Sitting in the middle of the lovely Buen Retiro Park, the Palacio de Cristal is an imposing glass palace built just 36 years after its counterpart, London’s Crystal Palace. The palace was designed by Ricardo Velazquez Bosco and is one of the landmarks and icons of the park. Built almost entirely out of glass, the palace’s façade is set in an iron framework while sitting on a brick base. The structure is decorated with ceramics and is topped with a gorgeous glass domed roof. In its entirety, the Palacio de Cristal is shaped like a Greek cross. Originally created in 1887, the palace was actually part of an exhibition in the Philippines, back when the country was still a Spanish colony.

4 Paseo Republica de Cuba, Madrid, Spain 28009, Phone: +3-49-17-74-10-00

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