Palace of the owners

Nieves, your tour guide for Seville, Cádiz and Córdoba will accompany you on such an outstanding tour explaining all the details of this famous monument, its main historical features and more than a nice anecdote. You can book a visit only to this place or include it in any of the guided tours that Nieves, your guide offers you.

The so-called palace of Las Dueñas is none other than the palace of the Dukes of Alba; Its name comes from the convent of Santa María de las Dueñas, whose properties were bought by the Pineda family to build their residence.

In 1484 the property passed into the hands of Catalina de Ribera, who belonged to one of the most powerful families in the city. The junction with the Álvarez de Toledo in 1612 linked forever the palace with the Casa de Alba (duchies of Alba de Tormes and Huéscar). After several centuries of matrimonial links with other lineages, the Duchy of Alba represents the most important and oldest noble family in the country, whose titles unite that of “Grande de España” since 1520.

The palace has remained closed to the public until 2014, when after the death of the Duchess Cayetana de Alba, very popular in Seville, her son and current Duke of Alba decided to open it. The building has the charm of preserving the memory of the duchess in the great halls full of furniture and paintings of different times, and in more intimate rooms where Cayetana spent her frequent Sevillian seasons, surrounded by artists of all kinds, especially flamenco and bullfighting.

The building is built around a large double-floor patio in Mudejar and Renaissance style, one of the largest and most beautiful examples of Seville. The small chapel, halfway between Gothic, Mudejar and Renaissance, is the oldest part of the complex.

The large and rich halls (Salón de la Gitana) that overlooks the patio, the stables, the halt, the Patio of Olive Oil, more modest, complete a visit that will undoubtedly remain in the memory of the visitor.

The Palace of the Dueñas also houses an important collection of works of art of all kinds: furniture, tapestries, ceramics and porcelains, Roman and Iberian antiquities, and paintings by various authors, including José de Ribera, Neri di Bicci, Jacobo Bassano, Luca Giordano, etc. The most complete is the art collection of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (Romero de Torres, Gonzalo Bilbao, Sorolla, Madrazo, Zuloaga, Mariano Benlliure, Carmen Laffón…)

Intimately linked to the childhood of the poet Antonio Machado (born in one of the houses of the palace, of which his father was an administrator) the lush gardens surrounding the buildings surprise the visitor with a rich and careful botanical collection that brings greenness and freshness to the visit.

To visit Seville, Cádiz or Córdoba I offer you the service of guided tours, because I am a tourism professional (Official Guide) and I will help you to know our culture. Enjoy tourism in Seville with the best guided tours (tourist tour) to get to know the city. In case you do not find the places or monuments of your interest, contact me through the contact form and I will inform you of any doubts you may have.