White façade
Neoclassical style.
Miguel hernandez — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rjcastillo — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Marcelo Ois Lagarde — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Draceane — CC BY-SA 4.0
Chile's presidential seat, a broad white neoclassical palace designed by the Italian architect Joaquín Toesca in the late eighteenth century as the colonial mint, hence its name «La Moneda», the coin. It has housed presidents since 1846. The palace witnessed the hardest moment of the country's modern history when it was bombed in the coup of 11 September 1973, then restored and reopened. Statues of Chilean presidents stand before it on the Plaza de la Constitución. Visitors come for the ceremonial changing of the guard with a military band in the square, held roughly every other morning. The inner courtyards can be visited on free tours booked ahead online. Beneath the southern square lies the La Moneda Cultural Centre with art exhibitions and craft shops. Bring your passport if you book a tour, and check the guard-change schedule before going, as it changes.
Neoclassical style.
With the band.
Below the square.
Plaza de la Constitución, central Santiago
Yes, on free tours of the inner courtyards booked ahead online; bring your passport.
