Summary
A Baroque writer and historiographer who moved from Split to Sutivan in 1700. His summer residence on Brač is associated with the creation of the long poem known as ‘Bogatstvo i uboštvo’ (‘Wealth and Poverty’).
The poem ‘Bogatstvo i uboštvo’ comprises 30 cantos and more than 32,000 lines.
A lawyer who withdrew to Brač
Kavanjin was born in Split and studied law in Padua. After living in Zadar and Split, he moved to Sutivan in 1700. Kavanjin’s summer residence is a material trace of this period on Brač, connecting the writer with the world of island country houses and estates.
Bogatstvo i uboštvo
His major work bears the long title ‘Povijest vanđelska bogatoga a nesrećna Epuluna i ubogoga a čestita Lazara’ (‘The Gospel History of the Rich and Unfortunate Epulun and the Poor and Righteous Lazarus’). It was most likely written in Sutivan after 1700. The biblical story of Lazarus serves as a starting point for a wide-ranging narrative about cities, history, faith and life’s ultimate questions.
Sources: [1]
A Baroque blend of knowledge and storytelling
The poem’s 30 cantos and 32,658 lines bring together theology, historiography and literature. The shorter title ‘Bogatstvo i uboštvo’ comes from Ivan Kukuljević Sakcinski’s 1861 edition. Kavanjin’s literary importance is not reducible to the work’s sheer length: it shows how a period spent on Brač became part of the history of older Croatian literature.
Sources: [1]
