The chapter house has been used since the 1700s as cumbessias, dwellings for pilgrims hosted during the feast of St. Antiochus. The building did not take on the appearance of a palace until around 1800, when a side staircase was built to reach the second floor. Twice a year, on the feast of St. Antiochus, bishops and prelates would move from Iglesias to stay in the rectory. Following the law of August 21, 1862, which provided for the dissolution of many religious bodies, the palace passed to state ownership. The municipality decided to buy it in 1858 as accommodation for elementary classes, the National Guard, and the magistrate’s court on the ground floor. At the end of the 19th century, some restoration work was carried out, but from the first decade of the 20th century, the palace was abandoned. From January 2, 1930 it was restored by the Gallus firm and delivered on July 7 of that year. Throughout the front and side elevations the Art Nouveau style was adopted. From 1931 it housed municipal offices until 1955, when the municipality was moved to Corso Vittorio Emanuele. It was then reclassified as the site of the starter school, high school and library. It still houses the municipal library and the cultural center, which includes an exhibition hall on the ground floor and a convention hall on the 1st floor, home to various cultural initiatives. Currently, on the ground floor, it is possible to visit an immersive room, built with funding from R.L. 7/1955, with in-depth multimedia content on St. Antiochus also for the purpose of promoting knowledge of the cult of St. Antiochus and the festivities in his honor.
