IN historical center Petersburg on Palace embankment there is an amazing building - the Marble Palace, a masterpiece of architecture of the 18th century, where for the first time natural stone - granite and marble - was so widely used in external and internal decoration.
For a quarter of a century, the building has been part of the building, which in its halls launched activities to popularize modern fine art, highlighting the role of compatriots' creativity in world culture.
Historical reference
In the time of Peter the Great, this place was the Post Office Yard. During a fire in 1737, a wooden two-story building completely burned down, and the resulting site was empty for a long time, until Catherine II ordered to build a palace here for her favorite Grigory Orlov. Filled with gratitude to the Orlov brothers, with the help of whom she ascended the Russian throne, the empress showed truly royal generosity, sparing no means to create beautiful palace, personally tracking the progress of work and sketching.
The development of the project was entrusted to the Italian architect Antonio Rinaldi, who also supervised the construction. To implement an unusual idea, marble of different shades and varieties was delivered from Italy, Greece, Russia, after which it required painstaking and lengthy processing. The construction, which dragged on for almost two decades, was completed only in 1785, after the death of Orlov.
Catherine II, having bought the palace from the heirs of the most serene prince, presented it to her grandson Konstantin, who settled in it 10 years later - only after his marriage. Soon the grandmother evicted her grandson for bad behavior: the 16-year-old owner of the house fired rats from a cannon right in the room, frightening his wife.
In 1797 the palace became the home of the last king of Poland and his retinue. Having lost power in his country, Stanislav II Augustus spent the last two years of his life here.
Konstantin Pavlovich returned to the palace again, having received the title of Tsarevich (heir) in 1799, and after his abdication, the palace went to the treasury.
Until the end of the imperial reign of the Romanovs, the residence belonged to two more grand dukes named Konstantin: the son of Nicholas I - Konstantin Nikolaevich (admiral and one of the authors of the peasant reform), and then his grandson - Konstantin Konstantinovich (president of the Academy of Sciences and poet of the Silver Age). Not surprisingly, the palace was officially renamed Konstantinovsky.
In Soviet times, the building housed a branch of the Central Lenin Museum, and an armored car was installed in front of the eastern facade, similar to the one in which Ilyich spoke upon arrival in Petrograd. Later, the armored car was transferred to the artillery museum, and in 1994 the pedestal was occupied by the equestrian statue of Alexander III, made by Paolo Trubetskoy at the beginning of the 20th century - this largest and most monumental work of the famous Italian impressionist sculptor completed the ten-year period of his stay in Russia. Having caused conflicting assessments in society (many saw in it a caricature of the tsar), the monument was nevertheless installed on the square in front of the Moscow railway station, and since 1937 it has been kept in the storerooms of the Russian Museum. After the Marble Palace became a branch of the Russian Museum in 1992, and a new concept for its use was adopted - "Russian art in the context of the world", Trubetskoy's work was considered appropriate to include in the exhibition.
Building architecture
All facades of the building, made in the style of early classicism, are faced in the lower part with dark red granite. In the upper part, on a light gray granite background, Quaternary columns made of pink marble stand out, which alternate with window openings.
Facade of the Marble Palace from the side of the Neva embankment.
The gray marble window frames contrast with the white marble garlands placed between the rows of windows on the second and third floors. Around the perimeter of the attic there are vases made of gray dolomite. The design of the building, which has come down to us in its original form, is of great artistic value.
The main eastern facade is crowned with a tower with chimes. On both sides of it are figures symbolizing Generosity and Loyalty. The statues were made by the outstanding Russian master F.B. Shubin, more than 40 works of the sculptor adorn the interior of the palace.
As conceived by Antonio Rinaldi inside the building, the idea of stone facade decoration is continued by the main marble staircase, made in a restrained range of gray tones, strict and majestic at the same time. Its allegorical sculptural ensemble is unique, as it is the only work of its kind in St. Petersburg from the 18th century that has survived to this day. In the niches between the first and second floors there are four white marble statues - morning, afternoon, evening, night - representing the age categories: childhood, youth, maturity and old age. On the next floor, in rectangular niches, female and male figures symbolize the spring and autumn equinoxes. The entire ensemble is dedicated to Grigory Orlov and glorifies his exploits.
In the middle of the 19th century, the palace was overhauled and reconstructed under the guidance of the architect A. Bryullov. He created projects for new interiors of front and living quarters, applying different styles, using a variety of materials.
Exposition and attractions
On the ground floor of the main building of the Marble Palace there is a cloakroom, a ticket office and other auxiliary premises (by the way, we note that at the time of this writing, there was no cafe for visitors to the palace - keep this in mind if you are planning a long inspection).
ceremonial halls
The main halls and a significant part of the permanent exhibition are located on the second floor. The main building of the palace is the Marble Hall, which strikes with the splendor of decoration using Greek and Italian, Karelian and Ural marble of different colors, as well as Baikal lapis lazuli.
Marble Hall.
Originally one-story, after the reconstruction of A. Bryullov, who increased the space by removing the ceilings, the hall became two-tiered. Light entering through two rows of windows reflects off the walls, creating an indescribable effect of the inner glow of the stone. The hall is decorated with numerous bas-reliefs, as well as the plafond "Cupid and Psyche".
The “Orlovsky” Hall, through which you need to go through to get to the aforementioned Marble Hall, enjoys great attention among visitors.
"Orlovsky" hall.
Luxurious stucco ceilings, rich painting of plafonds, complex pattern of type-setting parquet cause invariable admiration.
Ceiling in the "Orlovsky" hall of the Marble Palace.
The walls of the "Orlovsky" hall are also decorated with stucco and high reliefs.
High relief in the "Orlovsky" hall of the Marble Palace.
The ceremonial halls of the second floor - Lacquer and Chinese, the Greek Gallery, the Winter Garden and the Royal Living Room were restored in 2002-2010.
"Museum Ludwig in the Russian Museum"
Historical interiors have been restored only in a few halls of the palace - restoration work in other halls is still ongoing. Most of the rooms are a white cube, which is quite consistent with the paintings by Roy Lichtenstein, Ilya Kabakov or Igor Makarevich placed in it.
The work of Igor Makarevich.
In a simple frame, modern sculpture also looks advantageous, represented by the works of Claes Oldernburg, Grisha Bruskin, Vladimir Yankilevsky and other authors.
Vladimir Yankilevsky. "Triptych No. 14".
The museum owes the appearance of such works to collectors Irene and Peter Ludwig. In 1994, they donated part of their luxurious collection to the Russian Museum as a free gift. A large sign at the entrance to the exposition contains a complete list of artists and sculptors whose works are exhibited: Warhol, Picasso, Burroughs, Beuys, Rauschenberg, Lüpertz, Wesselmann and many other equally famous names.
Tom Wesselman. "Steel Drawing".
