The traditional seat of the Lamido of Adamawa, the descendant of the 19th-century Fulani emir Modibbo Adama who still holds an important ceremonial role in northeastern Nigeria. The palace is a low-walled compound of mud-brick buildings, used both as residence and as the venue for the Lamido's weekly court.
Visitors can usually approach the gate and look in on the open courtyard; entering further requires arrangement through a local contact. The annual Durbar festival, with mounted nobles in elaborate dress, is the moment to see the palace at its most active.