The Spanish government’s Patrimonio Nacional, or National Heritage agency, which runs many royal palaces and sites, is opening a new museum of royal collections later this month.

It’s the first major museum opening in Madrid in years and expected to contain treasures collected by Spanish monarchs through the centuries.

One piece of note will be the Crown of Atocha, which Queen Isabella II gifted to the Virgin of Atocha in the 1800s after surviving an assassination attempt.

The Crown of Atocha is replete with diamonds and topaz, and also includes a large halo. It is currently not on display.

Similarly, it was only in recent years that King Felipe VI put on display at the Madrid Royal Palace a crown from the 1700s that has been used for high occasions.

The large and heavy crown only looks like Spain’s heraldic crown. It contains coats of arms of kingdoms associated with the Spanish monarchy — but not necessarily Spain’s current constituent kingdoms.

The new Gallery of Royal Collections is considered a masterpiece building near the Madrid Royal Palace and the Almudena Cathedral.

King Felipe and Queen Letizia welcomed Jordan’s King Abdulla and Queen Rania for a visit last week, including a lunch at the Madrid Royal Palce.

King Abdullah was in Spain for a meeting of his Aqaba Process, which is focused on combating international terrorism.

Queen Sofía and King Juan Carlos, who has been living away from Spain in the Middle East, recently attended the wedding of Jordan’s Cown Prince Hussein.

Spanish media outlets were abuzz last month for the Catholic confirmation of Inflanta Sofía, 16, King Felipe and Queen Letizia’s youngest daughter.

The infanta wore fuchsia to the ceremony with classmates at the elite Santa María de los Rosales school in Madrid. King Felipe was her confirmation godfather.

It was a rare chance to see King Felipe, Queen Letizia, Princess Leonor, Infanta Elena, Queen Sofía and Queen Letizia’s parents — Jesús José Ortiz Álvarez and María de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodríguez — all together.

Absent from the ceremony was King Juan Carlos, who has been living in exile in the Middle East following probes for financial irregularities.

Gossip outlets seized on a moment when Queen Letizia appeared to intervene in Queen Sofía’s interaction with her granddaughters.

King Felipe welcomed high-profile U.S. guests to Zarzuela Palace in recent days.

Former secretary of state and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton made a stop during a visit to Spain.

Former Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, who runs NASA, visited the monarch to discuss increased space collaboration.

Spain’s royals hold many of their audiences at Zarzuela Palace just north of central Madrid. Higher-profile events happen at the Royal Palace downtown.

Princess Leonor, heir to the Spanish throne. celebrated her high school graduation last week with her parents and sister.

King Felipe, Queen Letizia and Infanta Sofia were on hand to celebrate the Princes of Asturias’ milestone.

Princess Leonor attended UWC Atlantic College in Wales. Also at the graduation ceremony was Netherlands King Willem-Alexander who was celebrating his daughter, Catharina-Amalia.

UWC Atlantic College is known for hosting notable students who interact with people from all walks of life. The Princess of Asturias will soon begin years of military training in Spain.

King Charles’ coronation this weekend shows how different the British Royal Family is from other European monarchies.

While the British put crowns on their king and queen, other countries simply proclaim their monarchs. In Spain and other countries, the crown remains to the side.

Spain doesn’t actually have a royal crown — at least not a physical one. The crown King Felipe used for his proclamation is similar to the heraldic crown use in Spanish coats of arms. It dates to the 1700s and is currently on display at the Madrid Royal Palace.

But before 2014, however, that crown stayed locked away. It was used for King Juan Carlos’ proclamation in the 1970s, but was not given as much importance as other crown jewels around the world. Looking at it closely, it’s not an updated representation of Spain’s constituent realms. That crown is also very large — larger than it seems.

The Spanish Royal Family have several tiaras and numerous pieces of jewelry that have been handed down. But through civil war, two republics, a dictatorship and other strife, few crown jewels remain and almost none are regularly on display.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia traveled to London this weekend to participate in the coronation of King Charles III and associated activities.

Their Majesties have traveled to London several times since becoming Spain’s king and queen in 2014. King Felipe’s proclamation was a more modest affair, largely because of economic and political crises, and did not involve royals from other countries.

Absent from the coronation was Queen Sofia, who is close to the British Royal Family. Her last public engagement was last week during an event for food banks in Spain.

King Felipe and Queen Letizia hosted Colombia’s new leftist president, Gustavo Petro, and his wife, Verónica Alcocer, for a state visit this week.

The visit included a welcoming ceremony at the Royal Palace in Madrid, meetings at Zarzuela Palace and then a dinner at the Royal Palace. Colombia also hosted a reception at the Royal Palace of El Pardo, as is tradition for some state visits.

Petro’s election generated headlines around the world. He’s an economist but also a former guerilla fighter.

King Felipe and Queen Letizia hosted Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his wife, Rosângela Lula da Silva, for a lunch at the Madrid Royal Palace last week.

Their Majesties welcomed the Brazilian leader to an official visit to Spain after a stop in Portugal. Brazil is a former Portuguese colony.

Later in the week, King Felipe held an event at the Royal Palace of El Pardo outside Madrid to celebrate the 10th anniversary of a foundation dedicated to promoting closer ties between Spain and Brazil.

The Spanish Royal Family broke with tradition again this year by skipping Easter services at the Palma Cathedral in the island of Mallorca.

Royal attendance at the mass has shrunk over the years and generated controversy in 2018, when Queen Letizia and Queen Sofia appeared to get into an argument.

The royals returned in 2019 but suspended attendance during the pandemic in 2020 and have not been back since. Media outlets this month were quick to note the absence.

King Felipe, Queen Letizia, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia did attend a religious procession in the Madrid area and suspended their agenda for private vacations.

Queen Sofia and her sister, Princess Irene, were at a charity concert in the Palma Cathedral ahead of Easter. Both are loyal visitors to the Balearic Islands for vacations.

King Felipe did make a quick visit to his mother, media outlets reported, and was seen at an Italian restaurant with friends.