Split Golden Gate

The Golden Gate, known in Croatian as Zlatna vrata, is one of the four historic main entrances to Split's Old Town. Originally known as the Porta Septemtrionalis, it served as the main land gate of the palace of the Roman emperor Diocletian. The structure stood where the road to Salona, Diocletian's birthplace and the capital of the province of Dalmatia at the time, met the northern palace wall. The emperor probably used this gate to return to his palace after his abdication in 305. The present name dates back to the Renaissance, while the medieval name was Porta Romae. Over the centuries the gate was altered several times; during the Migration Period, the small Church of St. Martin was built above the former guard passage and later received a bell tower. In the early modern period, residents sealed the gate for defensive reasons, and in the 17th century the Venetian governor Alvise Zorzi had the two flanking octagonal towers dismantled so that the stone could be used to build Santa Maria della Salute in Venice. The gate was not reopened until 1857, after neighboring houses were demolished, and a comprehensive restoration took place in the first years of the new millennium.

Architecturally, the gate impresses with its elaborate design, which was influenced by the building practices of the eastern Roman provinces, especially Syria. The facade has five niches, four of which were originally meant to hold statues of the Tetrarchs, although modern restorers doubt that the decoration was ever completed. Above the entrance is a blind arcade with seven arches, whose column bases rested on brackets. The brackets are decorated with acanthus leaves, while those directly above the gateway show small, horned face masks and animal ears reminiscent of medieval depictions of the devil. Between the outer and inner gates lay a forecourt overseen by guard passages. Today the gate is once again open to visitors and offers an impressive glimpse into Roman history and the city's complex architectural past.