The State Hermitage Museum occupies 6 magnificent architectural edifices buildings that are situated along the bank of the Neva River in the heart of St. Petersburg, Russia. The Hermitage Museum main building is comprised of the Winter Palace, the residence of the Russian Tsars.
Exhibits change periodically and are based upon various collections of the 3-million+ items in the collection. New items are acquired as they become available & items are loaned to other museums around the world from time to time. , the residence of the Russian tsars that was built to the design of the famous Italian architect, Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, in 1754-62. This ensemble of beautiful architectural marvels, formed in the 18th. & 19th. centuries, is made up of the eastern wing of the General Staff building, the Menshikov Palace as well as the newly constructed Hermitage Repository.
Assembled over the past 2 1/2 centuries, the Hermitage Museum's collections of art numbering over 3,000,000 along with historical items such as clothing, weapons, toys, crystal, dinnerware, porcelain, clocks, scientific tools & jewelry represent the development of culture as well as art from the Stone Age up to the 20th century. Today the Hermitage has created its digital entity to be displayed via the Internet to the entire world. Computer technology enables the Hermitage Museum to teach & show people the world over about the Museum & its treasures.
The following time-line demonstrates the history of the Hermitage Museum. From its beginning in the 18th century as the private collection of the Tsarina Catherine II to the 20th century when it became 1 of the largest museums in the entire world.
1754-1762
Construction of the Winter Palace commissioned by Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. Architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli (1700-1771)
1762
Empress Catherine II's accession to the Throne
1764
Empress Catherine II purchases Johann Ernest Gotzkowski's collection, the first collection of the Museum
1764-1775
Construction of the Small Hermitage
1769
Purchase of Count Heinrich von Bruhl's collection
1771-1787
Construction of the Great Hermitage
1772
Purchase of Baron Pierre Crozat's collection
1779
Purchase of the Walpole collection
1781
Purchase of Count Baudouin's collection
1783
Construction of the Hermitage Theatre
1787
Purchase of the John Lyde-Brown collection, London
1795
Creation of the St George Hall
1815
Purchase of Empress Josephine's collection
1825
Emperor Nicholas I's accession to the throne
1826
Creation of the Military Gallery of 1812 by Carlo Rossi
1830-1840
Finishing of the interiors designed by Alexander Bryulov
1833
Creation of the Fieldmarshals' Hall and Peter I's Room (Small Throne Room) by architect Auguste Montferrand
1837
Fire in the Winter Palace
1840
Reconstruction of the state halls of the Winter Palace by Vasily Stasov following the fire of 1837
1850
Purchase of the Cristoforo Barbarigo collection
1852
Opening of the Imperial Museum of the New Hermitage
1858
Construction of the Pavilion Hall by architect Andrei Stakenschneider
1860
Creation of state rooms in the Large Hermitage by architect Andrei Stakenschneider
1861
Purchase of the Marquis Gian Pietro Campana collection
1865
Purchase of Leonardo da Vinci's Madonna and Child (Litta Madonna)
1870
Purchase of Raphael's Madonna and Child (Conestabile Madonna)
1884
Purchase of the Alexander Basilewski collection
1885
Transfer to the Hermitage of the Imperial Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal collection
1895
Emperor Nicholas II's accession to the throne
1914
Purchase of Leonardo da Vinci's Madonna with a Flower (Benois Madonna)
1914
Start of World War I. A hospital is opened in state rooms of the Winter Palace.
1917
The February Revolution and Emperor Nicholas II's abdication
1917
The October Revolution removes the Provisional Government
1917
The Winter Palace and the Hermitage are declared state museums
1920
The Hermitage transfers 460 items to the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow
1920-1930
Acquisition of items from nationalized private collections
1932-1934
Sale of Hermitage collections and transfer of works of art to museums of the Union Republics of the USSR
1941
Start of World War II for Russia and evacuation of the Hermitage collections to the Urals
1945
Re-opening of the Museum after the conclusion of World War II
1948
Acquisition of a collection of late 19th ? early 20th century European paintings from the former collections of Sergei Shchukin and Ivan Morozov
1964
The 200th anniversary of the Hermitage
1967
First donation by L.N. Delektorskaya of works by Matisse
1981
Opening of a museum in the Menshikov Palace, a new branch of the State Hermitage
1992
Opening of the display "The Winter Palace of Peter I" in the building of the Hermitage Theatre
1995
The exhibition "Hidden Treasures Revealed"
1996
By decree of Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the State Hermitage is placed under the direct patronage of the President of the Russian Federation
1996
The official announcement of the creation of the international Hermitage Friends Club
1997
The return of Rembrandt?s Danae to public viewing following restoration work
1997
A small planet in the solar system, ?4758, is given the name Hermitage
1997
The beginning of the Hermitage - IBM Project
1999
The transfer of the national flag of the Russian Federation and of the standard of the RF President to the State Hermitage
The opening of exhibitions in a new museum building : the Eastern Wing of the General Staff building
The presentation of the "Great Hermitage" programme
2000
The opening of the Hermitage Rooms in Somerset House (London)
2001
The "Russian Ark" project of the State Hermitage and Alexander Sokurov
The opening of the Hermitage-Guggenheim exhibition centre in Las Vegas, USA
2002
The transfer of Kasimir Malevich?s painting Black Square to the State Hermitage
2003
The creation of the State Hermitage's Board of Trustees
The opening of the Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace and the new entrance to the State Hermitage from Palace Square
The opening of the Great Courtyard of the Winter Palace and the new entrance to the State Hermitage from Palace Square
The inauguration of the Museum of the Guards in the General Staff building
2004
The inauguration of the displays of the Museum of Heraldry and the Museum of Awards and Decorations in the Konstantinovsky Palace
The opening of the Hermitage-Amsterdam exhibition complex in the Netherlands
No trip to Russia is complete without going to St. Petersburg & visiting the Hermitage Museum. Take your camera, a lot of film or memory chips, comfortable shoes, a note book & enjoy learning history through beauty! Plan on more than one day as well!
SOURCES:
The Hermitage
By: State Hermitage Museum
ISBN #: 978-0385419666
Treasures of Imperial Russia Catherine the Great From the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
By: Isabella Forbes & William Underhill
ASIN: B000FNABGK
State Hermitage" (Our Museums) Hermitage Museum Guide in Russian
By: Statr Museum
ASIN: B000G3AJQG
http://www.hermitagemuseum.org/html_En
Copyright © 2007 - 2009 Donald R Houston, PhD. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the author's consent.
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