Split is the Croatian Republic’s second largest city and the financial and cultural centre of Dalmatia. It has a harbour for ferries, cruise liners and greets tourists from all over the world but the origin and importance of this city date back to Roman emperor, Diocletian who, planning for his retirement, wanted to build a grand property near to his hometown of Salona, a palace along the lines of a Roman castrum. The palace subsequently became an ancient city and the mausoleum a Christian cathedral to which a Venetian campanile was later added.

An ingenious system of pillars, corridors, arches and vaulted ceilings, support the palace. Over the centuries, the large basement rooms remained almost untouched and only a few have been renovated. As the city above developed, the lower levels gradually became used as waste areas and eventually became inaccessible.

In the west of the city, the Porta Ferrea, the Iron Gate, leads to the large Narodni Trg district which arose in the Middle Ages and was where rich patrician families built their city palaces in a grand mix of architectural styles.

The historical centre of Split is a cultural work of art. The palace, its sea aspect and bay containing a harmonious blend of both ancient and mediaeval times.