Split, Old Town Hall, 3rd-29th May 2013.
The City of Split and the Croatian Conservation Institute staged an exhibition to present a ten-year-long project of protection, renovation and presentation of the Peristyle in Split. Initially envisioned as a project of cleaning the Ancient stone architecture, it eventually grew into a complex programme of conservation and restoration, which included all segments of this multi-layered monument, from consolidating the foundations and the structure, through cleaning and conservation of the stone, mortar and other materials, to its final presentation.
Considering the importance of Peristyle as the central and the most representative portion of the imperial palace that is part of Split’s historic core, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, and also in view of the complexity of conservation issues and the participation of numerous Croatian and international experts and institutions, its renovation constituted one of the most important conservation efforts in Croatia. Peristyle is a town square where historic layers of the emergence and development of the town are best rendered visible. In its 17-centuries-long history, its architecture was rebuilt on countless occasions, enriched with new styles and significant features, both religious and secular in character. Yet even after all those additions, the Ancient architecture with its granite and marble columns, Corinthian capitals, arches and cornices, has remained almost fully preserved, but suffering from injuries and covered in centuries-old layers of dirt. The last two hundred years saw a series of conservation and restoration efforts, varying in range and effect, and demonstrating how the Peristyle has always been at the centre of attention for both the experts and the general public. These partial efforts were designed to treat individual issues, and sometimes even resulted in new ones. At the beginning of the third millennium we finally witnessed a comprehensive project, which treated the space as a whole. Initiated by a donation from the World Monuments Fund, and further funded by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia, the treatment was for the most part financed by the City of Split.
Exhibition posters [PDF: 71 MB]
Catalogue [PDF: 5.3 MB]