Split is not splitting or separating people despite its name, but rather connecting tourists to Jewish sources as well. There are plenty of tourist attractions in the city, some of them are linked to Jewish heritage. Many Israelis visit Split, and it is worth getting to know our heritage special sites there

Our journey in Split should start at the Tourist Bureau, on the promenade facing the sea. There we can get guidance, maps, and prospects on the various tourist attractions in the city. All the beautiful and important places in Split are within walking distance, and all can be visited in one day

From the promenade, a narrow street leads towards the Old City. On the corner of the street stands a house that belonged to a wealthy merchant. Sigmund Freud lived in this house for several days in 1898 when he was on his way from Vienna to Venice. At the front door there is a sign in memory of the event

    

Palace of Diocletian

Split's most important tourist site is the Diocletian Palace in the Old City. Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletian Augustus was the Roman Cesar from 284-305 AD. The district city where the government sat was Salona. Diocletian built for himself a palace near the beach, about 7 km from Salona, in a small town called " Aspalathos/Spalato", now called Split

We have a special links to that Diocletian. According to the Jerusalem Talmud, Diocletian grew up in Tiberias and was a pig herdsman. He joined the Roman army, and plater was appointed a Commissioner and Cesar. He traveled many times to Israel, and he became a good friend with Rabbi Yehuda Nassi. The Jerusalem Talmud tells us that he once issued a tax cut on all his subjects, and wrote explicitly in the order with an exception to the Jews. Diocletian and Jewish Rabbis had mutually positive relationships, and he used to consult with them

The Diocletian Palace began to be built in 295 AD at the end of the Mishna period. 16,000 slaves were brought to build it for 10 years. Two streets cross the Old Town. One is called "Cardo ", and it has columns like at the Cardo in Jerusalem

In the city center there is the bell tower. It was built in the 13th century of bricks brought from Egypt. On that occasion, some Sphinx were also brought away. One of them was stationed in Peristyle Square at the foot of the tower

The tower rises to 60 meters, and it is highly recommended to ascend to the upper floor, which has a breathtaking panoramic view of the city. The scenery is also physically breathtaking because of the difficulty of climbing the narrow and uncomfortable stairs. The stairs are higher than the ones we are used to. The height of each level is about 30 cm, and some even reach 50 cm. So for those of us who are not fit, it is better to give up. But for those who are able to get up the tower, the view from above justifies the efforts

The palace gate is in Peristyle Square. Before entering the palace grounds, you should first enter the underground cells, through an opening under the gate. Under the palace, 67 underground barns of various sizes were built. They had different uses for storage and industrial commerce. Nowadays sometimes there are concerts, wine tasting shows, or official dinners of the municipality at various events. In some of these cells were filmed scenes from the TV series 'Game of Thrones' and also the movie 'The Dark Tower'.      i

All sorts of signs are engraved on several cells walls. In one of the halls were found two small Menorah symbols, and also at the entrance to the same hall. They are about 10 cm in size. Archaeologists have determined that these symbols were engraved in about 330. There are various estimates of the reason for the engraving. Some scholars believe it is the workers who built the palace and the warehouses. Others believe it is a sign of a Jewish merchant who delineates the area assigned to him within the warehouses

     

We return to Peristyle Square to enter the palace grounds. Concerts and cultural performances are often held in this square. As we enter the palace grounds, we reach a rounded building that served as an observatory. Usually, there is a choir of men singing and playing traditional songs

The palace has a large cathedral, and a museum of Christian history. Inside the palace we see residential buildings. In the seventh century the capital city of Salona was conquered, and many of its inhabitants fled to Split and settled on the palace grounds. Among the many refugees were also Jews. Documents from 1937 mentions the synagogue in Split, which indicates an organized community. Nothing left of it, but it is known that the synagogue was adjacent to the south wall of the palace, probably in this house or beside it

