⛪️Our Lady of the Rocks (Gospa od Skrpjela) and St. George Island in Perast

Our Lady of the Rocks (Gospa od Skrpjela)

✨In the photo above, the island of the Virgin on a reef («Gosuda od Shkrpjela» — try to reprimand the first time) near Perast. The name of the island means: means «Madonna on the Reef» or «Mother of God on the Rock.» 

So you can’t say that it was created exclusively by man, but it is. ⠀ 

There are 2 whole legends about its occurrence.

First legend.

In a severe storm, the ship of the Mortesici brothers wrecked, but the sailors managed to escape on a small reef off the coast of Perast. Recovering, the brothers saw the icon of the Mother of God in the wreckage of their ship and decided that it was she who saved their lives.

The brothers took the icon with them and placed in the temple, but the next day the icon disappeared. The sailors returned to the place where they had originally found the saving icon, and with surprise found their loss. The brothers again took the shrine to the city, and again in the morning it disappeared.

No one knows how long the «return» of the shrine to the reef lasted. Soon, the brothers decided not to transport the icon to the ground, but to build a temple for it in the place where they found it. But the reef was small for such a construction. Then the brothers began to tell the townspeople about this magical story, and with the whole world they managed to build an island, and on it a temple.

To increase the area of the island, old-life ships were flooded on the reef, and all passing sailors were ordered to throw stones at the reef. For 200 years, the townspeople «built» this plateau, and then built the Church of Our Lady of Sorrows here.

💗Are you interested in the second legend? Do you think it is connected with love?

⛪On this tiny island there is a temple of the same name, a museum, a souvenir shop and a lighthouse. Tourists are welcome here and welcomed, unlike the neighboring island of the dead.

🚤You can get here by boat from Perast for 5 € / person.

On July 22, a fascinade takes place here, which is dedicated to throwing stones near the island, which has already become the custom of the city. This helps keep the island from eroding by the waves.

Also on this day a regatta for the Fashinada Cup is held, in which I take part boats from all over the Bokokotorsky Gulf.

Second legend

There is a well-known fact that the island of St. George (the island of the Dead) was under the control of Kotor, and at the same time was in the waters of Perast. Not all residents of the city liked this neighborhood and there were frequent conflicts.

Many influential residents of Perast could argue over the possession of the island (i.e. use force). But the authorities of Perast were not very stupid and did not want to open conflict with Kotor, but acted much more cunningly.

Instead of confrontation with Kotor, the inhabitants of Perast began to build their island, 100 meters from Kotor. Moreover, not inferior to him in anything.

These are 2 legends, which to believe, you decide)

St. George Island — Island of the Dead in Perast

The island is next to the Island of the Virgin on a reef. One of its mysterious names is the island of the Dead. Once there was a cemetery, hence the name. The second name is the island of St. George. This island, unlike the neighboring Gospod od Skrpjela, has a natural origin.

Now, on the island there is an abbey, which was founded in the 9th century in honor of St. George. Tourists are not allowed here, but especially curious travelers can still visit it.

You can get to the island by boat from Perast for 5 euros / person. Also, I heard about reports of tourists who traveled by boat to the islands and back.

You can still swim on a sap board. By the way, we often swim around the islands until the active tourist season begins. Then there are many boats that create too much excitement on the water.