A rare slice of one of Canberra’s most exclusive, historically significant and tightly held enclaves is up for grabs.
It has long been one of Australia’s most unique addresses and now a rare chance has arisen to move into the prestigious heart of the nation’s diplomatic district.
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The suburb of Yarralumla is home to many of Canberra’s foreign embassies. Picture: realestate.com.au
The leafy blue ribbon address at 122 Empire Circuit, Yarralumla is set on a sprawling 4,557m2 corner block, counting over 40 embassies and High Commissions as direct and close neighbours.
“It’s certainly ‘embassy alley’. There’s embassies all along the street,” said Colliers agent Paul Powderly.
The property, featuring eight bedrooms and six bathrooms over two levels, is being offloaded by the Jesuits, who purchased it 40 years ago and used as the ‘Jesuit embassy’ until 2019, when the community of priests left the nation’s capital.
“It’s pretty quiet, you’ve got big blocks. It’s a very secure area with a lot of mobile patrols of the Australian Federal Police roaming around, keeping everyone safe,” Mr Powderly added.
The former Jesuit embassy is for sale for the first time in 40 years. Picture: realestate.com.au
There are currently 112 diplomatic missions in Canberra according to the National Capital Authority (NCA) which manages planning and development on behalf of the Australian government.
A total of 65 of the 112 have built or are developing in the diplomatic estates of Yarralumla, Deakin and O’Malley while the rest are renting commercial spaces or have bought or rented residential premises.
The sprawling block is neighbours to many foreign embassies, with blocks in this pocket almost never exchanging hands. Picture: realestate.com.au
Uniquely, Australia requires that foreign governments design their missions here to reflect their country’s national architectural style.
Taking a drive around the diplomatic precinct, you can see the High Commission of Canada decorated with striking red cedar eaves and framed by two Canadian maple trees, and the Embassy of Finland and Estonia inspired by the legendary ship ‘Illmarinen’ which sank in WWII, while the design also includes the traditional Finnish sauna.
Mexico’s embassy features the Mexican national emblem and Aztec calendar, while the Embassy of Greece features elegant columns crafted from the same marble used to build the Parthenon in Athens.
In fact, you can do a self-guided driving tour to observe the varying styles of architecture used to develop each nation’s embassy. The Diplomatic Estate Tour map is available on the NCA’s website and is one of its most popular pages.
Neighbours include the embassies of the Netherlands, Ireland, Germany and Spain. Picture: realestate.com.au
Surrounded by such diverse architecture in the heart of Yarralumla, 122 Empire Circuit is being touted for its redevelopment potential, whether for an embassy or executive’s residence or someone’s dream home.
“It’s in that best part of the suburb, really,” Mr Powderly said.
“It’s just a nice big block of dirt with a reasonable home that you could live in, but I suggest the person who will buy it would look to build their own dream home there.
“It’s a pretty tightly held area, because there are not a lot of blocks.”
The building offers flexible living arrangements for large families, multi-generational households, or diplomatic and executive accommodation. Picture: realestate.com.au
Just 26 hours into the Expressions of Interest campaign, Mr Powderly had already fielded over 40 inquiries. The ballpark range is probably around $5-6 million, he said.
As well as being home to dozens of diplomatic offices, Yarralumla is bordered by the scenic Lake Burley Griffin, home to the historically significant Government House, and close to the Parliamentary Precinct and Canberra CBD.
A spokeswoman from the National Capital Authority says the diplomatic precincts are not only of special significance to the national capital, but a symbol of Australia’s international cooperation.
“Expressing nations’ culture through architectural design contributes to the distinct character of the Canberra diplomatic estate and reflects the national and international significance of these areas,” she said.
According to Australian National University’s Noam Maitless – a practising architect and teacher of design thinking – an embassy is “more than a building”.
“It’s a nation’s physical presence abroad,” he said.
“The National Capital Authority’s encouragement for embassies in Canberra to reflect their home country’s architecture isn’t just about visual diversity; it’s about enabling nations to communicate their identity through the language of architecture: material, scale, detail, light, and symbolism.
“Its design speaks volumes about how a country wishes to be perceived: confident or modest, innovative or traditional, open or secure. When done well, embassy architecture embodies cultural meaning and conveys values in ways that transcend language.”
The suburbs of Yarralumla, Deakin and O’Malley are home to most of Canberra’s foreign embassies. Picture: Getty
Mr Maitless said these embassies offer glimpses into other cultures through built form and in doing so, enrich our city.
“In a city like Canberra – purpose-built as the seat of government – these diplomatic buildings contribute something special: a civic layer of international presence. Whether through a façade inspired by vernacular traditions, a distinctive construction technique, or a garden that recalls a home-country landscape, Canberra’s embassies remind us that we are uniquely connected to a global community.
“This is more than an aesthetic gesture – it’s a strategic one. Architecture operates as a form of soft power: projecting national identity, shaping perception, and making space for understanding.
“When we walk through the diplomatic precinct in Yarralumla or Deakin, we’re not just moving past a set of buildings; we’re moving through an ongoing conversation between nations.”
Expressions of Interest for 122 Empire Circuit close August 21 at 4pm.
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