8 The retable of the former Dominican church of St Nicholas The retable of the former Dominican church of St Nicholas The Dominican monastery and church of St Nicholas were completed by 1482.6 The magnificent wooden retable was probably constructed during the end of the 16th century.7 With three vertical axes, the retable rises behind the stipes on a stone plinth wall (Fig. 4). The central axis is protruding like a risalit and thus emphasised. Here the wooden sculpture of St Nicholas is situated and flanked by two rectangular panel paintings showing St George on the right and the baptism of Christ on the left. The sturdy entablature on four candelabra columns is followed by a second register with three paintings on panel, now difficult to read due to the fragmentary condition. Traces allow for the identification of the Virgin Mary in the central panel, with groups of Dominicans and bishops depicted in the panels on either side. With a second entablature and the painting of the Resurrection of Christ in the lunette-gable, the retable reaches the vault of the choir room. The Renaissance origin is clearly evident in the pronounced vertical and horizontal disposition, the ornamental columns, the consoles, and the symmetric pattern of acanthus and wine leave ornaments on the surfaces of the predella and the architraves. Its monumental size is unparalleled in the region of Dalmatia. The design of the retable clearly reflects Italian origins, as Fig. 3: Retable before treatment
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