THE ISLAND OF VIS

         The foremost island on the Adriatic, with the area of 90,3 sq. kilometres and the highest point at the altitude of 587 meters. There are 13 settlements with about 5 000 inhabitants. The highest point is Hum. Near the western coast is wide bay of Komiza. The southern coast has a number of smaller coves. The port and the town of Vis is on the northern coast of the island. There is no fresh water on the island except a few springs near Komiza. Inhabitants grow vineyards in the fertile valleys, covered with red soil and from place to place with sand layers.

The main settlements on the island, Vis and Komiza, are connected by the asphalt road. The most important economic branch is fishing (fish factory in Komiza). The nursery of palms is also on the island. South-west from the island of Vis is the island of BISEVO, famous of its Modra Spilja (the Blue Cave).

There is a ferryboat connection with Split (Split - Vis) and the ship connection between Split and both Vis and Komiza.

         VIS - the small town and a harbour at the end of the bay of Vis, on the north-eastern coast of the island. The sand and gravel beaches are in the vicinity (Povja, Mala and Vela Svitnja, Rogacic, etc.).

         The antique Issa was built on the terraces in the area of Gradine, on the north-western edge of the cove. It was fortified by the wall, that is partly preserved. In the southern part of the antique town there were baths from the beginning of the 1^st century A.D. (the remains of the walls and mosaics). The Roman theatre was located on the small peninsula Prirovo. The Franciscan monastery with a church was built in the 16th century on the same location.

         Present settlement was formed by the merging of two smaller ones: Luka in the west, and Kut in the east. The older buildings that are preserved origin from the 16^th - 17^th century. The most important among them are: the renaissance Garibaldi Palace (the inscription from 1552), the summer residence of the Croatian poet Marin Gazarovic (the first half of the 17^th century), the house called Jaksa, and the Dojmi-Delupis house with the collection of the archaeological finds from the antiquity. In the 17^th century, Vis was fortified with four towers.