It took the Palazzo Carafa name, when the the Bishop Oronzo ordered the renovation of the building during the 18th century(1764-1771). During the second part of the 19th century the building was abandoned by the nuns and employed as a boarding school for girls run by the Marcelline nuns. When another building was assigned to the Marcelline, this Palazzo was bought by the Town Council and modified by the arch. Pasquale Ghezzi in order to trasform it into the Town Hall. In that period, in order to get a central portal a national competition was announced. On the wings of the oak dorway, there are two reproductions of the coat of arms of theAltavillas, Briennes, d’Enghiens and Orsini del Balzo, in other words the Counts of Lecce.
The former Convent of Celestini is the Palace of the Lecce District and of the Head of the Police today. Originally designed by Riccardi, its front consists of two levels; the lower part decorations are ascribed to Giuseppe Zimbalo(1659-1688) , where the more sparklyng and living upper part to Giuseppe Cino (1688-1695).In 1655 the cloister consisted only of colonnades.The jutting out gargoils of the cornice are a clear influence of the Romanic school. The symbols of Pope, the Bishop tiaras and other coat of arms displayed are the hommage of the families that supported the building of the Palace.
During the XVI th century the Bishop of Castro Angelo Giaconia(1530-1563) promoted the building of a noble palace close to the St. Mary of the Angels church and the convent of the St. Francis of Paola.Building activities started in 1546 inside the old city walls.The Palace has been frequentely renovated following the tastes of the different owners ensued through the centuries
It is an old noble palace belonged to the Palumbo and Turrisi families, then left to the local Curia.The origins of the building date back to the XVI th century even if it has been renovated several times through the years. It has a quandrangular shape with two floorsand a raised groundfloor plus a basement