Diocletian’s “imperial court” in Doclea

Abstract

The aim of the paper is the re-examination of the “forum” of late antique Doclea (Dioclea), the interpretation of which has never been finished, although so information been collated during the past 131 years. Through re-examination of the complex with its distinctive features this paper offers answers on some of the still unresolved issues. A primary issue was to resolve who was responsible for its arrangement. After an onomastic analysis only one conclusion asserted itself - the “forum complex” could only have been erected by the Emperor Diocletian, who was obviously responsible for the rearrangement of the whole town of Doclea (Dioclea), his hometown. Further analysis of the concept, architectural arrangement and vocabulary used in the “forum” and adjoining “basilica” only corroborate that it was precisely Diocletian and his “architectural school”. Without a doubt, the Doclean (Dioclean) “forum complex” was innovative and original in many ways, along with its importance as an “imperial forum”, the “Diocletian’s imperial court”, will remain in the collective memory of the Montenegrins for centuries to come. The paper also represents an effort to clarify Diocletian’s background and the “modus operandi” of his “architectural school” whose presence in Doclea (Dioclea)has already been noticed.