Maritime Museum

Dubrovnik, Croatia

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The Maritime Museum in Dubrovnik, Croatia, is located inside the historic Fort St. John (Sv. Ivan Fortress) at the entrance to the city’s Old Port.

The museum showcases Dubrovnik’s rich seafaring heritage and the important role maritime trade played in the rise of the former Republic of Ragusa, one of the Mediterranean’s most successful trading powers. Visitors can explore collections of ship models, navigational instruments, maritime maps, paintings, documents, and other artifacts that illustrate centuries of navigation, shipbuilding, commerce, and life at sea.

The exhibits trace the region’s maritime history from antiquity through the height of Dubrovnik’s trading influence. Founded in 1949 and housed in the fortress since 1952, the museum contains thousands of objects related to the maritime past of the Dubrovnik region. Its setting within a centuries-old coastal fortress adds to the experience, offering insight into both the city’s naval history and its defensive architecture.