The Jewish ghetto 

We leave the palace area and the next destination on our tour is the ancient synagogue. We head north-east, through Rodrigina Street. Until the 16th century, Split was just another small town on the Adriatic coast. One of the city's Jews, Daniel Rodrigo, proposed to the Venice government to establish in split a port that would facilitate the transit of goods to and from Turkey and India and the world in the east. After efforts, he was granted permission to construct the port and built it at his own expense. Thanks to this port, Split began accelerated development of the economy, and it expanded and became richer than the neighboring towns. Later, Daniel Rodrigo opened the first bank in Split. Daniel Rodrigo is a key figure in the history of Split. The locals cherish his memory, and thanks to him all the Jews. Although the Jewish community was relatively small and numbered only 200-300 people, Jews had significant roles in the city since the 16th century. One of the main streets in the Old City is named after Daniel Rodrigo. This street connects the palace with the Jewish ghetto. The houses in this ghetto and area were built in the 14-15 centuries. On the doors frame of some of the old houses we can see small slits, which must have contained a mezuzah. Here is one example

From the Rodrigina Street Zidovski Prolaz" street branches and the synagogue is located at the corner house. This synagogue was built in 1510 next to the city wall, and the eastern wall and the back of the Holy Ark are actually part of the interior of the wall. In the northeastern corner of the synagogue we can see a section of the wall stones that were not covered with plaster. This synagogue exists to this day, and is one of the three oldest synagogues in Europe, which are the synagogues in Split, Dubrovnik, and Prague

The synagogue was built as the Romanyotes Jews style. Worshipers sit on benches back to back perpendicular to the Holy Ark. The Holy Ark was built after centuries by Ashkenazim. The Torah reading platform is adjacent far to the back wall and is very high compared to the usual in our regular synagogues

I did not find any Romanyotes-style prayer book, but just Sepharadic-style "Yehave Daat" and "Aram Tsova". I visited there in Elul, but did not find Selihot book in the synagogue. There was a shofar on the pillar, and I blew it

In conversation with the representatives of the Jewish community, I learned that this synagogue is used for prayers only in holydays. On Friday evenings, the city's Jews come there but do not pray. Sometimes groups of religious tourists from Israel or England ask to attend minyan prayers. The local Jews are happy to let them use the synagogue as its mission. Only about a hundred Jews are registered in the community nowadays. There is no rabbi nor a cantor. All members of the community are secular, and only about 30 are active attendees

I was invited to Kabbalat Shabbat ceremony. It was held in a large room in a floor below the synagogue. About ten women and four older men arrived, almost all of them over the age of 60. One of the women lit Shabbat candles in a large silver candlestick. I was honored to say the Kiddush. After the "Hamotzi" on 2 Challas baked by one of the women, there is a brief comment Derasha on Parshat Hashavua. That's where the "Kabalat Shabbath prayer" ended. Participants are left to chat

On the one hand, it is less than we would expect by Halacha. On the other hand, they deserve to be appreciated for their efforts to maintain some kind of Jewish tradition, even if it is different from our style

The Jewish Museum

On the floor below the synagogue is a modest museum. On the walls there are signs that explain the history of the community, the synagogue, and its renovations. I could not see in the Jewish Museum's reference to the rich local Jewish history before the last century

In recent centuries there have been major Rabbis and Yeshiva leaders with a big influence on the Jewish world everywhere. In Split there was a "Shevet Achim"  yeshiva in which certified many of its students to rabbinate positions throughout the southeast European Jewish communities. The community had a close relationship with Eretz Israel, and most of the Shadarim passed through split. One of the heads of the yeshiva was Rabbi Ya'akov Musafia, author of the Talmudic dictionary

Over the past 250 years and nowadays in the yeshiva world in Israel, every student is studying the book "Maskil LeDavid", with commentary on Rashi to Torah. I also got to learn from it in my youth, and probably every reader of this article. The author of this eternal book was Rabbi David Pardo, the chief rabbi of Split in the 18th century. He was the son in-law of the HIDA. The cover page of the book reads "Here at KK Espaltero", which is Split old name

Rabbi David Padro also wrote the books "Michtam LeDavid", "Shoshanim LeDavid" on the Mishna, and "Chasdey David"  on Seder Ta'arot. In 1782, Rabbi Pardo immigrated to Eretz Yisrael, and served there as head of the Yeshiva "Chesed LeAvraham". He is buried in the Mount of Olives next to the tomb of the Rashash. One of his descendants in Israel was until recently the head of the Mossad

