The Hermitage Throne Room - history, features and interesting facts

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

If you have been to St. Petersburg, then you must have visited the Hermitage. You can only envy, because you have seen the most luxurious museum in the world. It is on a par with such giants as the Metropolitan, the British Museum, the Louvre. The throne rooms of the Hermitage amaze visitors.

The museum has more than 3,000,000 pieces of art. To see all the expositions, you need to overcome 20,000 km. If you examine each exhibit for about one minute, it will take 8 years of life. In this article you will find a description of the throne rooms of the Hermitage. The museum complex consists of 5 buildings. All of them are interconnected and located on the Palace Embankment.

Winter Palace

This is a legendary building, it is the most famous in the world. The current Winter Palace is the fifth building in a row and has an extensive history. The building that our generation inherited was created by the great architect Rastrelli in 1754-1762. It belongs to the Baroque style, with some rococo touches. With the advent of the Sovietauthorities in the building of the Winter Palace placed the main exposition of the State Hermitage.

Until 1904, Nicholas II lived here in the cold season. Later, the ruler began to spend the winter in Tsarskoye Selo. It is hard to imagine that in 1915-1917 a hospital was organized here, which was named after Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich.

During the October Revolution, the palace was occupied by the Provisional Government. In the winter of 1920 of the last century, the Museum of the Revolution was opened here. Before the start of the Second World War, he shared one location with the Hermitage. Modern St. Petersburg is proud of the Winter Palace and Palace Square, which form a single architectural ensemble.

Small throne room of the Hermitage in the Winter Palace

It was designed in 1833 by the architect O. Montferrand. It is also called the Petrovsky Small Throne Room of the Hermitage, as it is dedicated to the memory of the great Peter I.

Here is the emperor's throne, made of silver and gilded. It was made in Great Britain by C. Clausen in 1731. Behind him, in a triumphal arch of jasper, is the painting "Peter I with the goddess of wisdom Minerva", written by Jacopo Amigoni. Above are pictures from which you can study the history of the Northern War. The canvases depict the battle near Poltava and the battle at Lesnaya. They are written by B. Medici and B. Scotti.

The interior of this throne room of the Hermitage is decorated with the monograms of Emperor Peter I - double-headed eagles and a pair of "P" characters in Latin. The hall is draped with silver-embroidered panels thatMade from crimson Lyon velvet.

Great Throne Room

It is also called St. George's Hall. The project of the Great Throne Hall in the Hermitage was created by J. Quarnegie in 1790 on the orders of Catherine II. For almost 130 years, the most important ceremonies and receptions of diplomats took place here, that is, the most important decisions in the political life of the Russian Empire were made here. Today the hall is open only for special events. This is a huge room, the interior of which is designed in two colors. The hall was consecrated on November 26, 1795, the day of St. George the Victorious.

In 1837 there was a terrible fire. The throne room of the Hermitage completely burned out, but it was restored by Stasov on the orders of Nicholas II. The ruler wished to veneer the premises with a rare kind of white marble. The work turned out to be very difficult, which is why the opening of the hall happened later.

Above the throne, you can see a marble bas-relief called "George the Victorious slaying the dragon."

First meeting of the State Duma

April 7, 1906, an important event took place. For the first time, deputies of the State Duma gathered in the Georgievsky Hall. In a solemn atmosphere, Nicholas II himself came out to discuss state affairs. Various people took part in the meeting: lawyers dressed in frock coats, villagers in homespun shirts and caftans, as well as clergymen.

During the revolution in 1917, all the symbols of the empire were removed from the Great Throne Hall in the Hermitage. With comingSoviet power destruction of relics continued - in 1930 the throne was completely destroyed. After the Second World War, it was decorated with a huge map of the USSR, which was made from gems. Its creation was timed to coincide with the World Exhibition in Paris in 1937. In the 80s it was sent to the Mining Museum. During 1997-2000, artists and historians completely restored the throne site.

Military gallery of 1812 in the Hermitage

This room is number 197. The gallery is a speaking monument to the exploits of the Russian people. There are 332 portraits of generals here. All of them honestly fought for their Motherland in 1812. Some of the heroes led the campaign of 1813-1814. The project of the gallery was created by K. Rossi, and the author of the paintings is Dow. Also Russian artists - Polyakov and Golike took part in the writing. Portraits were mostly painted from nature. Some of the heroes were not alive at the time the gallery was created; these portraits were redrawn from previously painted paintings. In the northern wing of the hall there are canvases depicting Alexander I and Frederick William III, who was his ally.

Theatre Foyer

In the passage between the Great Hermitage and the theater there is a foyer that simply shocks guests with its stunning decoration. It was designed by the famous architect Benois in 1903. The style of this room is French Rococo. Lush garlands of vegetation are located here. The canvases that adorn the walls of the foyer are framed by gilded scrollwork and rocaille.

The ceiling of the hall deserves special attention. On it you can see copies of the paintings of the Italian Luca Giordano. itfamous:

• "Judgement of Paris";
• "Abduction of Europe";
• The Triumph of Galatea.

Above the entrance to the hall hangs a painting depicting the ruins, the author of which is Hubert Robert. The walls are decorated with portraits painted in the 18th-19th centuries. The huge windows of the foyer offer a gorgeous view of the Neva River and the Winter Canal.

The Hermitage has only 365 halls. Each of them is unique in its own way and carries a piece of the history of our great Motherland to the masses. Every year it is visited by millions of guests - citizens and guests of St. Petersburg. The exterior of the palace complex is no less majestic than its interiors. The Winter Palace is especially good at night, when the lights are on, which are reflected in the Winter Canal. This is a channel that brings together two beautiful rivers - the Moika and the legendary beauty Neva.