Surname 1
Name
Course
Instructor
Date
Formal Analysis of Diocletian palace
Standing today in the Adriatic coast of modern Croatia, the Diocletian palace was built in the
turn of the 4th century CE (300-305 AD) by Emperor Diocletian. The Emperor built the palace as
his retirement home after giving up the throne to the Roman Empire voluntarily. The object
previously occupied the Roman city of Illyrian. Today the palace’s ruins are located within the
coastal city of Split in modern day Croatia. The palace takes the shape of a trapezoid sitting on
more than 38,000 m2 with ramparts measuring between 15 and 20 meters in height and almost 2
meters in width. The fortress was protected by high walls with four gates; golden gate in the
north, silver in the east, bronze in the south, and iron gate in the west. While all these gates were
destroyed the residue of the curved stone pillars and arches remain to this day.
The palace was built in classic Romanesque style (Roman architectural design)
encapsulating the fortress legionary Roman design and the luxurious villa patrician that housed
Emperor Diocletian and his advisers (Sanders, 7). It was built using mainly limestone mined
locally, marble, and decorated with imported decorative e.g. Egyptian sphinx, granite columns,
and roman arches. Within its walls the palace included a temple, a royal guard camp, thermal
baths, a library, and servant quarters. Today it is occupied by shops and inhabited by other 3000
people within its numerous streets. This is because the old town of Split developed around the
palace. In 1979 it became a UNESCO heritage site.
Name
Course
Instructor
Date
Formal Analysis of Diocletian palace
Standing today in the Adriatic coast of modern Croatia, the Diocletian palace was built in the
turn of the 4th century CE (300-305 AD) by Emperor Diocletian. The Emperor built the palace as
his retirement home after giving up the throne to the Roman Empire voluntarily. The object
previously occupied the Roman city of Illyrian. Today the palace’s ruins are located within the
coastal city of Split in modern day Croatia. The palace takes the shape of a trapezoid sitting on
more than 38,000 m2 with ramparts measuring between 15 and 20 meters in height and almost 2
meters in width. The fortress was protected by high walls with four gates; golden gate in the
north, silver in the east, bronze in the south, and iron gate in the west. While all these gates were
destroyed the residue of the curved stone pillars and arches remain to this day.
The palace was built in classic Romanesque style (Roman architectural design)
encapsulating the fortress legionary Roman design and the luxurious villa patrician that housed
Emperor Diocletian and his advisers (Sanders, 7). It was built using mainly limestone mined
locally, marble, and decorated with imported decorative e.g. Egyptian sphinx, granite columns,
and roman arches. Within its walls the palace included a temple, a royal guard camp, thermal
baths, a library, and servant quarters. Today it is occupied by shops and inhabited by other 3000
people within its numerous streets. This is because the old town of Split developed around the
palace. In 1979 it became a UNESCO heritage site.
