Best museums and art galleries to visit in Split
The museums in Split offer a window into the city's fascinating past and rich cultural heritage spanning from ancient times to the present day, making it a haven for history enthusiasts. Choose from several captivating museums and galleries.
The Archaeological Museum in Split is the oldest museum in Croatia, founded in 1820. Its collections tell the story of Dalmatia from prehistory through Greek colonisation, Roman rule and late antiquity to the Middle Ages.
The museum is particularly strong for finds from ancient Salona, Greek settlements such as Issa and Pharos, Roman inscriptions and sarcophagi, and its atmospheric garden lapidarium filled with ancient stone monuments.
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The Meštrović Gallery is one of Split's most important art museums, displaying works by Croatian sculptor Ivan Meštrović inside the seaside villa he created as a family home, studio and exhibition space. Set in the Meje neighbourhood below Marjan, the gallery combines sculpture, architecture, Mediterranean gardens and views toward the Adriatic.
The gallery reopened in April 2026 after a major energy-renovation project. Visitors can again explore Meštrović's sculptures in marble, bronze, wood and plaster, the preserved dining room, sculpture garden and the nearby Meštrović Crikvine-Kaštilac, which is included in the same ticket.
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The Ethnographic Museum Split combines traditional Dalmatian culture with one of the most unusual museum settings in the city. Located beside the Peristyle, the museum occupies part of the former imperial residential quarters of Diocletian's Palace and presents costumes, jewellery, handicrafts and everyday objects from the Dalmatian coast, islands and hinterland.
A visit also gives access to historic architectural remains inside the museum complex and a route up to the roof of the Vestibule, with views over the old town, St Domnius bell tower, the sea and nearby islands.
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The Croatian Maritime Museum in Split explores the maritime history of the Croatian Adriatic, from ancient seafaring and traditional wooden boats to merchant shipping, naval warfare and modern shipbuilding. The museum is housed inside the 17th-century Gripe Fortress, with historic vessels and naval equipment displayed both indoors and in the fortress courtyard.
Among its most distinctive exhibits is a major torpedo collection that includes a torpedo head dating from 1866, part of what the museum describes as the oldest surviving torpedo example in the world.
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It is one of the oldest Croatian museums founded in 1893. with a goal to explore, collect, present and study the cultural remains of the Croats from the 7th to 15th century. It is located in one of the greenest urban areas of Split.
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- Written by: Orsat Munitić