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Palacio de Fomento

cultural property in Madrid, Spain

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 22, 2026
Entity authorityQ15253453 ↗
Source-derived summary

The Palace of Fomento (Spanish: Palacio de Fomento), also known as the Ministry of Agriculture Building, is a nineteenth-century office building in Madrid, Spain. Designed by Ricardo Velázquez Bosco, and built between 1893 and 1897, it is on a prominent site opposite Atocha railway station.

Use and name

The building's name has changed over the years reflecting the official name of the Ministry which occupies it. It was originally occupied by the Ministry of Development (Spanish: Ministerio de Fomento). For most of its life the building has been the seat of the Ministry of Agriculture, and the words "Ministerio de Agricultura" are prominently displayed in a cartouche on the facade.

Sculptures

In 1905, a group of marble sculptures by Agustí Querol Subirats entitled La Gloria y los Pegasos was placed on top of the building. The damage suffered during the Civil War and the inclement weather suffered over time deteriorated the sculptures, which were replaced by bronze replicas in 1976.

Heritage status and access

It was put on Spain's national heritage register in 1989 under the name Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food).

It is classed as a Bien de Interés Cultural or Property of Cultural Interest.

As at 2016 guided tours are available to the public outside normal office hours.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Palacio de Fomento” as cultural property in Madrid, Spain. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Palacio, Fomento and cultural.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1893, 1897, 1905, 1976—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1897. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Palacio, Fomento and cultural providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Palacio de Fomento”, the useful work is to connect “cultural property in Madrid, Spain” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q15253453. VIAF identifies the subject as 317027824. Authority coordinates are 40.409, -3.690. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1893, 1897, 1905 and 1976.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Palacio de Fomento”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Palacio de Fomento primary sources, Palacio de Fomento archive and Palacio research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Palacio de Fomento”?
  2. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
  3. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Subject index

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Palacio de Fomento” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.