Summary
A priest from Brač to whom Marko Marulić wrote in 1496 as a former schoolmate. The letter and recent research into parish documents reveal education, family ties and the cultural life of the Brač community at the transition to the early modern period.
A letter dated 10 May 1496 also mentions Marko teaching his nephew, making him more than a passing name in Marulić’s biography.
Marko Marulić’s schoolmate
On 10 May 1496, Marulić sent a letter in Latin to his schoolmate from Brač, Marko Prodić. He thanked him for gifts and praised his efforts in raising his nephew. Lučin’s analysis identifies a combination of Christian education and humanist learning in the letter. It is direct evidence of a personal connection between the writer from Split and the priest from Brač.
Sources: [1]
Straževnik, Pražnica and Pučišća
The Prodić family is connected with Straževnik and with the development of Pražnica and Pučišća. Recent study of archival records and family wills sheds light on Marko’s circle and his nephew Bernardin, the first parish priest of the newly established parish in Pučišća. The family tower belongs to the history of the family; it is not assumed that Don Marko built it or that it marks his birthplace.
How the letter remained known
The oldest available text of the letter was reproduced by Andrija Ciccarelli in a book published in 1802. Ciccarelli’s later archive in Zadar was destroyed during the Second World War, making the published copy especially important. The story of a lesser-known priest thus leads from school and family ties to the history of preserving documents.
Sources: [1]
