What awaited the next morning was – LINES!! It was Sunday morning, more ships were in port and everyone was going to the Hermitage;-(.

REALLY!!!!

But – all was worth the wait. The Hermitage Museum complex contains a staggering three million pieces of artwork housed in a series of imperial buildings on Palace Square. The most prominent is the eggshell blue Winter Palace built in 1754-1762 by Peter the Great’s daughter, Elizabeth. This was the czar’s official city residence, built by Italian architects in the Elizabethan Baroque style, named for the czarina who popularized it. The entire palace is designed to impress, astonish and humble visitors with the power of the Romanov dynasty. And it did!

Extravagant gilded decorations cover the walls, alabaster statues watch over visitors and the Greek gods relax in the clouds above. The double-headed Romanov eagle is a common symbol everywhere – indicating the ability to look ahead and behind to protect.

Peter the Great Room (Small Throne).

There are actually two throne rooms in the Palace. The ‘Small Throne’ room (above) is to pay homage to Peter the Great and the walls are emblazoned with the double-headed Romanov eagle. The St. George Room – or Large Throne Room – was created in the 1840’s as the setting for official ceremonies and receptions. The magnificent parquet floor is made from 16 types of wood and the design is a mirror image of the gilded ceiling.

The War Gallery of 1812 displays more than 300 portraits of the generals who helped to expel Napoleon from Russia in 1812.

In 1762, Catherine the Great commissioned the Small Hermitage be built, as there was not enough room in the Winter Palace to display all the art she had collected. The Pavilion Hall was a connector, decorated in the French Renaissance style with MUCH gold – –

One more dance in another Grand Hall;-)

When the Small Hermitage would no longer hold the artwork collected, the Old and New Hermitages were constructed. Once through the rooms of the Winter Palace, one begins to see the magnificent art collections. With over 3 million pieces, we didn’t put a dent in what was to be seen.

An early Leonardo da Vinci – Benoit’s Madonna (1475-78)

Raphael Loggia and Majolica Room – A long narrow hallway (200 feet long, 13 feet wide) decorated with colorful paintings is a replica of one of the painter Raphael’s – the Vatican Loggia in Rome – which Catherine the Great had replicated in the 1780’s.

And so, a very brief visit to the Hermitage ended as did our stay in St. Petersburg. For all the comments received prior to our visit – we did not find the city a bleak gray with unfriendly, unhappy people. There was a very European-ish city with tremendous sights to see (and we did not see anywhere close to all we would have liked to). The new Gas company headquarters just across from the piers did amuse us;-). And – we found the new football (soccer) stadium built for the 2018 FIFA championships an advertisement for St. Petersburg. That is not to say there weren’t crumbling apartment buildings all around – as there were. But, so are there projects in NY blocks from Fifth and Park Avenues.

A new edifice for the Gas company headquarters.

The stadium built for FIFA 2018.

The storm clouds parted and we were on our way to Tallinn, Estonia – –

A rainbow has been over our shoulder. Another opportunity to check one off of the Bucket List – happily. St. Petersburg was a sight to see.

Moving on – E & G