The Hermitage is a giant complex of museums containing the winter palace originally built for Peter the Great’s daughter, Elizabeth. Elizabeth died before the building was finished but was used by others- such as Catherine the Great. The art collection was started by Catherine the Great and has continued to grow. Interestingly Catherine purchased art that was originally intended for Fredrick II from Prussia. Most of the art isn’t on display. It is the biggest museum of art in Russia and one of the biggest in Europe. There are 5 buildings in total (Winter Palace, Large Hermitage, Small Hermitage, New Hermitage, and the theatre). The Hermitage contains 233, 345 square feet of museum, and 1, 013, 653 pieces of art. It’s honestly mind blowing.
The Hermitage is the kind of place I had only dreamed of going. It is a beautiful building filled with beautiful art created by masters- Matisse, Picasso, Van Gogh, Renoir, Vallotton, Degas, Monet, Rousseau, Michel Angelo, DaVinci, and more. Yes, you can Google this art and see pictures of it- but standing in front of a masterpiece, something I had only seen in textbooks and seeing the texture of the paint and the detail is simply unreal. It is seeing a piece of notable history- something that is read about, talked about, and analyzed to this day years after it was created. It is an honor.
It is an overload of beautiful art. This is due to the building being is art itself. The Hermitage is full of ornate rooms gilded with gold and with incredible murals and detail. One can see a throne room and then go see a Da Vinci- talk about an expirence.
Not only is the building and the art beautiful, the location of the building is incredibly scenic. The Hermitage sits on the Neva river. So whilst in a beautiful room looking at wonderful art one can look out a window to an amazing view of the Neva river or the palace square which is also a beautiful view.
I had no idea that Saint Petersburg was a city of ornate beautiful palaces or that it has one of the biggest art museums in Europe. So in that way, my view point of Russia changed. I knew Peter wanted a western city so I expected more Italian architecture. I also knew it was a city rich in history and further I knew Russia had an abundant culture but I wasn’t expecting a gilded, canal filled, pastel colored city. Others assured me it was a cold grey block city, remnants of the soviet union- a result of a horrible stereotype and I hope that I can show them otherwise. Saint Petersburg is a more diverse city than I thought and a more picturesque city than expected. However, in general I don’t think Russia is much different in terms of museums- don’t get me wrong- the Hermitage is unique but there are several other very large museums that hold similar masterpieces. What sets it apart, from what I can tell, is the building itself. Each room is a historic piece and an art piece and is a must see if one is in St. Petersburg.
Walking through the Hermitage it gave a window into the past- of what life must have been like for Catherine the Great and those who lived there.
** you can click on any of the pictures to see a bigger size. The following are just a few examples, if you have the desire to see more of the buildings or the art you can see their online collection via the Hermitage website:
http://hermitage–www.hermitagemuseum.org/wps/portal/hermitage/explore/artworks/?lng=en
The Dancer – Degas
One of my favorite pieces of art that I saw
Cites used:
http://www.saint-petersburg.com/virtual-tour/hermitage/
http://hermitage–www.hermitagemuseum.org/wps/portal/hermitage/explore/history/?lng=en
http://www.hermitagemuseumfoundation.org/the-museum/history/
The Hermitage was one of the most beautiful and interesting places we saw in St. Petersburg and on the trip as a whole. I found it funny that it was the only a place we visited that the tsars used from the time it was built until their fall, when the Peterhof and several places the tsars seemed to have gotten bored with and never went back to. it was also interesting that the palace exuded enough power that the provisional government that overthrew the tsars first set up their new government within it. Afterwards the Soviets found a way to keep the palace in full splendor and use and put Catherine the Great’s massive art collection to use.