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Grgur Ninski

The sandaled bronze foot of Ivan Meštrović's Gregory of Nin statue in Split, its big toe rubbed to bright gold against green-blue bronze
Artwork FileSplit, Croatia

Grgur Ninski

SeenJun 2013

Ivan Meštrović · 1929 · Split

Photo: Dennis G. Jarvis (CC BY-SA 2.0), 2013-06-07. Resized, full frame.

Ivan Meštrović’s monumental Gregory of Nin stands outside the Golden Gate in Split. Visitors touch the bishop’s great toe for luck, leaving the bronze foot bright against the dark monument. Source Source Source Reported

Seen Jun 2013 — evidence dated 2013-06-07. The dated source does not establish present condition. Source Checked

💡 4 things to know

  1. Years in developmentMeštrović developed the monument from 1919 before it was installed in Split in 1929. Source Checked
  2. Removed during wartimeItalian occupation authorities dismantled the monument in 1941. Source Checked
  3. Returned in 1954The statue was re-erected in a different Split location after the war. Source Checked
  4. A polished footA photograph dated June 7, 2013 shows the polished toe and surrounding bronze foot. Source Checked

📍 Where it is

Above the Golden Gate of Diocletian’s Palace · Split, Croatia Source Checked

Open in Maps

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 1929

    Monument installed in Split

  2. 1941

    Monument dismantled during the Italian occupation

  3. 1954

    Statue re-erected at a new Split site

  4. 20137 Jun

    Close-up photographed of the polished foot

  5. 2014Oct

    International Travel News publishes its account of the monument and toe-touching belief

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

✅ The facts

Artist
Ivan Meštrović Source Checked
Installed
1929 Source Checked
Subject
Gregory of Nin Source Checked
Height
Museum: 7.58 metres; travel report: 20 feet (about 6.1 metres) We favor the museum’s 7.58 metres as the specialist institutional source. Source Source Conflicting
Wartime removal
Dismantled in 1941 Source Checked
Re-erected
1954, in a different location Source Checked
Visitor belief
Touching the toe brings good luck Source Reported
Material
Bronze Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Last checked: 29 October 2026. How we verify art