Juan de Valencia el Infante commissioned Juan Maza to build this stately residence in the mid-17th century. The building became the Abrantes Palace in 1842 after a major renovation and the Duke of Abrantes moved in. Within a few years it became offices for the newspaper “The Correspondence of Spain.” In 1888, it was purchased by the Italian Government. The building is now headquarters for the Italian Institute of Culture, an embassy of Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The IIC’s mission is to sponsor an academic exchange with Spain while prompting the Italian language, arts, sciences and culture.
