[4] The design of the palace is attributed to a British marine engineer and indeed its form introduced new architectural elements into the Zanzibar repertoire, including the wide external verandas supported by cast-iron columns, which allowed for uniquely high ceilings.

The construction materials consisted of an original combination of coral rag, concrete slabs, mangrove shoots or boriti, and steel beams.

Though this building served to attest to the modernity of the Sultan, other elements made it a functional palace, such as the covered passages above street level (called wikios)[what language is this?]

The Sultan ostensibly kept wild animals chained up for display in front of the building and had the main door made wide enough so that he could ride an elephant through.

The House of Wonders Museum, inaugurated in the early 2000s[5] has permanent exhibits on aspects of the Swahili and Zanzibari culture as well as the East African environment.

[2] Around this courtyard, developing on three floors, there are several rooms with other exhibits on a variety of subjects, including Swahili fishing tools and traditional ships, ceremonial kangas, portraits of Zanzibari Sultans and other notable Zanzibari people (including a famous portrait of slave trader Tippu Tip), elements of furniture from the Sultans' palaces, as well as information on East African biomes.

The House of Wonders had been closed due to disrepair, with large sections of the veranda and roof collapsing in 2012 and 2015, respectively, threatening the structural integrity of the rest of building.

This of course came as a shock and a great loss to Zanzibaris as the palace is a part of the region's history and is also a UNESCO heritage site[8] On 25 December 2020, a mansion which was being renovated after the government of Oman had released the cost of 10 billion shillings collapsed.