Over the centuries the palace had multiple functions (it was a Venetian loggia, a warehouse for barley storage, the seat of the podestà, an archive, a prison and a theatre), and today is the centre of the Italian Community of Vodnjan. The building displays a clock from 1877 on its façade. The first floor keeps an extensive library while the lobby exhibits the permanent collection of the "Coats of arms of rectors and notable families of Vodnjan ".