Terra Gothica Incognita: Second project partner meeting held

On Tuesday, 1 July 2025, the second project partner meeting of the Terra Gothica Incognita project was held in Pula. In addition to UHPA, the meeting was attended by the City of Kastav as lead partner, the Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria as host, as well as the City of Koper, the Regional Museum of Koper, and the Regional Development Agency Koper.

As part of the meeting, project partners were introduced to the exhibition spaces of the Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria at the Kaštel, a 17th-century baroque fortress whose circular ramparts offer views of the city and its coastline. The hosts also highlighted investments in the renovation of the historic Austro-Hungarian water reservoir, which was transformed into the Herman Potočnik Noordung Visitor Centre through the IPA project HERA.

Following the tour of the Kaštel, a constructive working session was held during which partners reviewed completed project activities, analysed ongoing tasks, and outlined upcoming steps. The meeting concluded with a walk to Zerostrasse, one of the entrances to the underground tunnel system beneath Pula’s hills, where the Historical and Maritime Museum of Istria presents visitors with a rich exhibition and interesting historical insights about the city.

As a reminder, the main objective of the Terra Gothica Incognita project, with a total value of EUR 2,433,073.77, is to address challenges related to the preservation and valorisation of medieval cultural heritage in the border areas of Croatia and Slovenia. The project will result in the creation of a new cultural and tourism destination, Terra Gothica Incognita. Officially launched on 1 September 2024 and running until 28 February 2027, the project is co-financed by the European Union under the Interreg Slovenia–Croatia Programme.

The Terra Gothica Incognita project focuses on the preservation and protection of neglected medieval cultural heritage. It addresses challenges such as insufficient awareness among local communities of the importance of culture in economic development, the lack of a shared cultural tourism development strategy, and inconsistencies in the quality of tourism services in the cross-border area. The project aims to preserve cultural heritage, develop a cross-border cultural tourism destination, and raise awareness among local communities of its importance and potential for economic development.

Source and photo: City of Kastav, City of Koper & UHPA

The project is co-financed by the Office for Associations of the Government of the Republic of Croatia