Vratišinec

Vratišinec is a Međimurje village north of Čakovec whose cultural identity is closely tied to ethnomusicologist Vinko Žganec, born here in 1890. By recording thousands of folk songs, Žganec helped preserve the Međimurje folk-song tradition, and his legacy gained a dedicated home when the Dr Vinko Žganec Interpretation Centre opened during Museum Night in 2026. Created with expert assistance from the Museum of Međimurje in Čakovec, the display occupies a building associated with Vratišinec’s long educational history. A short walk away, the settlement’s past is visible in its religious architecture. The present neo-Gothic Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was built in 1896, while the rectangular sanctuary of its predecessor survives as the Chapel of the Holy Cross, complete with early 19th-century memorial slabs. Inside the parish church, notable details include a Renaissance painting of the Virgin and Child and a pulpit bearing a Good Shepherd relief. Vratišinec particularly rewards travellers interested in Međimurje music, small-scale sacred heritage and the quiet landscape of the county’s northern countryside.

Vratišinec lies in northern Međimurje between the areas of Čakovec, Mursko Središće and Podturen, sharing its municipality with Gornji Kraljevec. Its strongest national cultural association is with Vinko Žganec, the ethnomusicologist born here in 1890 who systematically recorded Međimurje folk songs. The local school, cultural society and choir bear his name, and a new interpretation display in his memorial centre joined them in 2026. A second strand of Vratišinec’s identity comes from the Parish of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, established in 1789. Near the present neo-Gothic church, the rectangular sanctuary of the earlier church survives as a chapel, allowing visitors to trace the village’s development through two sacred buildings within a short walk.