Neo-Gothic palace
Green turrets.
Carlos Lopes from Uberaba-MG, Brasil — CC BY 2.0 · Clara — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cyro A. Silva from Rio de Janeiro, Brasil — CC BY 2.0 · TMbux — CC BY-SA 3.0
Ilha Fiscal is a small island in Guanabara Bay off Rio's historic centre, almost entirely taken up by a green-turreted neo-Gothic palace built under Emperor Pedro II for the customs service of the imperial capital. It is famous for the Ilha Fiscal Ball of 9 November 1889, given for visiting Chilean naval officers and remembered as the last ball of the Empire: six days later the Republic was proclaimed. Since 1914 the island has been the base of the Navy's Directorate of Hydrography and Navigation, and the palace is now a museum run by the Navy. Visits leave by schooner from the Navy Cultural Centre (Espaço Cultural da Marinha) near Praça XV, Thursday to Sunday and holidays, at 12:45, 14:15 and 15:30, and last about two hours. Tickets cost R$36 (half price R$18) and must be bought at least 30 minutes before departure.
Green turrets.
Across the bay.
Before the monarchy fell.
Guanabara Bay, off central Rio de Janeiro
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