The path up to Galešnik from Jelsa is the same as leads to Tor, until you reach the sign telling you that for Galešnik you go left, for Tor, right. Once up the hill, Luki enjoys the wonderful panoramic views, and the freedom of roaming in an abundantly rich countryside. There's always something new to discover, some new sight or scent to savour. For humans, Galešnik is something of a mystery, with uncertainties about its true origins and early development. Luki isn't burdened by these considerations. He enjoys the place as it is in the present moment.
Historians and archaeologists lament the fact that the site has not been properly investigated. In the Adriatic Islands Project the description is rather terse: "252 m above sea level. A ruin of a late Roman/medieval castle situated on a narrow south-west - north-west ridge with extreme slopes on three sides and with a narrow access from the south-west. Very little is known about the site, although it was mentioned in the Statute of 1331 as Castrum Vetus. It has excellent views to Jelsa, the north and to the east. The site is associated with some prehistoric and Roman pottery."
Sir Richard Burton: a jaundiced view. When Sir Richard Burton visited in 1875, his opinion was dismissive, perhaps affected by the dismal rainy weather on that inclement December day: "Passing through the townlet [Jelsa], we began the ascent of the low and ruddy outliers of the Gvezdjena Gora (Gvezd Berg of the map), or Iron Mountain, a long range running nearly upon a parallel of latitude. The reason of the metallic name is unknown; perhaps it is derived from the steel-grey spines, bands, and cornices of the hardest limestone, which accident the slopes. Beyond the Madonna della Salute the goat-path became stiff and stony, slippery withal under mud and rain. On these islands the traveller in search of prehistoric remains becomes, after a fashion, an explorer. He must visit everything that bears the name of "grad", or its multiform derivations, and, as in Africa, he must labour to ascertain what there is not, as well as what there is - ea quae sunt, tanquam ea quam non sunt."
Burton's description continues: "After breasting the iron height, we reached this particular "grad," and the first glance told me that the masonry, which might have been Venetian, was more probably post-Venetian and Slav. The aneroid at 28 9, and at a sea-level, 29 9, showed an altitude of a thousand feet, and the site was that of an Etruscan city, a " Mull," the Icelandic " Múli," or loop of high ground, with a declivity more or less precipitous on all sides but one - here the western. The rock fell sheer to the south; the neck had been fortified, but the outworks were so ruinous that their form could hardly be ascertained. The enceinte followed the contour of the ground; in places it was based upon the lime-stone, at this and in other parts forming parallelopipedons by stratification and cleavage, which easily suggested the "Cyclopean wall." Here and there it is difficult to distinguish the natural from the artificial, so exactly do the joints correspond... A dilapidated cistern-shaped affair, showing the spring of the arched roof, and facing southwards with westing, is, according to the legend, the burial-place of its "king," Subich [Šubić]. All traces of the tomb have lately disappeared."
Burton obviously did not look closely at the site. Fortunately his disappointment at Galešnik was compensated by his enthusiasm for nearby Tor, where he found much to excite his interest. In fact, there is much which intrigues at Galešnik. For a start, there's the name: the 1331 Hvar Statute states: "Castrum Vetus, quod vocatur Galicnich"; Galičnik, Galicinich, Gališnik, not to mention Grod and possibly Trim, all the variations reflect the opinions of different observers and changing times across the centuries. And then there's its date. Many, like Sir Richard Burton, assigned it to the Middle Ages. Others, such as historian-archaeologists Nikša Petrić, Vanja Kovačić and Joško Kovačić refuted that theory, on the grounds that 'vetus' in the Hvar Statute suggested that the fortress had already fallen into disuse.
About the name. One version has it that the name Galešnik came about in honour of one Galeš Slavogosta who distinguished himself in rising up against the Venetians in 1310, even though he was defeated. However, available evidence suggests that the fortress was called Galićnik right through from the 14th to the 19th century, so this theory carries little weight. But the association may be what inspired Hvar native Remigio Gazzari, whose family are descendants of the Slavogusta clan, to investigate the fortress site. In April 2000, he came across a stone block carved with the letters AJNC. In describing this find, Joško Kovačić was of the opinion, based on available evidence, that the initials stood for 'Area in Circuito', but he could not identify a definite meaning for it. However, he was sure that the stone of the carving was the same as had been used for the wall supporting the wide cobblestone path leading up to Galešnik. This lent support to the theory that Galešnik dates from the Late Antique period, in Joško Kovačić's opinion most probably from the time of the Roman Emperor Justinian (527 - 565 CE). However, Luki knows better! His carer Ivica tells us that the inscription was in fact carved by Slavimir Drinković and Pere Peronja, as the first marker for the path leading up to the top of the hill (Vorh). The letters AJNC represent the Croatian spelling of the German 'eins' (one). So two local men, doubtless unwittingly, added to the mystery of the site, not least because it seems they didn't get round to placing any further markers along the path. Or if they did, they have been hidden just as securely as much of the original site, whichever century it originated from.
The true history of Galešnik can only be uncovered by thorough archaeological investigation, which to date is progressing only slowly. None of this bothers Luki. He enjoys the site as he finds it, maybe a little more dilapidated each year, but still a place of peace and calm, offering magnificent views over his fabulous island domain. Human curiosity seeks answers to questions which hark back to bygone ages. If we can find them, all well and good, but it's not essential. Luki teaches us the value of accepting and enjoying things as they are, if those answers are too hard to find.
How Galešnik looked in c.1935
In 2025, the archaeological research which had been discontinued after 2021 was resumed, now as part of the East Adriatic Late Antique Maritime Limes Project. The project began in 2023 and Galešnik was chosen to be in the first phase of the series of fortresses to be investigated and restored. You can see pictures of some of the restoration work in a film aired on Croatian television in December 2025. With support from the Split-Dalmatia County through its programme for contributing finance for projects relating to archaeological tourism, the excavations revealed an exciting discovery: massive stone walls, probably dating from the Late Bronze Age, lie underneath the existing fortress, indicating that they belonged to an important Illyrian hillfort, according.to archaeologist Miro Katić. We look forward to further instalments as the true history of this magical place is gradually uncovered!
© Vivian Grisogono, January 2021, updated January 2026.
Acknowledgements. With grateful thanks to Eduard Visković of Kantharos arheološke usluge for permission to use the aerial pictures of Galešnik; and to Ivica Drinković (and of course Luki) for providing the photographs from their visits to Galešnik, also for the inside information about the mysterious carved stone!
The historic photographs by Vladimir Horvat are held in the V: Horvat Collection in the Croatian National Archive and we are grateful to Vito Gospodnetić for sharing them from his private collection of old photographs of Jelsa.
Sources:
Gaffney, V., Kirigin, B., Petrić, M., Vujnović, N., Čače, S. 1997. The Adriatic Islands Project. Contact, Commerce and Colonialism 6000 B.C. - AD 600. Volume 1. The Archaeological Heritage of Hvar, Croatia. TEMPUS REPARATUM. BAR International Series 660. (p.152)
Burton, R. F. “The Long Wall of Salona and the Ruined Cities of Pharia and Gelsa Di Lesina.” The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. 5, 1876, pp. 290-293. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2840891. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2840891?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents
Kovačić, J. 2002. Kasnoantički natpis s Galičnika kod Jelse.Muzej hvarske baštine, UDK: 930.271 (497.5 Hvar) "06"; 904:728.81 (497.5 Hvar) "06". Prilozi povijesti Otoka Hvara 2002. vol 11, pp 81 - 90
