The building was constructed between 1820 and 1823 at the initiative of Stanisław Staszic, a well-known Polish statesman and public figure, an Enlightenment ideologist, journalist, philosopher, scholar, writer, and patron. The architect Antonio Corazzi designed the project in the classical style. After the construction was completed, Staszic transferred the building to the Warsaw Society of Friends of Science, the first scientific organization in Poland.

In the late 19th century, it housed the 1st male gymnasium, where classes were taught in Russian. In 1890, Senator A. L. Apukhtin proposed changing the architectural style of the building to ancient Russian. The reconstruction project was carried out by architect V. N. Pokrovsky, and a chapel dedicated to Saint Tatiana was added to the building.

In 1924 and 1926, the building was rebuilt again, this time in the neoclassical style, according to the design of Marian Lyalovich. During the interwar period, several scientific institutions were located here, including the Warsaw Scientific Society, the Myanovsky Fund, the State Meteorological Institute, and the Archaeological Museum of Warsaw.