Original scientific paper
Early Christian Split
Stanko Piplović
Abstract
Construction of the Diocletian Palace is regarded as symbolic
of the rise of Split in the early age of the 4th century which can be
only approximately accepted since the palace itself still was not a
city. According to Toma Archdeacon of the 13th century, following
the destruction of Salona the capital of the Roman Province of
Dalmatia during the barbarian invasions, the deserted population
found a refuge by settling in the former imperial palace which had
by then partly served special purpuses. Thus it was only in the 7th
century that thy city came into existence.
However, the numerous rests of early Christian churches in
near surroundings witness that already in the V – VI centuries the
Split peninsula was densely populated. There existed the church
of St Basilius at the tract of Meje, St Felix memorial at the place of
today’s St Francis’ monastery, Our Lady of Spinut north of the city,
Basilica picte with baptistery by the road to Salona, St Catherine’s
church to the east, then follows an older church at the place of
today’s St Magdalene’s. Apart from the churches, there were a few
necropolises found dating from that time.
Inside the perimeter of former Diocletian’s Palace there were
also several small churches. The mausoleum and the Temple of
Jupiter were very soon converted into the Christian places of
worship. Beside them there existed already St Martin’ Chapel
within the patrol corridor for the guard on the northen wall of the
Roman palace. It was supposedly alike to the west where there is
the chapel of Our Lady of Tower.
Besides the remnants of edifices, there have been numerous
stone fragments with engraved typical early Christian crosses
mostly built-in as an act of spoliation into the outer walls of
medieval edifices, the most noted being that one chiselled into the
GRAĐA I PRILOZI ZA POVIJEST DALMACIJE br. 21
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architrave of the western wall of the Diocletian Palace where the
pagan goddess was cut through and the cross made.
There are all together so far 15 spoliations known with the
crosses apart from those cut into the early Christian churches.
They are disposed all over the area within the Emperor’s palace
except for the southwest part. Yet the crosses were not noticed
either within the medieval extension of the city westward.
New findings suggest that the views on the early beginnings of
Split are undergoing corrections. The changes seem to have taken
place earlier and more extensively than believed so far. There
were in antiquity at least seven early Christian churches in near
surroundings. There were four insofar as it is known inside the
Emperor’s walls. Quantity of spoliations and their concentration
suggest possibly three more. Consequently, the first town-planned
settlement at the place of Diocletian’s Palace can neither be dated
back by as early as its construction nor by colonisation following
the barbarian raids. It took place within the time between those
two events, in late antiquity.
Keywords
Early Christian Split; Salona, emperor Diocletian’s palace
Hrčak ID:
39266
URI
Publication date:
1.9.2008.
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