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Showing posts with label History. Show all posts
Showing posts with label History. Show all posts

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Diocletian's Palace

Split's city centre is like no other in Europe. Built as a grand retirement home for the Roman Emperor Diocletian, its character was later modified by refugees from nearby Salona who fled there in 614, after their own city was sacked. It may be crumbling and ramshackle in parts, but the area occupied by the once mighty imperial palace - now a UNESCO World Heritage site - has about 3,000 residents and is crammed with busy bars and boutique art shops. Unlike much of Dalmatian coast, the whole complex buzzes with life all year and dishes up a varied choice of things to see and do.

Here are Top 10 sights:

1. Subterranean Chambers
2. Main Hall
3. Peristyle
4. Chatedral of St. Domnius
5. Belltower
6. Baptistry
7. Cupola
8. City Museum
9. Golden Gate
10. Iron Gate


1. Subterranean Chambers

The palace's underground vaults mirror the layout of the floor above. Now open as a museum, they give a good impression of the palace's former appearance.

2. Main Hall

The main subterranean hall of the palace houses an alley of souvenir shops. Here you can buy anything from postcards to paintings and statues of Roman figures.

3. Peristyle

Once an antechamber to Diocletian's quarters, the dramatic, colonnaded square known as the Peristyle is the heart of the palace complex.








4. Chatedral of St. Domnius

Built over Diocletian's tomb, the main structure here is Roman. Inside is a 13th-century pulpit and work by 15th-century sculptor Juraj Dalmatinac.

5. Belltower

The belltower, which soars high above the chatedral, was not completed until the early 20th century. The panoramic views of the city that it offers make the long climb up to the top of well worth the effort.

6. Baptistry

An alley opposite the cathedral leads to the Baptistry, once the Roman Temple of Jupiter. Inside, a striking feature is the sculpture of John the Baptist by Ivan Meštrović (1883. - 1962.).













7. Cupola

Stone steps from the sunken square lead to a domed area, where guests once waited for an audience with the Emperor. At night, stars are visible through a gap in the top of the dome.

8. City Museum

East of the sunken square, the City Museum is housed in the 15th-century Papalić Palace. Among the artifacts relating to Split's history is a collection of weaponry and armour.

9. Golden Gate

This sturdy portal once led north to the nearby settlement of Salona. Today, it is being restored to its full splendour, thank to funding by a local bank.






10. Iron Gate

Split's most striking gates has its own church (Our Lady of the Belfry) and clock tower. A cafe on Narodni Trg will make an ideal spot from which to admire this elegant portal.


Sunday, March 3, 2013

Shortly about Split


Split is second biggest city in Croatia, right after the capital of Croatia, Zagreb. It is also the biggest city in Dalmatia with more than 250 000 inhabitants. The center of the city is well known for Diocletian's palace, the construction from 4th century, which is under UNESCO.

Diocletian's palace

Name

The city draws its name from the spiny broom (calicotome spinosa; brnistra or žuka in modern Croatian), a common shrub in the area, after which the Greek colony of Aspálathos or Spálathos, from which the city originates, was named. As the city became a Roman possession, the Latin name became "Spalatum", which in the Middle Ages evolved into "Spalatro" in the Dalmatian language of the city's Romance population. The  version became "Split", while the Italian version was "Spalato". During a period in the early 19th century the name was "Spljet", and finally "Split" once more.


Climate

Split has a Mediterranean climate . It has hot, relatively dry summers and mild, wet winters (however, winters can sometimes feel cold, because of the north wind called "Bura" and its windchill factor - for example, if the air temperature is 5 °C (41 °F) and strong bura is blowing, it feels like -10 °C (14 °F).

Snow is very rare in Split



Economy

Split's economy is still suffering the backlash from there cession caused by the transfer to a market economy and privatization. In the Yugoslav era, however, the city had been a highly significant economic centre with a modern and diverse industrial and economic base and paper industry, in addition to a large revenues from tourism. In 1981 Split's GDP per capita was 137% of the Yugoslav average. Today, most of the factories are out of business (or are far below pre-war production and employment capacity) and the city has been trying to concentrate on commerce and services, consequently leaving an alarmingly large number of factory workers unemployed.


Music

One of the most recognisable aspects of Split culture is popular music. In my opinion most notable musicians are Oliver Dragojević, Daleka Obala, Magazin, Severina, Gibonni etc.

Education


The University of Split (Croatian: Sveučilište u Splitu) was founded in 1974. In the last few years it has grown to a big extent. Now it has 26,000 students and is organized in 12 faculties. Currently the new campus is being built, and it will be finished sometime in 2012. It will house all of the faculties, a large student centre with a sports hall, sporting grounds and a university library.

Library in Split

That was a short introduction to the one of the most beautiful cities not only in Croatia but in whole world. Hope you like it! :)