Chief Rabbi of Split before Rabbi Pardo was Rabbi Shmaya Shmuel Papo, the author of the book "Pachad Yitzhak".  After Rabbi Pardo moved to Jerusalem, his rabbinate position was taken by Rabbi Shabtai Ventura, author of the book "Nahar Shalom".    i

So, actually there were (and are) tight connections between the local Jewish community and between Israel. Most tourists don't know about it, because the Jewish community nowadays is like a pale shadow compared to the glory of the Split Jewish community in the 18-19 centuries

Split Jews had their own private holiday. Every year in the seventh day of ADAR, they celebrated a miracle that happened to them during the 18th century. The community leaders, including Rabbi David Pardo, were arrested due to a false plot. The court acquitted them on the Adar 7th. Rabbi David then composed special Piyutim, and this day set as a holiday for generations in which the text he wrote were delivered in public

For us, Orthodox Jews, the above great Split's Rabbis are important as the Nobel prize winners for the scientists. We don't know exactly where each one was living, but we know that each one of them used to pray and give Torah lectures in the ancient synagogue. So when we visit the synagogue, we must remember them with due respect, and to understand the spiritual meaning of the place. As G-D told Moses "Take your sandals off of your feet, for the place you are standing on is holy ground(Exodus 3/5).     i

Pjaca Square

As we exit the synagogue and walking towards the sea via Bosanska Street, we cross the nearby Pjaca Square "People's Square". In 1942 the Italian fascists removed from the synagogue the holy books, threw them in this square and set them on fire

At this opportunity, a nearby bookstore of the Jewish Morfurgo family was broke in, and its contents were also thrown into the big flams. Today, the Vice President of the Jewish community is Nena Morfurgo, a descendant of the oldest Jewish family in Split, who owned this store until it was confiscated during the Italian fascist period. Last year, the municipality of Split put a memorial copper plaque in the square, just where the fascist fire was. Written on it in the Croatian language

"On Saturday, June 12, 1942, in the middle of the prayer, a group of fascists broke into the synagogue and Jewish community near the Jewish bookstore and print shop of Weed Morfurgo, destroying a tradition of hundreds of years of Jewish culture. We will not forget and will never let it happen again

Split Municipality, June 12, 2018

The Jews Tower

We continue our tour to the north, and leave the city wall. In the 17th century, the Ottoman Empire's soldiers came to occupying Split. The residents organized to protect the city and repel the Turks. Many Jews of the city enlisted in the defensive forces that settled on the wall and its towers. Sixteen towers were then in the city wall, and three of them exist to this day. After the victory in 1657, the Jews participation was honored by naming one of the towers "Posto del Ebrei" "Jewish Tower". This is what it is called to this day, and this is how it looks

In the 18th century, priests incited the villagers around the split to attack Jews. As they descended from the mountains to make a pogrom in Split Jews, Split Christian residents enlisted to defend the Jewish ghetto

When the Austrians took over Split in 1738, Jews were required to wear colored hats to be identified. At that time there were two Jewish communities in the split. The westerns who came from Ashkenaz and Spain were called "Pontoons," obliged to wear yellow colored hats. The Eastern Jews who came from Turkey in the East were called "Levantines" and were obliged to wear red hats. Following this decree, many Jews left the city, and the community began to fade

The Golden Gate

About one minute's walk from the Jewish Tower along the city wall is the "Golden Gate".    i

Before descending from the road to the gate we see a statue about two stories high. It is the Grgur Ninski Statue, who attached Croatia to the Catholic Church in the tenth century. The fingers of his feet are bright and shining. In split there are believers that the rubbing of the toe and the feet of the statue brings luck

As we enter the city again through the Golden Gate, the narrow streets to our right are part of the Jewish ghetto we visited earlier

The Museum of Archeology

Split has several museums of art and history. The most interesting to us is the Museum of Archeology. There are exhibitions of items from the Roman period. In its garden outside there are many ancient sculptures and sarcophagi, and inside are displays of antique urns, jewelry, coins, antique utensils, etc. One of the glass cabinets is dedicated to Jewish exhibits from the third and seventh centuries. Part of a stone lintel on which a Menorah was engraved, and many pottery candles with the lamp symbols and shofar, as well as Jewish coins from more than a thousand years ago

