Palacio Hirmas, Neoclassical building in Concepción, Chile

Palacio Hirmas is a neoclassical building at the corner of Diego Barros Arana and Colo-Colo streets in central Concepción, designed by Edgardo Figueroa and Israel de la Barra and finished in 1925. Its first level held luxury shops, with family residences above. Its best-known feature is a dome ending in a spire, rebuilt after earthquakes and a 2006 fire.

Architects Edgardo Figueroa and Israel de la Barra completed the building in 1925 during a period of economic prosperity. It marked the end of an era when grand private residences were still being constructed before economic upheaval changed construction patterns in the city.

The palace was commissioned by the Hirmas family, whose ancestors came from Palestine and built their lives in this region. The design reflects the prosperity that this immigrant community achieved in the city's commercial life.

The building stands at the corner of Diego Barros Arana and Colo-Colo streets in central Concepcion, and its ground floor was designed from the start as luxurious shops, with family residences above. Look up at the roofline for the dome and spire, rebuilt after the 2010 earthquake. The interior is not a museum, so visiting means viewing the facade and whatever businesses are open.

The dome removed after the 1939 Chillán earthquake was only rebuilt in the restoration following the 2006 fire, bringing the roofline back to something close to its pre-1939 form. The 2010 earthquake then brought the dome and outer structure down again, and the facade was restored along its previous lines.