In 2016, Koper celebrated the 500th anniversary of his two important works by declaring a year of Vittore Carpaccio. He lived in Koper for ten years and painted commissioned works. Piran marked the Year of Carpaccio this year, concluding it with a symposium, which focused on the circumstances of the creation of a painting which was painted for the St. Francisco Church, but is now located in Padova.
The question of the painting being returned was raised during the symposium and Daniela Tomšič from the Institute for the Protection of the Cultural Heritage in Piran assessed it from a professional perspective: ‘The importance of the painting does not lie only in its artistic value, but also in its integration in the environment, in its sustainable perspective, which includes people, space and time.’

It is more important for Piran than for Padova. Two Vittore Carpaccio paintings are now returning to Koper cathedral – two organ shutters and also a painting by Benedetto Carpaccio. The paintings were restored in Ljubljana, where they have already been presented to the public. Head of restoration Barbka Gosar Hirci explained what was done to the paintings: 'Besides the research, which is the basis for the implementation of appropriate conservation-restoration procedures, a full renewal was carried out, ranging from removing old darkened varnish to renovating the canvas and retouching any damage.'

On Thursday all three paintings were re-hung in the cathedral and the altarpiece, the painter's most important work to be found in Koper, will be taken for restoration in January.