Split is the second largest city in Croatia and the largest in Dalmatia. Centered around the Roman Palace of Emperor Diocletian, Split dates back to the 4th century C.E. When Diocletian abdicated in 305 C.E., he had already completed a lavish palace in Salona, now Split, in his native Dalmatia. It is a walled area of several blocks, containing museums, galleries, shops, and restaurants together with medieval fortifications, pre-Romanesque churches, and Gothic chapels. As the world’s most complete remains of a Roman palace, it holds an outstanding place in Mediterranean, European, and world heritage. Each wall has a gate at its center that is named after a metal: the northern Golden Gate, the southern Bronze Gate, the eastern Silver Gate, and the western Iron Gate. There are 220 buildings within the palace boundaries, home to about 3,000 people today. The narrow streets hide passageways and courtyards filled with homes and businesses.
The palace is shaped in an irregular rectangle with numerous towers on the western, northern, and eastern façades. The southern façade has no towers, because it was rising directly from the waters of the sea. The Emperor’s apartments were located on the southern part of the complex, along the seaside. Diocletian’s octagonal mausoleum (later was reconstructed into a Christian church – one of the oldest in the world) and three temples were also located in the southern part of the palace. One of the temples was later turned into a baptistery; the other two were destroyed. On the crossroad of the two main roads of the palace, the so-called Peristyle is located. The Peristyle is a rectangular open court decorated with colonnade and intended to become the heart of the palace, where the most powerful Roman citizens gathered.
Much of the original wall is still present. Diocletian’s massive octagonal mausoleum, converted into a cathedral in the 7thcentury and named after St. Domnius. We mounted the massive steps to the heart of the Palace and the towering cathedral with an assortment of Roman monuments. The elaborate main altar is in the center of the room, where Diocletian’s Tomb once was. A few original columns are all that is left from the original interior. There are altars on both sides of the main altar – one is dedicated to St. Domnius and the other to St. Anastasius.
The Bell Tower in Split, Croatia, can be seen, rising high above the Palace walls. The best view of the bell tower is from the Peristyle of Diocletian’s Palace. The Jupiter Temple, located down the narrow alley off the Peristyle Square opposite the Split cathedral entrance, was built in the 4th century CE. It was converted into a church in the 6th century, and in front of it is one of the Diocletian’s Palace sphinxes.
The statue of Gregory of Nin is by Ivan Meštroviċ. Gregory of Nin was a medieval Croatian Catholic bishop who introduced the Croatian language in religious services and opposed the pope.
To the west and north of the Palace walls lies medieval Split.
The Jewish Synagogue is the second oldest Sephardic Synagogue in the world still in use. Built into the wall of Diocletian’s Palace, it occupies the second floor of two medieval houses, joined together. There has been a large Jewish presence in Split since it’s founding in the seventh century.
Our day in Split was educational and awe-inspiring to see this highly developed Palace that was included a whole town.
