House between the sea and the city

The original function of today's building, called the "Port Capitania", as a public Venetian administrative building, was for the administration of the port. It is therefore located outside the town centre on the edge of the former Venetian harbour area. A drawing from the Franciscan cadastre shows that the layout of the harbour administration building was H-shaped, and that it stood slightly landward of the harbour.

Today's single-storey building is almost square in plan, set in the spacious harbour area, and features classical architecture in the Baroque tradition, with two accesses, the main one on the city side and the opposite one on the seaward side, i.e. from the harbour. All four façades are treated in a uniform manner. The building is clad with carved white Istrian stone, complemented by the classical architectural articulation. The building bears an inscription plaque with the year 1713, the inscription and the coat of arms of Peter Grimani, the Viceroy of Koper, descended from a distinguished Venetian family whose members were active in the navy and the church and held prominent political offices in the Venetian Republic.

According to the as yet scarce reliable sources, the present appearance of the building is most probably the result of later alterations, as can be seen from the modified floor plan as well as the classical architectural appearance of the exterior. It can be assumed that the surviving inscription plaque with the year 1713 was placed on a previous building and was incorporated into the present architectural concept when it was remodelled, which could be at least a century later in time. The historicist design of the architecture, especially its exterior, confirms the presumed date of the conversion. The decision to clad the building in white Istrian stone is most likely linked to the proximity of the sea and the action of salt, as stone is the most resistant to the various weather conditions along the sea.

The renovation, which is currently underway, is Ministry of Culture €410,000 this year. This is to encourage the preservation of the city's rich maritime and architectural heritage and to contribute to its cultural revitalisation.
The project will contribute significantly to the revitalisation of the cultural image of Koper and at the same time strengthen cooperation between national and local institutions in the protection of cultural heritage.

Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, Regional Unit Piran, will move to a renovated building in 2026, where the ground floor will be used for consulting and exhibition/exhibition/expertise facilities for both the local community and visitors to the city.

The architectural design of the renovated premises aims to bring the work of conservators and restorers closer to the general public and to raise awareness of the importance of protecting cultural heritage.