Gandori Palace - Palazzo Grandori is located in Viterbo immediately after crossing Fiorentina gate and closes one side of Piazza della Rocca with the Etruscan Museum housed in the large Rocca Albornoz. The building owes its name to the Grandori family, builders who had begun the construction of this building in 1880 to build a hotel serving the nearby railway.
In reality the building was never a hotel and was sold to the Cassa di Risparmio which made it a prestigious location and which enlarged the nearby Porta Fiorentina to allow better access to the square.
The Grandori family had been one of the most important in Viterbo and Don Alceste, a priest much loved by the Viterbesi and who lived between the two world wars. Don Alceste distributed all his wealth to the city in various ways: he founded two sports teams (Robur and Viterbium) and he founded a printing house teaching a trade to many children.
Among his works also the restoration of the Sanctuary of Santa Rosa and the lead covering of the dome. He died in 1974 amid the desperation of the city and today his body is buried in his beloved sanctuary.
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