Krapina Man

We drove for a couple hours across the Zagorje to Krapina, the discovery site of the 100,000 year-old Krapina Man remains. This was a major paleological discovery by Croatian scientists in the 1800s, with over 800 human bones found, along with beaver, moose, and other now extinct species. These were contemporaries to Neanderthal Man to the north, found in a cave in sandy soil.

But... the museum decided to close early that day. We snuck around and checked out the area and a bizarre sculpture garden with mostly large, wooden abstract pieces commissioned by artists from around the world for the site during Yugoslav times. Croatia's funny like that, sometimes things are open, sometimes not.

Finally, I reverted to my old standby for taking pictures in any town (Zvonka rolling her eyes. ..) the cemetery across the valley. This was an interesting one though. Similar to the hedged cemetery at Varazdin, but on a steep slope. The rows of family graves are separated by tall, neatly trimmed hedges, forming a terrace-work on the steep hillside. Each family plot contains a miniature garden, meticulously maintained by relatives. I was surprised that even some of the oldest graves were still well tended and had fresh flowers and candles.

One headstone had me mesmerized- somehow lines of script floated a couple feet out from the black granite slab, projected by the late afternoon sun. We searched the headstone and gravetop without finding any obvious source for the floating script, just the family name and dates in large engraved lettering on the tombstone, along with a portrait of the man. The letters appear on an angle, Star Wars style, but are difficult to make out in the photo.