Attention of all visitors of Peristil square – a heart of Diocletian’s Palace in the Split city – is invariably attracted by a figure of Sphinx, calmly and majestically laying next to the western entrance to The Cathedral St. Duje.
It is quite hard to don’t notice almost 3-meters-high sculpture, whole made of black granite.
And indeed, where could the Egyptian Sphinx of the 15-16 century BC – the time of Thutmose I’s and Thutmose III’s rule, came from??!
Searching for the answer on that question leads us to the times of Emperor Diocletian’s rule. Emperor Diocletian himself is a founder of Split city; he used to belong to divine rulers, same as pharaohs, and, to unconditionally prove it, some of the sphinxes were brought from the Egypt to Croatia..
Egyptian Sphinx on Peristil – placed next to the Emperor Diocletian’s tomb – is the best preserved example of those sphinxes, one upon a time brought there from Egypt.