Before the 16th-century Palazzo dei Diamanti in Ferrara, Italy, could undergo architecturally sensitive modernization, its ancient walls demanded extensive repairs. Damage caused by age and the introduction of air conditioning came to light when dry lining was stripped from various rooms.

Restoration work, valued at around $6.5 million, “is the result of a careful reflection on the historical and testimonial value of the pre-existing building,” notes Alfredo Ingletti, chair and founding partner of the project’s engineering design firm 3TI Italia SpA. “Therefore, the structural and plant engineering aspects have faced this challenge”.

In its “complex history,” the building had undergone periodic remodeling, leaving it largely devoid of an “overall unity,” according to the owner.

With its name derived from the exterior cladding of 8,500 diamond-shaped marble blocks, the palace first became an art gallery after its acquisition by the municipality nearly 200 years ago. This project also revived parts of the Palazzo that had been abandoned and inaccessible for years.