The history of studying Baroque art reflects the development of art history in Croatia. The study of Baroque art in Croatia was heavily influenced by the Vienna School of Art History, its most prominent protagonists and research topics, and this influence was present throughout the entire twentieth century. It can be compared to the issue of cultural heritage conservation, which evolved in Croatia under the direct influence of the Vienna School and Vienna as a political centre, not only by adopting ideas but also by establishing institutions responsible for the protection of cultural heritage during the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. The paper briefly discusses some aspects of work and methods of Wiener Schule der Kunstgeschichte (‘Vienna School of Art History’) that have had an impact on Croatian art history.1 It gives a short overview of the beginnings of art history in Croatia with Ivan Kukuljević Sakcinski and Iso Kršnjavi, as well as the most important occurrences that shaped the field’s development and cultural sphere at the end of the nineteenth century, with the aim of explaining the great upturn in researching and appraising Baroque art at the beginning of the twentieth century brought about by Gjuro Szabo, who adopted the ideas and theses of Vienna School, especially those of Alois Riegl.