Palacio de las Dueñas, Seville

Palacio de las Dueñas is the palace before you, a historic home of the House of Alba with courtyards, gardens, a chapel, and an extensive art collection. Its character comes from a meeting of Renaissance design with Gothic and Moorish influences, shaped through building work that began in the late 15th century. The entrance arch carries the Alba ducal arms in tiled decoration made in Seville during the 17th or 18th century.

Inside, the surviving courtyard is enclosed by a columned gallery, while the garden follows a traditional Islamic layout with tiled paths and a raised fountain. Lemon trees and that fountain connect this place with Antonio Machado’s poetry. Machado was born here in 1875, when his father worked as caretaker for the Duke of Alba.

The palace also holds a decorative-arts collection of 1,425 objects, including paintings, sculpture, furniture, ceramics, tapestries, and mosaics. A watercolor by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis recalls her visit in 1960. The chapel dates from the 15th century and contains Sevillian ceramics with metallic reflections. In 2016, the palace opened for tourist visits, bringing this private aristocratic residence into public view.