The Royal Palace of Madrid
I composed this image of a portion of the Royal Palace of Madrid while looking through the imposing fencing that surrounds so much of it.
The Palace sits on central Madrid's Plaza de la Armeria, opposite the city's main cathedral, and is a focal point for visitors from around the world.
The Palace is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only as a museum for state ceremonies. It has 1,450,000 sq ft of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms, making it the largest royal palace in Europe.
The palace is on the site of a bygone Muslim-era fortress constructed by Emir Muhammad I of Córdoba in the 9th century and this structure, with many additions and modifications, existed on the same site until it burned down in 1734. A new palace was then built from scratch on the same site on behalf of the Bourbon dynasty.
In 1760, King Charles III called upon Sicilian Francesco Sabatini, a Neoclassical architect, to enlarge the building. But was not iuntil the 19th century, when King Ferdinand VII began the most thorough renovation of the palace. The aim of this redesign was to turn the old-fashioned Italian-style building into a modern French-style palace. There was ego involved, of course, as the King sought to make the palace the largest and most distinguished in Europe, grander than Buckingham Palace.
The interior of the palace is notable for its wealth of art and the use of many types of fine materials in the construction and the decoration of its rooms. It includes paintings by artists such as Caravaggio, Juan de Flandes, Francisco de Goya, and Velázquez, and frescoes by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Corrado Giaquinto, and Anton Raphael Mengs. Other collections of great historical and artistic importance preserved in the building include the Royal Armoury of Madrid, porcelain, watches, furniture, silverware, and the world's only complete Stradivarius string quintet.
The Palace now functions predominantly as a museum. Due to its size, only a limited number of rooms are on display at any given time. The rooms utilized for museum purposes change every 3 months.
The Royal Palace of Madrid
I composed this image of a portion of the Royal Palace of Madrid while looking through the imposing fencing that surrounds so much of it.
The Palace sits on central Madrid's Plaza de la Armeria, opposite the city's main cathedral, and is a focal point for visitors from around the world.
The Palace is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only as a museum for state ceremonies. It has 1,450,000 sq ft of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms, making it the largest royal palace in Europe.
The palace is on the site of a bygone Muslim-era fortress constructed by Emir Muhammad I of Córdoba in the 9th century and this structure, with many additions and modifications, existed on the same site until it burned down in 1734. A new palace was then built from scratch on the same site on behalf of the Bourbon dynasty.
In 1760, King Charles III called upon Sicilian Francesco Sabatini, a Neoclassical architect, to enlarge the building. But was not iuntil the 19th century, when King Ferdinand VII began the most thorough renovation of the palace. The aim of this redesign was to turn the old-fashioned Italian-style building into a modern French-style palace. There was ego involved, of course, as the King sought to make the palace the largest and most distinguished in Europe, grander than Buckingham Palace.
The interior of the palace is notable for its wealth of art and the use of many types of fine materials in the construction and the decoration of its rooms. It includes paintings by artists such as Caravaggio, Juan de Flandes, Francisco de Goya, and Velázquez, and frescoes by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Corrado Giaquinto, and Anton Raphael Mengs. Other collections of great historical and artistic importance preserved in the building include the Royal Armoury of Madrid, porcelain, watches, furniture, silverware, and the world's only complete Stradivarius string quintet.
The Palace now functions predominantly as a museum. Due to its size, only a limited number of rooms are on display at any given time. The rooms utilized for museum purposes change every 3 months.