One of the most beautiful palaces in the City, Sponza palace, is located at the very end of Stradun street, next to the Bell Tower. This monumental Gothic-Renaissance palace served primarily as a custom house where merchants used to bring their trading goods to be taxed. But it also housed different state offices such as the mint, bank and the treasury. After the Great Earthquake, which Sponza palace survived, state affairs could have continued despite the heavy destruction in the city, which was possibly of crucial importance for the survival of the Republic in the post-earthquake era.

Today Sponza is the home to the Dubrovnik archive that contains 7000 volumes and about 100,000 individual scripts, making it a very valuable reference in research of the incredibly rich history of the City and the neighbouring regions. Moreover, the palace hosts a memorial room dedicated to the defenders killed during the siege of Dubrovnik (1991-1992).