InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a management agreement to manage a 19th Century hotel on Milan’s Piazza Duomo.

IHG signed the deal with Statuto Group, the Italian real estate holding company, to manage the InterContinental Milan Grand Hotel Duomo.

The building – which was originally made entirely of marble – was built in 1860 but first became a luxury hotel in 1950 and welcomed guests such as The Beatles and Ernest Hemingway.

The five-star hotel is undergoing a refurbishment and when it reopens it will boast 137 rooms, including 17 suites, a restaurant and a spa and health club.

Jennifer Fox, chief operating officer of IHG Europe, said: “This is a major project for us; Italy is an extremely important destination for InterContinental Hotels & Resorts and we are absolutely delighted we have managed to secure such a great location to further our brand presence in the country.

“We believe that this new property will continue to strengthen our position in a market to which we are committed and we are extremely proud to be working with Statuto Group on the development.”

The hotel is scheduled to open in 2008.