Palacete del duque de Plasencia, Madrid, Residential palace in Almagro district, Madrid, Spain
The Palacete del duque de Plasencia stands at 48 Calle de Monte Esquinza, on a corner plot with a roughly rectangular plan and an L-shaped inner garden, flanked by a garage and a porter's lodge. An arched doorway leads to the courtyard of honour, where a short stairway rises to the main entrance. Inside, a central hall lit from above runs through every floor like a covered patio ringed by galleries, with balustrades, fluted pilasters and round-arched windows.
Architect Joaquín Saldaña y López designed this residential building in 1912, incorporating architectural elements that characterized Spanish urban development of that era. The structure reflects the classical language that dominated Madrid's growth phase in the early 20th century.
Since 1 June 2017 the building has housed the Norman Foster Foundation. Its archive holds more than 74,000 documents: drawings and plans, photographs, models, correspondence, sketchbooks and personal objects. The house is known locally as El Palacete.
The building holds heritage protection status that safeguards its original structure and exterior from modification. Keep in mind that interior spaces serve exhibition and archive purposes, so visiting may require advance arrangements.
The building is protected at level 1 because it lies within the area affected by the 2011 declaration of the Beti Jai fronton as a Bien de Interés Cultural. In 2014 the Heritage Commission blocked a renovation that would have altered its structure and facade; a 2016 agreement allowed work without structural changes.
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