HOMELAND WAR COLLECTION AND THE MEMORIAL ROOM OF THE KILLED, DEAD, AND MISSING HOMELAND WAR PATRIOTS
The Homeland War Collection is the most recent exhibition in the Ogulin Heritage Museum. Located in the ground floor of the Frankopan Castle, this collection has a special significance for the Museum as an institution, and for the citizens of Ogulin as well. It chronologically displays the Homeland War in the area of Ogulin – from the founding of military units and gathering of the first unarmed squadrons, through the famous 143rd Homeguard Regiment, to the military and police actions and the Operation Storm.
Apart from the multitude of photographs from the war period, which speak more than words, a special part of the collection is the Memorial Room of the Killed, Dead, and Missing Homeland War Patriots, which was opened on 13 November 2011.
The author of the memorial room is Zoran Sladoljev, an architect from Zagreb, and the author of the ambient music is Dr. Sc. Joško Ćaleta, an ethnomusicologist. The memorial room also exhibits a photobook “Iz ponora izvor” by Nikolina Luketić and Zdravko Francetić, created to honor all the defenders born in the area of Ogulin who lost their lives in the Homeland War. Moreover, the photobook represents the most complete list of all 125 killed, dead and missing defenders from the former Ogulin Municipality.
The room is dominated by a cross as a symbol of faith, martyrdom and eternal life, with engraved crystal nameplates linked by a fiery red laser line – a line of defence where they lost their lives.
The room also includes stained glass surfaces representing the Croatian emblem, rosary and candles, and a poem by Croatian Christian poet Ante Jakšić.