Here, American pop art coexists with Russian impressionism, all conceivable and unthinkable genres of contemporary art are presented in several exhibition halls.
This is the only permanent exposition in Russia of works of the second half of the 20th century, which makes it possible to trace the trends in the development of Russian contemporary art and the place it occupies in the context of the world art.
Exhibition at the Ludwig Museum.
In addition, numerous other temporary exhibitions are dedicated to informal art, which are regularly held in the halls of the museum. Recall that the exposition "Ludwig Museum in the Russian Museum" is also located on the second floor.
Collection of brothers Rzhevsky
Another one permanent exhibition on the second floor of the Marble Palace is a collection of St. Petersburg collectors of the Rzhevsky brothers, also donated to the Russian Museum. Most of the collection consists of paintings by venerable artists of the 18th-20th centuries, among them: I.K. Aivazovsky, I.I. Mashkov, B.M. Kustodiev. In addition, there are graphics, sculpture, furniture and interior bronze, wonderful porcelain. Of particular interest are rare pieces of clocks included in the collection - floor, fireplace, travel. They were made by masters of the late 18th - early 19th centuries, they are distinguished by their sophisticated decor, unique mechanisms, battle with the performance of various melodies.
As for the main building of the Marble Palace, all the permanent exhibitions are listed above. Note that temporary exhibitions are regularly held on the third floor.
Exhibition "Konstantin Romanov- Poet of the Silver Age
The memorial exposition "Konstantin Romanov - Poet of the Silver Age" deserves special mention, located on the first floor of the left wing of the palace in the former chambers of the Grand Duke. They get here only as part of a thematic tour conducted by the staff of the palace.
One of the most prominent representatives of the era at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries, K.K. Romanov, a public and statesman, considered music and poetry to be his main love. Versatile gifted, he wrote poems, plays, critical articles. His lyrics inspired the best composers, and Romanov himself wrote romances based on the verses of Russian classics. His translation of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is considered one of the most successful, published in 1899, he was repeatedly reprinted.
The original interiors of the private apartments are perfectly preserved and immerse visitors in the atmosphere of the owner's aesthetic tastes. The study and music room are made of mahogany in the Gothic style, where each carved detail is unique. There are secret doors. A mysterious and mysterious atmosphere of solitude reigns here, which the author of lyrical lines so appreciated, hiding behind a laconic signature - “K. R."…
Where is it located and how to get there
The museum is located on the same line with winter palace(Hermitage) in front of the Field of Mars, in the area of the Trinity Bridge, at the address: Millionnaya Street, 5/1, which overlooks the southern facade of the building.
The nearest metro station is Nevsky Prospekt, but you need to walk ten minutes from it along the Griboyedov Canal embankment and then along the Field of Mars towards the Neva.
Since 1780, the decoration of the two upper floors was carried out. All work was completed by 1785. A clock tower was installed on the attic. Two figures by the sculptor F.I. Shubin were placed on the sides of the tower - Loyalty (on the right) and Generosity (on the left). In total, there were about 40 works by this master in the palace.
Copper sheets were made for the roof in Sestroretsk. Their fitting and soldering was carried out so carefully that the roof did not leak until the repair in 1931.
The main staircase of the Marble Palace is decorated with statues of Morning, Day, Evening and Night. On the platform from the second floor to the third one there are sculptures representing the autumn and spring equinoxes.
On the first floor there were kitchens, boiler rooms and a church consecrated in the name of the Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos. Service rooms were equipped with various mechanisms and devices. In the building on Millionnaya Street there was a machine for supplying water, a well with two pumps for supplying water to the front baths on the second floor. In the building along Marble Lane there is a well with a pump for supplying water to the Garden. In the Nevsky building - a pool for cleaning mechanisms.
In the northern part of the second floor of the Marble Palace was the Bolshaya Neva Enfilade. They got here from the Main Staircase through the Front and Oval Passage. From the Oval entrance one could get to the Lacquer Hall, or bypassing the Buffet and the Great Dining Room to get to the Marble Hall - the main room of the palace. In the Marble Hall there are bas-reliefs "Sacrifice", made for St. Isaac's Cathedral by A. Rinaldi. Behind this hall was the Orlovsky Hall, glorifying the activities of the Orlov brothers. Behind him - Ekaterininsky, who glorified Catherine II. From the south, Grigory Orlov's private chambers adjoined Catherine's Hall: the front bedroom, a garden with five apple trees, five cherries and a fountain. In the southeastern part of the palace there was an Art Gallery with 206 masterpieces of painting by Rembrandt, Titian, Raphael, Correggio, Poussin, Groot, van Dyck and others. In the southwestern part of the palace are the Greek and Turkish baths. In the northwestern part there are spare rooms of the Malaya Neva Enfilade: Study, Bedroom, Boudoir and Living Room.
On the third floor of the Marble Palace there were living quarters, a Library, two living rooms for playing cards, and a Chinese sofa room. In the building along Marble Lane there was a ball game hall.
The Marble Palace took so long to build that Count Orlov died before the work was completed, on April 13, 1783. By the time of the death of Grigory Grigorievich, Catherine II had another favorite and the palace caused unpleasant emotions in the count. Together with his wife, he lived in one of the modest Petersburg houses, which the Empress also gave him.
One of the St. Petersburg legends says that there was a secret door on the side of Marble Lane, which Catherine II allegedly used when visiting Orlov. This legend is refuted by the fact that the count never lived in the palace.
After the death of Orlov, Catherine II bought the Marble Palace from the descendants of the count and presented it to her six-year-old grandson, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich. The building has been empty for over 10 years. The Grand Duke settled in the palace only after his marriage to the Princess of Saxe-Saafeld-Coburg (Anna Feodorovna in Orthodoxy) in February 1796. Later, for bad behavior, the empress evicted her grandson from the palace. Konstantin Pavlovich, who at the time of the wedding was 16 years old (his wife was 14), shot live rats from a cannon in the premises and mocked his wife.
In 1795-1796, the captive leader of the Polish confederates Tadeusz Kosciuszko lived in the Marble Palace. After the death of Catherine II, it was liberated by Paul I. In 1797-1798, the Marble Palace was occupied by the former Polish king Stanislaw August Poniatowski. He lived here with his court of 167 people and 83 retinues. To receive the king and his entourage, part of the Marble Palace was rebuilt by V. Brenna. However, even after that, Poniatowski complained about the tightness. After his death on February 12, 1798, Konstantin Pavlovich returned to his residence. Despite this, it was in the Marble Palace that Paul I posthumously crowned Poniatowski.
Under Konstantin Pavlovich, the Marble Palace housed a large art gallery, a library, and a collection of porcelain. In the Ball Game Hall, the Grand Duke placed an Arsenal of Russian and foreign weapons and uniforms. In 1806-1807, A. Voronikhin remodeled a small suite of rooms along the Neva and a number of rooms along Millionnaya Street. Konstantin Pavlovich actually lived in the Marble Palace not from January 1813, when he joined the army and made a foreign campaign with it. In April 1814 he became governor of the Kingdom of Poland and left Petersburg.
