Palazzo Madama, Rome

Palazzo Madama, seat of the Italian Senate since 1871, stands near Piazza Navona and takes its name from Madama Margaret of Austria, who once lived there. The Baroque facade, added in the seventeenth century, is adorned with playful cherubs and grotesque masks. Behind it lies a rich sequence of frescoed halls used for the upper chamber's sittings. The building rose over the ruins of ancient Roman baths, layering centuries of history beneath its floors. Guided tours on select Saturdays let visitors see the chamber and state rooms.