San Marino’s Public Palace, or *Palazzo Pubblico*, looks medieval, and that was the brief. The republic had rejected a neoclassical design as too pompous. It built this one over a decade from 1884, replacing a humble building from the late 1300s.

Poet Giosuè Carducci gave the speech at its inauguration in 1894. Today it houses the republic’s government. On 1 April and 1 October, new Captains Regent, the two heads of state, are announced from its balcony. Inside, a bust of Abraham Lincoln recalls the honorary citizenship San Marino gave him.

VoiceMap’s audio tours explain how the republic is run from here. They cover the 60-member Great and General Council and the Regents, whose six-month terms trace back to medieval consuls.