During the 13th century the Castle, like the rest of the Italian cities, also had its own municipal development, and it is within this context that the construction of the palace now known as “Floris-Thorel” in Lamarmora Street, then called “Ruga Mercatorum,” can be placed.
The palace began to play an important role from the 17th century when, under the Spanish Crown, a part became the seat of the Prosecutor’s Office of the King of Spain. It was the Spaniards themselves, in 1603, who financed the first public work in the Castle, namely the construction of Piazza San Carlo, today’s Piazza Carlo Alberto, based on the design of the famous architect Scipione Aprile as well as the restoration of all neighboring public buildings, including the Floris-Thorel Palace. The splendid monumental staircase that still exists inside today probably dates from this date. The main characteristic of the architectural structure of the Palace is that it has remained almost unchanged over the centuries; in fact, it was not included within the shortlist of buildings restored by Gaetano Cima, and there is news of only one major intervention that took place in 1892, which, however, did not change its structure in any way. The beginning of the 20th century saw the decline of the flourishing intellectual and bureaucratic activity that took place within the Palace’s walls. The Floris-Thorel family began to fade away, and in 1904 a distant relative, Francesco Floris Frau, purchased for the price of 31,000 lire the part of the palace that was the seat of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, which, having escaped the bombings of World War II, has been preserved intact to this day. At present, the palace has been purchased and restored respecting the original architectural lines by a Cagliari entrepreneur who, combining tradition and modernity, wanted to embellish the space with some modern design elements, including splendid chandeliers by master glassmakers from Murano, which go to emphasize the centuries-old parts of the structure. From the end of May, it will become a multipurpose exhibition space.
