Dubrovnik region.
Konavle is also known for its costumes with embroidered silk collars. They carried all the necessary signs to know the marital status of the woman, her talents and to show signs of interest or not to suitors. No need to talk.
Konavle is the cradle of the Sveta Ana travel agency. Today it has its offices in Dubrovnik and Rijeka. Sveta Ana means Saint Anne who is the patron saint of Konavle. Our agency thus wishes to show our anchoring in the territory, but also our will that our travelers discover landscapes and their traditions in an authentic and true way. The Verižice earrings used in the design of our site also illustrate this desire for quality tourism, noble, close to man, offering the treasures and beauties of the past and the present.
