House of Calderón de la Barca, Literary residence in Calle Mayor, Madrid, Spain

The House of Calderón de la Barca occupies the main floor of a building at Calle Mayor 61 in Madrid. The original mid-17th-century structure, built by Manuel del Olmo, had only two floors and a narrow facade with a single balcony; two more floors were added in 1859 with the same design. A marble plaque to the left of the balcony reads "Aquí murió D. Pedro Calderón".

This was the home of Pedro Calderon de la Barca, the major playwright and poet of Spain's Golden Age, who died there in 1681. The building nearly faced demolition in 1859 but was saved through public action, leading to its structural modifications.

After the 1859 demolition threat, Mesonero Romanos asked the city to place a tribute on the facade. A marble plaque to the left of the former main-floor balcony reads "Aquí murió D. Pedro Calderón", and a relief bust shows him with the attributes of poet, priest and Knight of Santiago.

The building stands at number 61 Calle Mayor, very close to Puerta del Sol in the center. Today it houses private apartments, and you can identify it easily from the outside even though interior access is not available.

The building faced certain demolition in 1859, but public outcry saved it in a turning point for heritage protection in the city. This unexpected reprieve led to the additions of extra floors that visitors see today.