Roman & ancientDalmatia

The Golden Gate of Diocletian's Palace in Split

The Golden Gate (Zlatna vrata, Latin Porta Aurea) is the northern gate of Diocletian's Palace, set in the middle of the palace wall in the old town of Split. It was the main gate on the road to Salona and is the most richly decorated of the palace gates. A blind arcade, empty niches and a tiny church above the passage make it one of the most rewarding stops on a walk through Roman Split.

The Golden Gate has niches for emperors' statues, yet restorers found no proof that any statue ever stood in them. Its grandest decoration may never have been finished.

WhereMiddle of the northern wall of Diocletian's Palace, old town of Split, Dalmatia

TypeRoman city gate, begun around AD 293 according to Wikidata

Best forRoman history, architecture lovers, a short stop on a walk through old Split

Getting thereOn foot through the old town of Split; the gate stands at the northern end of the palace's main street

The history of the Golden Gate

The gate was built as the main landward entrance of Diocletian's Palace, at the end of the road that ran north to Salona, the emperor's birthplace and the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia. Diocletian probably used it to enter the palace after he abdicated on 1 May 305. Late-antique Romans called it Porta Septemtrionalis, the “Northern Gate”.

In the 6th century, during the upheavals of the Migration Period, small churches were built over the Golden, Silver, Iron and Bronze gates. The one over the Golden Gate, dedicated to St Martin, fills a narrow corridor that had served as a guard passage in Diocletian's day. A pre-Romanesque bell tower later rose above it and was pulled down in the 19th century. In the early Middle Ages, when the town felt threatened by sieges, the inhabitants walled up the gate and used a smaller, more easily defended passage instead; a newer gate later took over as the main northern entrance. In the Middle Ages the old gate was known as Porta Romae, the “Roman Gate”, and the name Golden Gate seems to date from the Renaissance, first appearing in a Venetian itinerary of 1553.

Around 1630 the Venetian governor Alvise Zorzi had eleven Roman towers on the north and east sides of the palace wall taken down, and the stone was shipped to Venice for the building of Santa Maria della Salute. The two octagonal towers that once flanked the Golden Gate were among them. Houses had also been built against the wall, and the gate was reopened only in 1857, after they were demolished and a great deal of accumulated earth was cleared away. Even so, about two metres of the gate and wall still lie below ground level.

The most recent reconstruction was carried out by the city in the first years of the new millennium; the gate was covered by a protective wrap from 2012 until 2015. Today the gate is open to visitors and, together with the other gates of the palace, forms part of the old town's Roman layout.

Curiosities about the Golden Gate

The façade has five niches, four of which are traditionally linked to statues of the four Tetrarchs: Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius and Constantius Chlorus. Restorers found no evidence that statues ever stood there.
Centuries of accumulated soil have lowered the openings of the gate from about 6.5 metres to fewer than 4.5 metres in height.
The undersides of the corbels above the gateway carry small carved faces with horns and animal ears, which one modern scholar described as “not unlike medieval devils”.
Of the columns that once held up the blind arcade, nothing survives, but five of their capitals are still fixed under the arcade.
The historian John Bryan Ward-Perkins saw Syrian influence in the design, for example in combining an open arch with a horizontal lintel.
The name Golden Gate is not Roman: it first appears in 1553, while the Romans called the structure the Northern Gate.

Tours near Golden Gate

Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:

GROUP/ PRIVATE Walking History Tour of SPLIT with Daniela

★ 5 (211 reviews) · 2 h

See details ›

Private Walks & Storytelling - the best small group tour in Split

★ 5 (208 reviews) · 1 h

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Split Game of Thrones Tour & History Walk Top-Rated All inclusive

★ 5 (155 reviews) · 1.5 h

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Private Sailing Tour Omiš - Brač with Homemade Lunch, Wine & Beer

★ 5 (108 reviews) · 8 h

See details ›

Visiting the Golden Gate in Split

Look up at the façade to pick out the five niches, the blind arcade of seven arches and the surviving capitals.
The small church of St Martin occupies the narrow corridor above the outer gate, and the former courtyard between the outer and inner gates still shows how the entrance was defended.
Passing through the gate brings you onto the Cardo Maximus; at its far end stands the Bronze Gate.
Wikipedia says the structure was open to the public as of 2020. Check the current access arrangements before you go.
The Golden Gate combines easily with Salona, which lies a few kilometres away, and with the other sites on this guide near Split.

Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.

Map: where Golden Gate is

Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors

Photos of Golden Gate

Questions

Where is the Golden Gate in Split?

It stands in the middle of the northern wall of Diocletian's Palace, in the old town of Split. The gate lay at the end of the Roman road that led north to Salona.

Why is it called the Golden Gate?

The name is not Roman. The Romans called it the Northern Gate, the Middle Ages the Roman Gate, and “Golden Gate” first appears in a Venetian itinerary of 1553.

What stood in the niches of the Golden Gate?

Traditionally the niches are linked to statues of the four Tetrarchs, but modern restorers found no evidence that statues ever stood in them.

Who built the Golden Gate?

It was built as part of Diocletian's Palace; Wikidata gives the start of construction as around AD 293.

What happened to the towers beside the gate?

Two octagonal towers once flanked it. Around 1630 the Venetian governor Alvise Zorzi had them taken down, and the stone was sent to Venice.

Can you walk through the Golden Gate?

The gate opens onto the Cardo Maximus of the palace, and as of 2020 the structure was open to the public. Check the current access conditions before your visit.