Description

The cemetary in Benkovac is the site of a very interesting and valuable chapel, which is not very well known even among the townspeople. It is, in fact, a family mausoleum built, as we are informed in the inscription above the entrance, in 1905 by Ivo Meštrović, son of Mate, for his wife Jela and himself.

History

The mausoleum, or chapel, Meštrović is a simple rectangular building with a gabled roof, a single small square opening on each side and a facade richly decorated in the Art Nouveau style, which was very modern at the time. It is the work of the celebrated Croatian sculptor Ivan Rendić, the author of a large number of sculptures, including many tombstones all across the country.

State

The chapel is in a rather bad shape - the roof and the walls are damaged, and restoration work should be done as soon as possible.

Front

Relief

Inscription

Side

Rosette