After the departure of Konstantin Pavlovich, the Marble Palace passed to the Court Office. Here, apartments were rented to court officials. In 1830, the building was surveyed by architects V. Ochakov and H. Meyer. They recognized it as emergency, began a major overhaul.
On March 6, 1832, Nicholas I handed over the Marble Palace to his second son, Konstantin Nikolaevich. After the fire in the Winter Palace in 1837, silverware and a foreign library were stored here. On August 20, 1845, the project for the reconstruction of the Marble Palace was approved, which was completed by A.P. Bryullov. The ceiling of the Marble Hall was raised one floor. Next to it is the Main Dining Room. It was possible to get to Konstantin Nikolayevich's Front Office through the first hall of the Reception Room. Next to him, Bryullov created the Library, from which there was a passage to the Winter Garden, created on the site of the Garden. Next - the Great Hall, where concerts were held with the participation of M. Balakirev, A. Rubinstein, N. Rimsky-Korsakov. Nearby, Bryullov created an antique-style bathroom, restored the Turkish and Greek baths liquidated by Voronikhin. The arsenal was rebuilt in the Gothic style and was named the White Hall. Dance and musical evenings were held here. In 1857, an organ by G. Metzel was installed in the White Hall. An entrance appeared from the side of Marble Lane. Later, a legend appeared that it was through him that Catherine II went on dates to Orlov. The "Judgment of Paris" ceiling was moved from the former Lacquer Hall to the Main Staircase. All work was completed by 1849. On December 29 of this year, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich and his wife Alexandra Iosifovna moved into their new residence. By decree of December 20, 1849, the Marble Palace was ordered to be called "Konstantinovsky", but this name was rarely used in everyday life.
In the middle of the 19th century, a marble fountain group by an unknown sculptor "Putto with a branch" was installed in the garden between the Marble Palace and the service building.
The Marble Palace was rebuilt again in the 1860s. New classrooms, canteens, children's rooms were arranged here. A power station appeared, which provided electricity not only to the premises of the palace, but also to the lanterns on the Champ de Mars. Equipped lifting machines - elevators. In 1883, a telephone appeared here. The inhabitants of the palace entertained themselves by listening to opera performances through it.
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich was a supporter of the reforms of 1860-1870. In public life, the expression "the party of the Marble Palace" even arose.
After the death of Konstantin Nikolaevich, the palace was owned by his son - Konstantin Konstantinovich, known under the pseudonym "K.R." under him, chamber concerts, literary readings were held here, and amateur performances were staged. In 1884-1886, the architect A.K. Dzhiorguli remodeled the premises of the first floor along Millionnaya Street: Reception, Bedchamber, Gulevaya, Gorenka. They were decorated in the old Russian style, painted by the artist F. Sedov. The Bedroom, Living Room, Music Room, Study have also changed. In 1898, at the initiative of Konstantin Konstantinovich, a meeting of the Imperial Geographical Society was held in the Marble Palace, at which a decision was made to build the Ermak icebreaker according to the project of Admiral SO Makarov. The meeting was attended by D. I. Mendeleev and S. Yu. Witte.
In addition to Konstantin Konstantinovich, Grand Duke Dmitry Konstantinovich also had apartments in the Marble Palace.
During World War I, the palace housed a hospital for wounded officers. At the beginning of the revolution, the widow of Konstantin Konstantinovich (he died in 1915) still lived here. In 1917, she and her children had to move to Zherebtsov's house on Palace Embankment.
After the February Revolution, the Ministry of Labor of the Provisional Government was located in the basement of the Marble Palace. An agreement was even prepared for the purchase of the entire palace by the government for ten million rubles. However, after October 1917 the building was nationalized. Most of the art collections were transferred to the State Hermitage. At first, the People's Commissariat of Labor worked here. After the government moved to Moscow in 1918, the palace housed the apparatus of the authorized People's Commissariat of Education, the Administration of Museum Palaces, the Academy of History material culture(in 1919-1936), Society for Sociology and Theory of Art, Central Bureau of Local History.
After the liquidation of the academy, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Leningrad branch of the Central Lenin Museum. The building was rebuilt for museum purposes according to the project of N. E. Lansere and D. A. Vasiliev. The main staircase and the Marble Hall were preserved. In some rooms, artistic decoration was mothballed. The museum opened on November 8, 1937. On January 22, 1940, an armored car was installed at the entrance, from which Lenin spoke on the day of his arrival in Petrograd on April 3, 1917. In 1983, it was restored and placed again in front of the Marble Palace on April 15 of the same year.
In 1992, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Russian Museum. The armored car of V. I. Lenin was sent to the Artillery Museum. In its place, a monument to Alexander III was erected, using the same pedestal on which Lenin's armored car stood. Currently, the Marble Palace hosts temporary exhibitions of contemporary art, expositions of foreign artists. The premises are being renovated.
On January 24, 2002, the White Hall was presented to journalists after repairs. On June 7 of the same year, a meeting of the leaders of Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan took place here. They signed the charter of the Shanghai Regional Cooperation Organization.
The Marble Palace, a unique architectural monument of the 18th century, is located on the Palace Embankment of the Neva in the historical center of St. Petersburg. It was built in 1768 - 1785. designed by the Italian architect Antonio Rinaldi (1709-1794). The palace was erected by the order of Empress Catherine II and was intended for the General-Fieldzeugmeister Count G.G. Orlov (1734-1783).
G. Orlov did not live to see the end of the construction of the palace. After his death, Catherine II bought the palace from his heirs, the Orlov brothers, and presented it to her second grandson Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich (1779-1831) for his marriage, which took place in 1796. After his death, Emperor Nicholas I assigns the palace to his second son, the great Prince Konstantin Nikolayevich (1827-1892).
In 1844 - 1849. The Marble Palace and the Service House that belonged to it were reconstructed according to the project of the architect Alexander Bryullov (1798-1877) for the wedding of the new owner of the palace. The main changes affected the second floor, where a new planning structure was created, and the front and residential interiors received a new artistic finish. In place of the 18th century hanging garden was set up a winter garden.
In 1892, the Marble Palace was inherited by the son of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich - Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (1858-1915). He lived in apartments created for him on the ground floor of the palace, overlooking Millionnaya Street, artistic decorations, which have partially survived to this day. At present, a memorial exposition dedicated to the Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, a Silver Age poet who wrote under the cryptonym "KR", is deployed here.
The sons of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, who inherited the Marble Palace with the Service House after his death, for lack of funds to maintain the complex of buildings, were forced to sell it into national ownership. These events took place in the autumn of 1917, when the Provisional Government was already in power in Russia and the Ministry of Labor was located in the palace.
