Sveti Petar u Sumi, Travel Guide for holidays in Sveti Petar u Sumi, Istria
Sveti Petar u Sumi – Points of interests
The village of Sveti Petar u Šumi was named after the Benedictine monastery mentioned in Latin documents under the name Monasterium Sancti Petri in Sylvis – the Monastery of Saint Peter in the Woods. The Monastery was first recorded in documents in 1174 but the record came with the annotation saying that the Monastery had stood there for 50 years. It is quite certain that the Monastery existed even before 1134. The legend says that the Hungarian King Solomon spent some time at Sveti Petar u Šumi after losing the throne in dynastic fights. Later he moved on to the Monastery of Saint Michael in Pula where he died in 1089. Only one book from the Monastery library was preserved. It is a Latin manuscript written in Caroline script at the end of the 11th or beginning of the 12th century. A fragment inscribed with Cyrillic and Glagolitic letters dates back into the same period – proving that the Benedictine monks at Sveti Petar used all three local alphabets. The Benedictines were the first Western European monks, they contributed greatly to the restoration of economy and cultural activities, providing for both body and soul in accordance with the motto they strictly adhered to: Pray and work! Ora et labora!. The inhabitants of Sveti Petar lived in nearby villages working their fields and vineyards. Overlooking the Draga Valley there stood until the 15th century a fortified castle, mentioned in the monuments as Ad Vicinatum (maybe today’s Vižinada). Nothing remains of the castle except for the place name Sveti Toma (Saint Thomas) after a church that also no longer exists.
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