Dolac Market – old settlement, monastery and cemetery

Dolac Market is situated right in the heart of Zagreb, nestled between Ban Jelačić Square, Kaptol, and the Upper Town.

You’ll find fresh fruits and vegetables on the upper level, while the ground floor is where the meat and processed meat products are sold.

Besides the stalls brimming with local goods, the market area is also home to the “Kumica Barica” statue, Zagorka’s apartment building, and the Petrica Kerempuh monument.

The Old Dolac Settlement

On the southwestern edge of Kaptol, near St. Mary’s Church on Dolac, lay the old settlement of Dolac. From 1315, the church and its surrounding lands were granted to the Cistercians. They renovated the church in 1347, which stood beside a cemetery and monastery, as well as a bathing area near the stream flowing beneath Kaptol’s walls, along what is now Tkalčićeva Street. The Cistercians left Kaptol for unknown reasons between 1496 and 1499, most likely due to fear of Turkish incursions.

During the Cistercian period, the cemetery was located south of the church. When the old Cistercian monastery on the north side of the church burned down in 1639, the cemetery was moved to the north side, where the fish market building stands today. The entrance to the cemetery was also on the east side, where the fish market entrance is now. Due to the proximity of newly built houses, the cemetery was closed between 1754 and 1779, but a large tomb was built beneath it.

The settlement was bordered by Kaptol’s defensive wall, which ran from today’s Skalinska Street, along Tkalčićeva Street, to Pod Zidom Street. Dolac, a medieval settlement of modest peasant houses, developed around St. Mary’s Church and the Cistercian monastery. In the 17th century, protonotary Gjuro Plemić built his manor house there, traditionally believed to be near the present-day fish market.

A New Market, A New Space

At the turn of the 20th century, Zagreb was expanding, and its population was growing. A need arose for a new market, as the existing one, up until 1930, was located at Harmica, in Ban Jelačić Square. The name Harmica comes from the Hungarian word “harmincz,” meaning thirty, which referred to the thirty percent tax levied there.

At the beginning of the century (1905-1908), several locations were proposed for the new market: Ilički Square (today’s British Square), the end of Martićeva Street, and the area between Jelačić Square and Vlaška Street.

All these ideas were rejected, and in 1909, the decision was made to locate the market in the old Dolac settlement and partly on Kaptol. The location between St. Mary’s Church and Kaptol was proposed by architect Viktor Kovačić, who also participated in the regulation of the Medveščak stream. Later, in 1911, the Kaptol location was also dropped, and it was decided that the new market would be solely on Dolac.

Building the Market

Before World War I, the first properties began to be bought up, but the war halted everything. After the war, public dissatisfaction and protests arose, and finally, in 1927, the clearing of the area began. To make way for the new market, Plemić Manor was demolished first, followed by the poor neighborhood of densely packed houses.

During this process, the forgotten cemetery next to St. Mary’s Church was re-excavated, and an ossuary was found. Findings from the graves led to the formation of the Devotional Items Collection at the Zagreb City Museum.

By the end of February 1928, the last house on Dolac had been demolished, and only St. Mary’s Church remained of the old settlement. The new Dolac Market opened in 1930. The main entrance to the market was now located at the site of the demolished southern Kaptol wall, from Pod Zidom Street, and the church was enclosed by the Market Supervision building.

Based on the plans of architect Vjekoslav Bastl, a very modern covered market was built, at the time one of the most modern in Central Europe. Above the covered section, a large plateau was constructed, where fruits and vegetables are sold, while meat and processed meat products are sold on the ground floor.

Six years after the market’s construction, the Dolac fish market also opened.