From 1919 to 1936 The palace housed the State Academy of the History of Material Culture. This period in the history of the palace is characterized by the spontaneous adaptation of the front and residential interiors of the building to the needs of a large scientific institution. During this period, the systematic restoration of the facades and lattice of the palace began.
In 1936, the Leningrad City Council decided to place the Leningrad branch of the Central Museum of V.I. Lenin. The work on designing the reconstruction of the palace and the creation of museum equipment was headed by N.E. Lansere (1879-1942). The new museum within the walls of the palace was opened on November 7, 1937. The museum, created in an extremely short time, was one of the first examples of a truly professional rethinking of an architectural monument in its new quality that meets the requirements of the time.
A new period in the history of the Marble Palace began in December 1991, when, by decision of the St. Petersburg City Hall, the palace was transferred to the disposal of the State Russian Museum. A new concept for the use of the Marble Palace was developed - "Russian art in the context of world art." Since that time, a systematic study and scientific restoration of the unique monument has been carried out. The decor, historical layout and volumes of the premises are being restored.
The Marble Palace also houses the permanent exposition of the "Ludwig Museum in the Russian Museum" - a collection of German collectors Peter and Irene Ludwig, who donated their collection to the Russian Museum, which presents works by domestic and foreign artists of the second half of the 20th century.
The expositions deployed in the constantly updated and restored halls of the Marble Palace reflect the role and place of Russian art in the context of the world art. Understanding this role allows you to better understand the originality of national traditions and the originality of domestic masters and, at the same time, to feel the traditional pan-European roots.
Architecture and interiors
The Marble Palace is a unique monument of Russian architecture of the second half of the 18th century. Along with the Winter Palace, the Marble Palace is the main attraction in the panorama of the Palace Embankment of the Neva. It is one of the few examples of early classicism architecture in St. Petersburg. In the history of Russian architecture, the palace is a unique example of the use of natural stone in the decoration of a building, its exterior facades are of the main artistic value, they have come down to us with a few exceptions in their original form.
The general composition of the facades consists in the solution of the first floor lined with dark red granite as the basis for a large order of the second and third floors of the building, lined with light gray granite.
The Corinthian order, which united the second and third floors with the help of pilasters and three-quarter columns made of pink Tivdia marble, with white marble bases and capitals, alternates rhythmically with window openings. The platbands and windows are made of gray Ruskeala marble. Relief white marble garlands are placed between the windows of the second and third floors.
The northern and southern facades of the palace face the Neva embankment and the Field of Mars, respectively, and are designed for perception from a great distance. They have clearly defined central axes of symmetry with balconies enclosed in niches with semi-circular endings and topped with a cartouche on the attic. Balcony railings are made of marble with gilded bronze balusters. On the attic of the building along the entire perimeter of the outer facades there are vases of gray dolomite.
Between the palace and the service house, on a granite plinth of red granite, there is a forged lattice with gilded decorative elements. The granite pillars of the fence top off the marble vases, and on the sides of the entrance gate there are marble military fittings.
The main eastern façade of the palace, facing the front courtyard - kurdaneur has a rich sculptural decor. It is crowned by a watch pavilion decorated with marble vases, which houses the palace chimes, recreated by the Russian Museum in 1999. Two marble allegorical statues are installed on the sides of the pavilion: "Generosity" and "Fidelity" by F. I. Shubin.
Since 1994, an equestrian statue of Emperor Alexander III by P. Trubetskoy has been exhibited in front of the main entrance to the Marble Palace. It has been kept in the collection of the Russian Museum since 1939, and earlier in 1909 - 1937 it was located on Znamenskaya Square (now Vosstaniya Square) in front of the Moscow Railway Station. This work is an outstanding monument of Russian monumental sculpture of the early 20th century.
Upon entering the Marble Palace, we find ourselves in the space of the Main Staircase - unique in the history of Russian architecture of the 18th century. interior, which has retained its original decoration almost unchanged. The decoration is made of various types of colored marble. Opposite the entrance, on the wall, there is a marble relief with a portrait of the architect A. Rinaldi, which appeared here at the request of the first owner, Count G. Orlov, in recognition of the architect's merits. The authorship of this portrait has not yet been established.
The main artistic decoration of the main staircase is a sculpture made of Italian marble and installed in niches, as well as relief compositions on the walls of the third floor and stucco decoration of the ceiling.
The sculptures of the main staircase of the Marble Palace are the only allegorical ensemble of the 18th century that has survived in St. Petersburg. In the niches decorated with marble shells, between the first and second floors, there are four marble statues representing the time of day: Night - a female figure with traditional attributes: an owl; works by an unknown master ; Morning - a female figure in the form of the goddess of the morning dawn, Aurora; attributes: a solar disk at her feet and a garland of roses in the hands of the goddess; Noon is a female figure with its inherent attributes: an arrow is a symbol of the sun's rays, a sundial shows noon, and the signs of the zodiac (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn) remind of the invariability of this phenomenon throughout the year; Evening - a female figure in the form of the goddess of hunting Diana, who goes hunting at dusk. Her attributes are a bow and a quiver of arrows. The author of these three statues is the sculptor Fyodor Shubin.
And in the rectangular niches, between the second and third floors, there are two statues that symbolize the Spring equinox - a female figure with a flower garland in her hands, at her feet the head of a ram - the zodiac sign of Aries, into which the sun enters after the onset of the spring equinox. And the Autumn Equinox - a male figure with a bunch of ripe grapes in his hand.
On the inner walls of the platform of the third floor there are relief images of the four main virtues: Moderation, Fortitude, Prudence and Justice. In the center of the western wall there is a composition: "Games of Cupids". The clock face completed the entire composition of the staircase space. Tower chimes of the palace in the XVIII century. had two dials: one - on the facade, and the second located horizontally in the ceiling. Currently, there is a plafond "The Judgment of Paris" by Joseph Christie, transferred here from the hall of the palace in the middle of the 19th century.
The Marble Hall is unique in the history of Russian architecture of the 18th century. interior, the original decoration of which has largely survived to this day. The cladding of the walls of the hall is made of various varieties of domestic and Italian marble. Initially, the hall was one-story, now, after the reconstruction of A. Bryullov, it is two-tiered. Its space is illuminated by the windows of the second and third floors. The walls are decorated with the Corinthian order. The pilasters are made of Tivdia marble with gilded bronze bases and capitals. They rest on a plinth stretching along the perimeter of the walls, divided by panels of green Italian marble, which are filled with relief depicting vases with draperies.
