“Croatian Anniversaries 925 – 2025: A Kingdom’s Heritage“: NSK exhibition spotlighting 11 centuries of Croatia’s cultural tradition
21 July – 20 August 2025
From 21 July to 20 August 2025, the National and University Library in Zagreb (NSK) will put on Croatian Anniversaries 925 – 2025: A Kingdom’s Heritage (Obljetničarski velikani i velike obljetnice), an exhibition spotlighting significant anniversaries related to prominent figures, works and events which marked Croatia’s heritage in 1,100 years of the development of its culture.
Bringing into focus the invaluable works of more than a millennium of Croatian literary culture preserved in the Library’s collections, the exhibition will bring an overview of the life and oeuvre of a writer and diplomat Ana Katarina Zrinski (c. 1625-1673), historian, theologian and jurist Baltazar Adam Krčelić (1715-1778) and poet, writer, preacher and lexicographer Ivan Belostenec (c. 1594-1675) as well as of the more recent greats of Croatian literature such as Silvije Strahimir Kranjčević (1865-1908), Dragutin Milivoj Domjanić (1875-1933), Antun Branko Šimić (1898-1925) and Ivan Kozarac (1885-1910).
NSK joining the national celebration of the 1,100 years of the Kingdom of Croatia
Placing special emphasis on related historical context, the exhibition is part of Croatia’s 2025 national programme commemorating the 1,100 anniversary of the Kingdom of Croatia, whose existence has been documented in a 925 letter from Pope John X to King Tomislav, Croatia’s first king.
From the perspective of the Croatian Glagolitic tradition and the 190th anniversary of the launching Croatian newspaper whose appearance marked the beginning of the 1835-1848 Croatian national revival movement (Novine horvatzke) as well as through a selection of resources from the Library’s holdings including manuscripts, historical documents, book titles and visual material the exhibition will offer its visitors a unique insight into Croatia’s rich cultural history and reinforce NSK’s crucial role in preserving the national memory by curating CROATICA, the Croatian national library collection.