Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
in 1909, the Russian architect Leon Benois surprised the art world when he revealed
that it was part of his father-in-law's collection.
Room 217
Giorgione is one of the most mysterious painters of the Renaissance, as
only a few paintings exist that are known for certain to be his work. A portrait of
idealised beauty,
Judith
is said to represent the inseparability of life and death.
Room 221
The work of Titian, the best representative of the Venetian school during
the 16th century, is featured here:
Dana
and
St Sebastian
are widely accepted as two
of his masterpieces.
Rooms 226-227: Loggia of Raphael
When Catherine the Great visited the Vat-
ican she was so impressed that she commissioned Quarenghi to create this copy of a
Vatican gallery; a team of Raphael's students recreated the master's murals on canvas.
Note the occasional Russification on these versions: the two-headed eagle of the Ro-
manov dynasty replaces the papal coat-of-arms.
Room 229
Here you'll enjoy two pieces by Raphael,
The Holy Family
and
Madonna
and Child,
as well as many pieces by his disciples. This room usually contains the
Hermitage's only piece by Michelangelo, a marble statue of a crouching boy.
JORDAN STAIRCASE
The main staircase of the Winter Palace - a magnificent creation of Bartolomeo
Rastrelli - is a great introduction to the opulence of the tsars and was originally
known as the Ambassadorial Staircase. However, in the 19th century it became
known as the Jordan Staircase as every year on 6 January the imperial family would
descend these stairs to the Neva River for the celebration of Christ's baptism in the
River Jordan. The tradition was to cut a hole in the ice and ladle out a cup of water,
which was then blessed by the Metropolitan of St Petersburg and cere-moniously
drunk by the emperor.
Rooms 289 and 304-308 comprise the private apartments of Tsar Alex-
ander II. His wife Maria Alexandrovna had most of them redesigned to
her liking when she moved here in the 1840s. Most spectacular is Room
304, the Golden Drawing Room, which features a fabulous gilt ceiling
and a marble fireplace with an intricate mosaic over the mantle.
