User:Giano/Pena Palace
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The Palace of Pena (known in Portuguese as "Palácio da Pena" or "Castelo da Pena" in Sintra, Portugal is a former summer residence of the Portuguese Royal family, abandoned by its last royal occupant in 1910 after the fall of the Portuguese monarchy it is now a state owned museum open to the public.
The palace was the conception of King Consort Dom Fernando II and his director of works Baron von Eschwege. The site chosen was the ruins of the Hieronymite Monastery of Nossa Senhora da Pena, standing high in the mountains of the Serra de Sintra. The palace dates from 1839. The design chosen was a pastiche of the Portuguese interpretations of the Moorish, Gothic and Manueline forms of architecture which combine to form a romantic Gothic. The palace in its form and use has been likened to a Portuguese Neuschwanstein. [1] [2] However, the palace is more than that, in its inspiration on draws subtly, on the geographically nearerAlhambra. Yet the palazzo is far from a mere pastiche it is architecturally unique in both it's concept and design.