Korčula: Difference between revisions

The island was first settled by [[Mesolithic]] and [[Neolithic]] peoples. There is archaeological evidence at the sites of [[Vela Spila]]<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://hrcak.srce.hr/6091|title=Božidar Čečuk i Dinko Radić: Vela spila: A stratified prehistoric site Vela Luka&nbsp;– island of Korčula|author=T. Težak-Gregl|journal=Opuscula Archaeologica Papers of the Department of Archaeology|volume=29|number=1|date=December 2005|issn=0473-0992|publisher=Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb|access-date=27 February 2012}}</ref> and at Jakas Cave near the village of [[Žrnovo]]. The findings at Vela Spila are on display at the Center for Culture in [[Vela Luka]]. The fate of these peoples is not known but the sites do provide a window into their way of life.{{citation needed|date=December 2015}}

''Melaina Korkyra'' ({{lang-el|Μέλαινα Κόρκυρα|lit=Black [[Corfu]]}}) was the ancient [[Cnidus|Cnidian]] [[Greek colonisation|Greek colony]] founded on Korčula.<ref>An Inventory of Archaic and Classical Poleis: An Investigation Conducted by The Copenhagen Polis Centre for the Danish National Research Foundation by Mogens Herman Hansen, 2005, Index</ref> Greek colonists from Corfu formed a colony on the island in the 6th century B.C.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}} The [[Ancient Greece|Greeks]] named it "Black Corfu" after their homeland and the dense pine-woods on the island. Greek artifacts, including carved marble tombstones can be found at the local [[Korčula (town)|Korčula]] town museum.

A stone inscription found in [[Lumbarda]] ([[Lumbarda Psephisma]]) and which is the oldest written stone monument in Croatia,<ref>[http://attalus.org/docs/sig1/s141.html Syll.³ 141] - English translation.</ref> records that Greek settlers from Issa ([[Vis (island)|Vis]]) founded another colony on the island in the 3rd century BC. The two communities lived peacefully until the [[Illyrian Wars]] (220 BC to 219 BC)<ref>Wilkes, J. J. The Illyrians, 1992, p. 120, {{ISBN|0-631-19807-5}}, p. 160</ref> with the [[Roman Republic|Romans]].