The sculptural decoration of the Marble Hall was created by outstanding Russian sculptors. Along the perimeter of the walls of the hall there are 14 round bas-reliefs on the theme of "Sacrifices" made by the sculptor Fyodor Shubin in collaboration with the Italian sculptor Antonio Valli, two desudeportes above the doors were also made by F. Shubin. On western wall two bas-reliefs by M. Kozlovsky were installed: “The Return of Regulus to Carthage” and “Camillus delivers Rome from the Gauls”. The ceiling is decorated with a picturesque ceiling by S. Torelli "The Wedding of Cupid and Psyche". A rare ornamental stone - lapis lazuli was also used in the decoration of the hall. Window frames and balcony doors were made of gilded bronze. Door leaves and typesetting parquet, which had a complex pattern, were made of various varieties of colored wood.
In 1844 - 1849. in the Marble Palace, a reconstruction was carried out, the author of which was the architect A. Bryullov. According to his projects, a new decoration of residential and ceremonial interiors of the second floor was created. Their decoration was distinguished by both a variety of historical styles and the materials used for decoration.
A. Bryullov was a representative of the eclectic architectural trend, which was widely developed in the middle of the 19th century. This was reflected in his work on the creation of interior decoration of the palace. During the reconstruction of the Marble Hall, the architect retained the original decoration of the first tier, and, having dismantled the ceiling between the second and third floors, moved the picturesque ceiling of S. Torelli "The Wedding of Cupid and Psyche" to a new floor and created a different pattern of stucco gilded decor. At the same time, gilded bronze chandeliers with crystal ornaments appeared. The architect left the inlaid door panels and parquet original.
The Russian Museum carried out in 2001 - 2010. restoration and repair work to restore the artistic decoration of the Marble Hall, to the state it had in the middle of the 19th century. The splendor of the interior is complemented by a multi-colored parquet of the 18th century reconstructed according to the surviving drawings. with rare and complex ornamentation. Also, on the basis of historical photographs, two marble fireplaces with mirrors in gilded carved frames were recreated.
The main reception room - the central room of the Neva enfilade is another hall of the palace that has preserved the original elements of historical decoration. There are eight monolithic columns of polished Serdobol granite, stucco decoration of the vaulted ceiling and fragments of parquet. In 2015, restoration work on the reconstruction of the decorative decoration of this interior is being completed. Marble fireplaces, inlaid parquet made of precious woods were recreated there, the stucco molding of the ceiling was cleared and re-gilded, door panels were restored, and a bronze gilded chandelier was recreated. Opened doorways to adjoining rooms.
In the western part of the building, overlooking Marble Lane, there is the largest room in the palace - a double-height hall created in the process of reconstruction by A. Bryullov. He received a new artistic decoration, and became known as the White or Gothic, because of the neo-Gothic style elements used in its design. Bryullov divided the space of the hall into three parts, installing the supports of the ceilings supporting the vaults, decorated with bundles of thin "Gothic" columns turning into fan vaults. On the sides of the doorway of the southern wall of the hall, two marble columns were installed, on which figures of Russian knights are placed. A marble fireplace with a mirror in a carved gilded frame is located along the central axis of the northern wall. This is the only authentic fireplace from the middle of the 19th century. kept on his historical place in the Marble Palace to the present day.
In 2002, a comprehensive restoration and reconstruction of the White Hall was completed: figures of Russian knights along the perimeter of the hall and sculptural images of double-headed eagles, stucco decoration of the ceiling were recreated, window openings of the second light on the eastern wall were opened. Chandeliers and sconces are recreated from gilded bronze. Reconstruction of type-setting parquet was carried out.
Adjacent to the White Hall from the north is the Greek Gallery, in which the artistic decoration has also been recreated: the facing of the walls with artificial marble has been restored, and the typeset parquet has been reconstructed. The stucco decoration of the ceiling with coloring was restored, and bronze gilded chandeliers were recreated.
Doors from the Greek Gallery lead to the Winter Garden, A. Bryullov arranged it on the terrace of the Hanging Garden, which was located here earlier, it occupies the space of the second and third floors. The decorative arches of the vault rest on cast-iron columns and semi-columns, the metal ceiling above the third floor is adorned with caissons. The windows of the rooms on the third floor overlook the garden, and a small balcony with an elegant wrought iron railing has been recreated on the eastern wall. In the middle of the garden, on a mosaic stone floor, rises a marble fountain with three bowls. A fountain, a large three-leaf glazed door, three arched openings connecting the garden room with the Flower Garden and a balcony at the level of the third floor with a decorative lattice were recreated in the garden. In the Flower Garden, a marble fireplace with a mirror was recreated, a doorway leading to the former library in the Nevsky Enfilade of the Palace was opened.
On the ground floor of the palace, overlooking Millionnaya Street, the interiors of the private apartments of Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich have been preserved; they were created in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. they visibly reflected the aesthetic preferences of their owner. The Grand Duke's office, paneled in mahogany, is made in the Jacob style. Musical (Gothic) room, completely made of oak. Its decoration is stylized based on motifs borrowed from examples typical of Gothic architecture. There is also a living room with a five-part picturesque ceiling on the vaulted ceiling. The plot program of the plafond "Service to Art", written by E. K. Ligart, was compiled with the direct participation of the customer himself - Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich. Adjacent to this room is the so-called Marble Living Room, the walls of which are lined with artificial marble. The interiors of the library and the reception room of the Grand Duke have also been preserved and restored. In these halls there is a memorial exposition dedicated to the poet of the Silver Age, who wrote under the cryptonym "K.R." - Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich Romanov.
In 1994, an agreement was signed on the formation of the Ludwig Museum in the Russian Museum. The owners of the collection - the spouses Peter and Irene Ludwig - donated works of Russian and foreign artists of the 20th century to the museum. from your collection. This act marked the beginning of the development of the main concept of the Marble Palace: "Russian art in the context of world art." Currently, the palace has a permanent exhibition of the Ludwig Museum, which presents works by artists whose work reflects the development trends of fine arts in the second half of the 20th century. both in our country and abroad.
In 1998, St. Petersburg collectors Yakov Aleksandrovich and Iosif Aleksandrovich Rzhevsky donated their collection to the State Russian Museum. Most of the collection are works of easel painting of the 18th - 20th centuries, among which are the works of I.K. Aivazovsky, Yu.Yu. Clover, I.I. Dubovsky, I.I. Mashkova, P.P. Konchalovsky and B.M. Kustodiev. A particularly rare part of the collection are clocks - fireplace, floor and travel clocks, made by various watchmakers of the late XVIII - early half of XIX V. Watches with unique clock mechanisms, with a fight, perform several melodies, and are also interesting in the decorative design of the dial and case. This private collection also includes graphics, sculpture, furniture, lighting fixtures, and artistic bronzes.
The Marble Palace is an integral part of the State Russian Museum and a masterpiece of Russian architecture of the 18th - 19th centuries. His cultural historical meaning comparable to the collections kept by the State Russian Museum.
