Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and book shows to fashion catwalks. (And, in 2013, it was used to film scenes for HBO's
Game of Thrones.
)
Exit the main hall through either of the doors on the left, cross through the narrow cor-
ridor, and enter the long room. Look just overhead—the holes you see once held beams
to support floorboards, making this a two-story cellar. Face the giant replica of a golden
Diocletian coin at the far end, and turn left, then immediately right into a small circu-
lar room, which has a headless, pawless black granite sphinx—one of 13 that Diocletian
brought home from Egypt (only four survive, including a mostly intact one we'll see soon
on the Peristyle). Look up to admire the circular brickwork. Then continue straight into an-
other small room, which adjoins one that displays a stone olive-oil press.
Backtrack through the round room and into a room that displays two petrified beams,
like the ones that once filled the double-decker holes we saw earlier. At the far (right) end
of this room is an unexcavated wing—a compost pile of ancient lifestyles, awaiting the tiny
shovels and toothbrushes of future archaeologists.
Facing the mound of ancient garbage, turn left into another round room, featuring a bust
of Diocletian (or is it Sean Connery?). From here, turn left and go through another room
(passingWCsontheright)toreturntothelongroomyouwereinearlier,thenturnrightand
exit outthebottom ofthishall. Onyourright,lookfororiginal Roman sewer pipes—square
outside and round inside—designed to fit into each other to create long pipes.
From here, head back out to the exit. Ifyou'dlike to see more cellars—mostly with their
ceilings missing, so they're open to the air—cross over into the
eastern cellars
(same tick-
et). This section is less interesting than the western part, but worth a quick visit.
• When you're finished, head back to the main gallery. Ignore the tacky made-in-Malaysia
trinket shops as you head down the passage and up the chunky stairs into the...
Peristyle (Peristil)
This square was the centerpiece of Diocletian's Palace. As you walk up the stairs, the entry
vestibule into the residence is above your head, Diocletian's mausoleum (today's Cathedral
of St. Dominus) is to your right, and the street to Jupiter's Temple (supported by wooden
beams) is on your left. The TI is in the small chapel, at the end of the square on the right.
Straight ahead, beyond the TI/chapel, is the narrow street that leads to the palace's former
main entrance, the Golden Gate.
