Tartini House

What makes it special

The bronze in the middle of the square faces this house, and the violinist it shows was born inside. Giuseppe Tartini is remembered for The Devil's Trill, still one of the most demanding pieces ever written for the violin. A memorial plaque set into the façade marks the door.

The centrepiece is Tartini's own violin, made around 1720. Around it hang his portraits, with a marble bust and his death mask. Cases hold his manuscripts and his last will.

Look at the walls themselves: landscapes and still lifes, commissioned by Tartini's relatives, came to light during restoration work in the late twentieth century. The house is one of the oldest on the square, first recorded in 1384 as a Gothic building, and now wears a neoclassical front.

Photographs of the statue's unveiling sit among the documents.

Visiting

Starting with the violin, the central exhibit, gives the room its order: work round the portraits, the bust and the death mask from there. Buy your ticket at the museum on the way in.

Leave time for the papers in the cases: the manuscripts and the last will reward a slower look than the portraits.

The building is also the seat of the Italian Community and hosts exhibitions, cultural events and art workshops, so a show or a class may be on beside the memorial room.

Guided or on your own

The Piran Maritime Museum runs the memorial room in the house and offers guided tours for groups of up to 25. A group of more than 10 that books ahead can come outside the published hours.

Tips

Start your walk through the old town here: Tartini Square and its theatre are right outside.

See the room first, then cross to the statue, made by the Venetian sculptor Antonio dal Zotto in 1896. Look past it and up to the Church of St George on the hill, which it was placed to line up with.