Owners
Grigory Grigorievich Orlov (1734 - 1783) count, prince since 1772. Member of the coup of 1762, which brought Catherine II to power, since 1765 - general feldzeugmeister, general director of the cavalry guard corps, Her Imperial Majesty's adjutant general and actual chamberlain, chief of the Life Guards cavalry regiment , President of the Office of the Foreign Guardianships and holder of various orders. The Ober-Jägermeister office, which was in charge of the imperial hunt and fireworks, was subordinate to him. He remained in the service until his death. Died in Moscow.
The participation of G. Orlov in historical events and his services to the Fatherland, the Empress noted the issue of a commemorative medal: “For delivering Moscow from an ulcer”, the creation of the Triumphal Gate in Tsarskoye Selo, and the construction of the Marble Palace, above the entrance of which there was an inscription: “The Building of Gratitude”.
After the death of Count Catherine II bought the Marble Palace from his brothers for two hundred thousand rubles, and separately acquired a collection of paintings and miniatures that were in the palace for the imperial collection.
In 1796, Catherine II presented the Marble Palace to her second grandson, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich. From 1797 - 1798 The palace served as the residence of the last king of Poland, Stanisław August Poniatowski.
Stanislav August Poniatowski (1732 - 1798). King 1764 - 1795 S.A. Poniatovsky was invited to St. Petersburg to participate in the work of the “Debt Commission”, which dealt with the distribution of the debts of the Commonwealth between Russia, Prussia and Austria for the annexed lands and on account of the liquidation of the loan of 1777 received under the guarantees of Russia. The king arrived in Petersburg with a small court, in which 160 people served.
The king's private apartments were located on the second floor of the northeastern part of the building, including the Marble Hall. In February 1798, S.A. Poniatowski died suddenly of apoplexy. A specially established "Sorrowful Commission" prepared the burial of the monarch. Mourning celebrations took place in the Great Hall, designed by V. Brenna.
Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich (1779 - 1831) was brought up together with his elder brother by the future Emperor Alexander I, was fond of military sciences. Colonel, chief of the St. Petersburg Grenadier Regiment, chief of the Life Guards of the Izmailovsky Regiment, head of the cadet corps, inspector general of the cavalry. Participated in the Italian and Swiss campaigns of A.V. Suvorov. The commander of the guard during the wars of 1805 - 1807. Was in military campaigns 1809 - 1812. In the battle of Austerlitz he commanded the guards corps. Since 1814, troops in the Kingdom of Poland were subordinate to him. Since 1816, the commander-in-chief of the Polish army, was constantly in Warsaw. From 1818 he was a member of the Polish Sejm (from the suburbs of Warsaw - Prague). Since 1826, after the death of the governor of Poland, he actually performed his duties. In 1831, fleeing the uprising in Warsaw, he left for St. Petersburg, died of cholera in Vitebsk, was buried in Peter and Paul Fortress. For decades, the Marble Palace was occupied by employees of the Grand Duke's court with their families. With a large population, the premises of the palace needed reconstruction and repairs. These works were supervised by A.N. Voronikhin, who was the court architect of the Grand Duke in 1803-1810.
In 1832, after the death of the owner, Konstantin Pavlovich, Emperor Nicholas I granted the Marble Palace to his second son, Konstantin Nikolayevich, by personal decree. The young Grand Duke was brought up in the family, but the palace remained a residential building for the courtiers.
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich (1827 - 1892), Admiral General, head of the Naval Ministry, carried out a number of reforms of the Russian fleet, participated in the preparation of the famous "Manifesto", which freed the peasants from serfdom.
In 1848, the marriage of Konstantin Nikolaevich to Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna, born Princess of Saxe-Altenburg, took place. The Grand Duke's family moved to the palace after the reconstruction, carried out according to the project of A.P. Bryullov, in December 1849.
On December 20, 1849, the Highest Decree of the Emperor reported: “the rebuilt Marble Palace with all the decorations and the service house belonging to it, the Sovereign Emperor, most mercifully deigned to present His Imperial Highness Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich as a gift to His Imperial Highness Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich for eternal and hereditary His Highness possession and ordered this palace to be called Konstantinovsky ".
The Grand Duke showed great interest in music, he himself played on several musical instruments. Knowing and loving literature, he contributed to the publication of the first posthumous collected works of N.V. Gogol. For the first time, the works of I.A. Goncharov, V.I. Dal, A.N. Afanasyev, A.I. Ostrovsky, D.V.
Many writers and musicians visited the Grand Duke at the Marble Palace. In the White Hall of the palace, concerts were held with the participation of E. Balakirev, A. Rubinstein, N. Rimsky-Korsakov. Here, on May 2, 1856, the first performance of I. Strauss took place in St. Petersburg.
Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna (1830-1911), born Princess of Saxe-Altenburg, wife of Konstantin Nikolaevich. The marriage produced 6 children.
Alexandra Iosifovna was a bright personality among the outstanding women of her time. She stood at the origins of the emergence of the Red Cross in Russia, the service of nurses in hospitals, and the construction of hospitals. At its expense in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877 - 1878. sanitary warehouses were organized, medicines and equipment for hospitals were purchased, a special sanitary train was created. For 25 years, the Grand Duchess led the St. Petersburg Council of Orphanages under the department of institutions of the Empress Maria, whose meetings often took place in the drawing room of the palace.
The Grand Duchess took an active part in the activities of the Imperial Russian Musical Society and the creation of the Conservatory. At her request, in 1889 the building of the Imperial Bolshoi Theater was transferred to the St. Petersburg Conservatory. Funds for the reconstruction of the building were allocated from the office of Her Imperial Highness.
In 1892, after the death of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, the Marble Palace was inherited by his son, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich.
Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich (1858 - 1915) known as a poet and translator, signing with the cryptonym "KR", from 1889 he was president of the Academy of Sciences. Through his efforts, the Academy established the "Class of Fine Literature". He began his military service in the navy and was later transferred to the army. In 1882, he was commander of a company of the Life Guards of the Izmailovsky Regiment, where he organized Izmailovsky Leisures, a kind of theatrical, musical and literary association of officers. Poems were read at meetings of officers, incl. famous poets A.N. Maikov and Ya.P. Polonsky.
Musical works were performed there, performances were staged. The best production of The Tragedy of Prince Hamlet, translated by Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, also took place in the Marble Palace, in the Great Hall, where the stage was built. The main role was played by the Grand Duke himself. The performance was attended by members of the Imperial family.
The Grand Duke was the Chief Commander, and later the General - Inspector of the Military Educational Institutions of Russia. Under his leadership, big job on the development of training in military educational institutions, as well as the improvement of education in general.
In 1889, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich, having become a trustee of the Two-Year Women's Pedagogical Courses, contributed to their reorganization into a higher educational institution - the Women's Pedagogical Institute.
