Zeljezna Vrata

The Željezna Vrata, also known as the West Gate (or Iron Gate), is one of the four main Roman entrances to the Old Town of Split, which once formed part of Diocletian's Palace. Originally designed as a military gate through which troops entered the complex, it is the only one of the four gates that has remained in continuous use to this day. In late antiquity it was known as the Porta Occidentalis. During the persecutions under Emperor Theodosius I, a relief of the goddess of victory, Nike, was removed from the lintel, and in the 5th century Christians chiseled a cross into the spot.

In the 6th century, a small church was built above the gate, later rededicated as the Church of Our Lady of the Belfry. In the 11th century, a pre-Romanesque bell tower was added above it, considered the oldest surviving example of its kind on the Adriatic. In the Middle Ages, the area inside the gate served as a courthouse. After the city expanded to the west, the gate continued to function as a city gate with a guardhouse. Today, the historic structure is framed by a magnificent palace of the Cipriani Benedetti family, with its characteristic hexagonal windows, and by the Romanesque bell tower.

Architecturally, the gate consists of an outer and an inner section, laid out as a defensive system. Instead of blind arches and columns, you will find a series of arcades here. The corridors on both sides have three arcades on the inside and five on the outside. Particularly interesting is the town clock on the facade, which unusually has 24 numerals instead of the usual 12. Here you can admire the rich molding of Roman architecture and gain an insight into the long history of the site, which ranges from military use to religious and civic functions.