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The State Hermitage Museum is the largest museum in Russia, with over 2.8 million works of art in its collection. The baroque Winter Palace, shown here, is the largest and the oldest part of the Hermitage, built 1754-1762 by Francesco Rastrelli. Click on any photo to see the full-size image. Need help? |
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The
museum is considered to have been founded in 1764, when Catherine II acquired 225 paintings by European artists.
She assembled this collection in her private portion of the palace,
her "hermitage" where she could withdraw from the rest
of the world. |
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The portico of the New Hermitage with atlantes by Aleksandr Terebenev, 1851. Six connected buildings make up the entire complex known today as the Hermitage. A larger version of this picture is available in the wallpaper gallery. |
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View from the New Hermitage across the front
of the Winter Palace to the dome of St Isaak's Cathedral. This
is one of the obligatory Saint Petersburg tourist shots, but what
a sight! |
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The Winter Canal separates the New Hermitage (left) and the Hermitage Theater (right). The Neva River can be seen through the arch. Now that we've seen the outside of the Hermitage, let's head inside. Do you have your tickets? |
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The Peter the Great Hall, built 1833-1834 by Auguste Montferrand. Like all too many of my pictures inside the Hermitage, this shot is a little blurry thanks to a strictly enforced "no-flash" rule in the museum. I debated whether I should even use them. However, even as blurry as they are, they still give you some understanding of how beautiful this place is. |
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The Gallery of the Patriotic War of 1812, built
1826 by Carlo Rossi. The walls are lined with 329 portraits of
the Russian generals who took part in campaigns against Napoleon
1812-1814. |
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St George's Hall or the Large Throne Room, built 1793 by Giacomo Quarenghi and reworked (due to fire damage) 1837-1839 by Vasiliy Stasov. Note the bas-relief sculpture of St George slaying the dragon over the throne canopy. Also, you may be able to tell that the inlaid wood floor mirrors the design on the ceiling. The big dance scene in the movie Russian Ark took place in this room. |
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The Pavilion Hall, built 1856-1858 by Andrey
Stakenshneider. This room occupies almost the entire second floor
of the Small Hermitage. |
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The Hanging Garden, viewed from the Pavilion Hall. This outdoor garden is located on the second floor of the Small Hermitage. About six feet of soil rests on metal sheeting atop the first floor of the building. |
Hermitage
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