Also under the auspices of the Grand Duke were the Agricultural Courses, organized in 1899, whose students were accommodated in the Service House of the Marble Palace. The courses were open to all comers of different classes aged 10 to 18 years. 5 thousand children were engaged in them, but the interest in them was so great that the number of those who wanted to attend them reached 14 thousand.
Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich was married to Grand Duchess Elizaveta Mavrikievna, nee Princess of Saxe-Altenburg, since 1884, nine children were born in the family.
Grand Duchess Elizaveta Mavrikievna (1865 - 1927), born Princess Elisabeth of Saxe-Altenburg, Duchess of Saxony.
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mavrikievna directed her efforts to create a large family and charity. The Grand Duchess took many institutions of Empress Maria in Pavlovsk under her wing. She was the Patron of the Society for the Care of Poor and Sick Children. Thanks to her efforts in the early 1900s. Society put into circulation in all major cities Russian consumer books. The books listed firms that undertook to give discounts when selling goods for cash.
In 1906, having succeeded Alexandra Iosifovna, she headed the Council of Orphanages, becoming a trustee of the Alexander Orphanage, the Society for Helping the Poor Women of the City. Under her patronage, the first overnight workhouse for homeless children and adolescents was adopted in St. Petersburg with assistance in acquiring a specialty and in finding a job.
Grand Duchess Elizaveta Mavrikievna lived in the palace until 1918, and left Russia with her young children and grandchildren. Her three sons - John, Konstantin and Igor were executed in 1918 in Alapaevsk.
The creation of Antonio Rinaldi - the Marble Palace - a gift from Catherine II to her favorite Grigory Orlov for services to the Fatherland, in other words, for active participation in the palace coup of 1762, as a result of which Peter III was overthrown, and Catherine ascended the throne.
According to legend, Catherine herself made a sketch of the palace, and Rinaldi, knowing this, highly appreciated her work and received a building permit. 
Construction was carried out from 1768 to 1785.
A marble chest with coins was laid in the foundation of the building.
The Marble Palace got its name because of the abundance of marble decoration of both the facade and the interior.
Only 32 types of marble were used for wall cladding.
Grigory Orlov did not have time to use the gift, because he did not live to see the completion of construction.
Subsequently, Catherine bought the palace from the heirs of the count to the treasury and granted it to her grandson Konstantin Pavlovich.
The Grand Duke settled in the palace only after his marriage to the Princess of Saxe-Saafeld-Coburg (Anna Feodorovna in Orthodoxy) in February 1796. Later, for bad behavior, the empress evicted her grandson from the palace. Konstantin Pavlovich, who at the time of the wedding was 16 years old (his wife was 14), shot live rats from a cannon in the premises and mocked his wife. 
And in the 19th - 20th centuries, the palace generally became the ancestral home of the Grand Dukes of the Romanov dynasty from the Konstantinovich branch.
Someone always visited the palace or simply lived in the palace.
For example, in 1795-1796, the captive leader of the Polish confederates Tadeusz Kosciuszko lived here, who was released by Paul I after the death of Catherine II.
In 1797-1798 the Marble Palace was occupied by former Polish king Stanisław August Poniatowski. He lived here with his court of 167 people and 83 retinues.
To receive the king and his entourage, part of the Marble Palace was rebuilt
V. Brenna.
Over the years of its existence, the palace was repeatedly rebuilt inside: first, in Brenna, for Poniatovsky, then A Voronikhin, a small suite was rebuilt along the Neva and partially along Millionnaya.
Konstantin Pavlovich eventually returned to his residence, but then, having become the governor of the Kingdom of Poland, he left Petersburg.
After his departure, the palace passed to the court office and apartments began to be rented out to court officials. And in 1832, after examining the palace, it was declared emergency and major repairs began.
The next restructuring took place already in 1845, under Konstantin Nikolaevich, and it was carried out by the brother of the painter Karl Bryullov - Alexander.
I will not go into technical details.
After Konstantin Nikolaevich, the palace was owned by his son, Konstantin Konstantinovich, known in literature under the pseudonym K.R. After his death in 1915, the widow left the palace.
During World War I, the palace housed a hospital for wounded officers.
After the February Revolution, the Ministry of Labor of the Provisional Government was located in the basement of the Marble Palace.
After October 1917 the building was nationalized. Most of the art collections were transferred to the State Hermitage.
At first, the People's Commissariat of Labor worked here. After the government moved to Moscow in 1918, the palace housed the office of the authorized People's Commissariat of Education, the Administration of Museum Palaces, the Academy of the History of Material Culture (in 1919-1936), the Society for Sociology and Theory of Art, and the Central Bureau of Local Lore.
After the liquidation of the academy, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Leningrad branch of the Central Lenin Museum. The building was rebuilt for museum purposes according to the project of N. E. Lansere and D. A. Vasiliev.
The main staircase and the Marble Hall were preserved.
In some rooms, artistic decoration was mothballed. The museum opened on November 8, 1937. On January 22, 1940, an armored car was installed at the entrance, from which Lenin spoke on the day of his arrival in Petrograd on April 3, 1917. In 1983, it was restored and placed again in front of the Marble Palace on April 15 of the same year.
In 1992, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Russian Museum. The armored car of V. I. Lenin was sent to the Artillery Museum.
And now, actually, a photo.
At the entrance to the palace, in front of front staircase-- bas-relief depicting the chief architect - Antonio Rinaldi 
The main staircase is decorated with sculptures by F. Shubin "Night", "Morning", "Day", "Evening", "Autumn and Spring Equinox"
Rinaldi's door in an art gallery 
Plafond above the front staircase 
The most beautiful of the palace's halls is the Marble Hall, whose walls are lined with Ural, Karelian, Greek, Italian marble and Baikal lapis lazuli. 
Plafond on the ceiling 
Chandelier made of domestic crystal 
Stacked parquet 
Almost all the doors in the palace remained from the time of Rinaldi, they were just put in order a little 
Bas-relief on the wall and fireplace 
Next to the Marble Hall are the premises where the Lenin Museum used to be. Since intricate bourgeois trinkets interfered with the correct perception of the image of the leader, all architectural excesses, as well as artificial marble walls, were painted over, as if mothballed. Today's restorers simply peel off the paint on the ceiling, revealing the gilding, 
and on the walls - three-color artificial marble is well preserved under the paint 
This is the White (dance) hall. On this day, a banquet was to take place here. 
Stucco over the entrance to the hall 
Lighting in all rooms is dim. As the guide explained, now they don’t produce ordinary 100-candle light bulbs, only energy-saving ones that look ridiculous in antique lamps, so they buy weak ones, but suitable in design. 
Fireplace with mirror - original 
Winter Garden 
The site of the Winter Garden used to be the Hanging Garden. open sky created by Antonio Rinaldi. In 1846, the architecture of the hall was completely changed by Alexander Bryullov, who reconstructed part of the palace premises on the eve of the wedding of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich and Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna.
