[3] The edifice was built during the reign of sultan Moulay Ismail in the early 18th century over the ruins of the English "Upper Castle".

[2] The building is situated in the eastern part of the Kasbah,[1]: 650  on one of the highest points of the city overlooking the medina and the Strait of Gibraltar.

The elegant marble capitals of the columns in the main courtyard were most likely imported from Italy at the time of construction in the mid-18th century.

[6]: 313  Dependencies facing the Kasbah's Mechouar include a former Bayt al-mal or treasury, created in the late 18th century,[5]: 10  and prisons.

[7] The museum's Contemporary Art Space opened in late 2021 in the palace's former prison facing the Mechouar,[3] which had remained in use until the early 1970s.