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Founded: 1889Category: Religious sites in Estonia
Historical period: Part of the Russian Empire (Estonia)
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The Orthodox church of Velise was completed in 1889. The red-brick church is designed by the government architect Ervin Bernhardt. The richness of decoration which is characteristic of the Russian art of construction was toned down to fit in with the Estonian culture through the skilled use of colour contrast between bricks and fieldstones.
The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.