The exhibits are interesting. But beyond them, equally interesting is the attitude of the Museum about Judaism. We are treated as equal and in natural form, as we refer to the representations of the various Christian streams. There is no discrimination. To locals, we are an integral part of Split's local history. There is no sense of "strangers" here as we feel elsewhere in the world. Address: Zrinsko Frankopanska 25

Republic Square

The main square in the city is the "Republic Square" which locals call "Prokurative". In the previous centuries, there were announcements proclamations from the government and from elsewhere to the public attention. It was a kind of "billboard" of those days. Today, the square serves as a culinary center, and the houses next to it have many restaurants. There are music and food festivals in the square on the square

In the city outside the walls we see the National Theater House, in the big yellow building with the sculptures on the front wall

The old Jewish cemetery

We continue our tour towards the south to the promenade. To the west of the city is a beautiful hill overlooking the main pier and bay. It's called Marian Hill. Today there are beautiful villas and homes at the bottom

450 years ago, when the hill was empty, Daniel Rodrigo bought a large lot there for the purpose of establishing a Jewish cemetery. Since then till the Holocaust cemetery has been filled, and a new Jewish cemetery has been erected elsewhere in the city. The small building that used to be a purring cleaning room has now been converted into a restaurant. On the wall above the entrance to the restaurant is still embedded in Hebrew the words "Tziduk Hadin", "Justification of Law". Sometimes the cemetery gate is locked, due to vandalism that was here a decade ago. If locked, we can get the key from the adjacent restaurant

      

The first tombstones from 1575 onwards are on the left side of the gate. For some, it is difficult to read the text that was written on them. I searched for gravestones of great rabbis with very partial success. On the ninth row on the right, I was able to find the grave of "Rabbi Chaim Yitzchak Musafiya of Jerusalem". He was appointed rabbi of Split in 1796, and served as a rabbi until his death in 1837. In Split's Jewish ancient cemetery, we also see unfamiliar tombstones. Many are designed like a house roof or a sarcophagus cover

Trees leaves and layers of pine needles cover the tombstones in a way that hides them and can cause us to step on a tombstone without paying attention

I had the privilege of meeting Mayor Andro Krstulovic Opara. I told the mayor that I was looking for Daniel Rodrigo's grave, but without success. The mayor told me that there was another VIP Jew buried there, who was a local cultural hero, Vid Morpurgo, who was a popular writer, major publisher, that he also established a bank in Split. One of his descendants, Nena Morpurgo, attended our meeting. The mayor plans to pave comfortable paths in the Jewish cemetery, place benches for rest, and mark tombstones of important people such as Rodrigo and Morpurgo

Tourism is one of the important economic sectors of Split. Mayor Andro Krstulovic says 780,000 tourists arrive in Split each year, about 2,500 of them are Israelis. Most of the Israeli visitors are from the religious public. In the first eight months of this year, 1,700 Israeli tourists reached Split, "which is an increase of more than 20% compared to last year". 3.3 million passengers passed through Split Airport last year. "More than Zagreb Airport," the mayor proudly points out

The mayor says that every year, he's getting inquiries from Israelis whose family origin is from Split, and they ask for help in finding a grave for the heads of the family. In addition, there are training camps for athletes in Split, and many times there are also Israeli groups, especially in the Judo sport

Eating Kosher in Split

There is no kosher restaurant in Split, but meals can be prepared from Chabad Zagreb caterers. In addition, there is Rabbi Dadon's famous list of all the Kosher food products we can find in supermarkets throughout Croatia.

During Passover and sometimes in the summer, the Meridian Hotel hosts religious groups from Israel, which organized by tour operator Tour Plus, Vered Holiday, Asia Travel, and Ma'agaley Nofesh. They are making the hotel's kitchen Kosher. In those days we can eat at the Meridian Hotel resturant, even if we are not one of its guests

Split's tourism bureau is welcoming us, showing special consideration for Jewish travelers. Mr. Duje Bulas of the tourism bureau says they bothered to study the kosher issues. He's planning to publish a map and a brochure in the Hebrew language, as they already have in many other languages. He's also considering to publish a special booklet of Jewish heritage sites and history ib Split and a city map in Hebrew

 

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