Palace of the Kings of Navarre, Estella

View of the Palace.

The Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra (Template:Lang-eu), also called the Palacio de los Duques de Granada de Ega, is a historical building in Estella, Spain; it is the Romanesque former royal palace of the Kings and Queens of Navarre from the late twelfth century to the mid-fifteenth. In the twentieth century the building, which had fallen into disrepair, was restored and in 1991 converted into the Museo Gustavo de Maeztu (Template:Lang-eu), housing the work of the painter Gustavo de Maeztu y Whitney and open to the public. The building is important in the history of architecture in Navarre, since it is the only civil building extant from the Romanesque period. In 1931, it was declared a national monument by the Spanish government.

The main structure of the palace and its rectangular floor plan date from the twelfth century, but the tower and the gallery are sixteenth-century additions. The main building is two storeys, but the tower is three. The original interior, including all walls, is lost. The main façade, which faces the entrance to San Pedro de la Rúa, includes two early columns with narrative capitals: the left one tells the story of Roland and Ferragut, the right one is a scene from hell of four demons leading some misers to their punishment. Capitals decorated with vegetation top the other two columns.

External images

• Photograph before restoration, accompanied by extensive text in Spanish
• Photographs at La Guía Digital del Arte Románico
• Photograph at Flickr