The hall was covered with a coffered ceiling resting on 2 cast-iron columns, and on the south side it was closed with a glass wall. Instead of apple and cherry trees, exotic plants were planted in the greenhouse garden, marble sculptures were installed among the greenery, and a fountain was equipped in the center. The garden was connected to the Flower Garden by three open archways.
During the period when the building was occupied by the Lenin Museum, the hall ceased to be a garden: the fountain and decorative greenery were removed, Ilyich's monument was placed at the glass doors, and paintings of a revolutionary content were hung on the walls. After the exposition closed, the room was not used. Restoration began in 2005.
During the restoration work, a fountain was recreated, 4 floor lamps made of uranium glass with gilded bronze and a large three-leaf glazed door leading to the Tsar's room. From the collection of the Russian Museum, 2 sculptures are installed in the hall - "Neapolitan fisherman playing the mandolin" (A.Bok, 1862) and "Cupid releasing the moth" (M.Popov, 1872).
coffered ceiling 
floor lamps 
Fountain 
Sculptures by M. Popov and A. Bok 
The very doors near which Ilyich flaunted 
Immediately behind the Winter Garden is the Royal Room, 
in which the floor from the typesetting parquet of the times of Rinaldi has been preserved. 
Then we went outside and through the arch, framed by niches with sculptures, 
past the Italian courtyard, the view of which opens from the Winter Garden, 
went to the private quarters of Konstantin Konstantinovich and his wife, Elizaveta Mavrikievna, nee Elizabeth Augusta Maria Agnes of Saxe-Altenburg.
About K.R. it is necessary to write separately, so this is an interesting and versatile person. This is a poet, translator, playwright, an outstanding figure of Russian culture, president of the Academy of Sciences, one of the founders of the Pushkin House
He and his wife had 9 children. The children's rooms in the palace were decorated like a fairy-tale tower. Unfortunately, they have not been preserved in their original form.
But the private quarters of the prince and princess were not of interest to the subsequent owners of the palace, so the interior of the male half was completely preserved.
Unfortunately, it was impossible to shoot there, I only managed to grab in parts the entrance hall, decorated in the Russian style, trimmed with wood, 
Table - original 
ceiling in the library 
and the Walnut Cabinet. 
Photo of the library itself, the gothic music room and personal account took the Grand Duke
In the chambers of Elizabeth Mavrikievna, it was possible to shoot, but, in fact, there was nothing: 
this is the former matrimonial bedroom 
Very beautiful room, I don't remember the purpose 
Actually, this tour ended.
We went out into the courtyard to the long-suffering monument to Alexander III, which replaced here the no less long-suffering armored car of Ilyich. 
This monument by Paolo Trubetskoy was originally installed in 1909 on Znamenskaya Square (now - Vosstaniya Square).
The place of installation of the monument is associated with the merits of Alexander III as the founder of the Siberian railway route from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok.
For the figure of a rider Trubetskoy was posed by the sergeant major of the palace department P. Pustov, who has a great external resemblance to the emperor. For the figure of the horse, a horse of the Percheron breed was chosen - heavy and massive, to match the figure of the emperor.
The monument caused a mixed public reaction - from delight to sharp rejection.
Nicholas II himself, according to Alexander Benois, expressed a desire to "exile the monument to Siberia." There was a legend in the city according to which the monument to Alexander III was supposed to be erected in the Ural Mountains, on the border of Europe and Asia, which is why it was created so massive and heavy. It was assumed that the monument would be viewed from the windows of a rushing train, from a great distance, so that the massiveness of the statue would not be so conspicuous.
Paolo Trubetskoy himself spoke in a peculiar way about the monument. When asked what idea is embedded in this monument, he laughed it off: “I am not involved in politics. I depicted one animal on another."
Poems quickly spread throughout the city:
There is a chest of drawers on the square,
On the chest of drawers - a hippopotamus,
On a hippopotamus - a dumbass,
On the back is a hat.
In 1937, under the pretext of reconstructing Vosstaniya Square and laying tram lines along Nevsky Prospekt, the monument was removed to the storerooms.
In 1939, it was transferred to the State Russian Museum, and the monument was moved to the Mikhailovsky Garden.
And in 1994, the monument was erected at the Marble Palace.
Among the many architectural and historical monuments of the world, there are special ones that embody a whole layer of architectural trends, the names and fates of famous personalities of past centuries. A vivid example of this is the Marble Palace in St. Petersburg - a colossal majestic building, a real "marble fairy tale". Now it is one of the famous tourist sites of the "Venice of the North", striking in its grandeur of size, magnificence and virtuosity of decoration. The rich history of the palace, associated with the royal Romanov dynasty, cannot but excite and interest people of the 21st century.
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Cabinet arrangement
In the interior design of the office, natural wood and leather are mainly used. The walls, decorated with highly artistic paintings and portraits, are pasted over with gilded leather wallpaper, illustrated with royal coats of arms. The ceiling is sheathed in mahogany, furniture is made of different types of wood, oak parquet covers the floor. The prince's armchair, resting on the front "legs" in the form of gilded swans with raised wings, is a special rarity of the cabinet.
Other halls of the apartments
In the interiors of other rooms, wood is also present in the design. The owner especially loved the Musical “Gothic” drawing room, decorated in an unusually picturesque Gothic style with openwork wooden panels at the bottom and pasted over with gray leather wallpaper with gilded ornaments. An elegant model of a Gothic temple, mounted on a panel, adorns one of the walls of the living room. An antique black lacquered grand piano symbolizes the purpose of the room.
Owners
The change of owners of the Marble Palace, dictated by time and circumstances, can be lined up in a symbolic series.
The first owner of the palace, the closest favorite of Ekaterina G. Orlov, adjutant general and holder of many other ranks and titles, became the owner of the palace, two years before its official opening (he died in 1783).
- The second owner, Catherine's grandson Konstantin Pavlovich, was the owner of the palace until 1831. Moreover, in 1797-98 the building was given over to the residence of the last Polish king S. A. Poniatowski, who died suddenly in 1798).
- The third owner, another grandson of the Empress Konstantin Nikolayevich, was granted the palace in 1832, when he was 5 years old. Until the age of the prince, numerous court servants lived in the building. Having become the wife of the prince, the owner of the palace along with him was Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna, a bright outstanding personality of her time. During the life of KN (1827-92) the palace was called Konstantinovsky.
- The fourth owner was the next grandson of Catherine I, Crown Prince Konstantin Konstantinovich, who owned the building until 1915, making the palace a kind of temple of art. Dramatic performances were arranged in magnificent halls, musical concerts of great musicians and composers were held, creative meetings of writers and poets were organized.
Exhibitions and expositions
In Soviet times, a branch of the Central Museum of V.I. was organized in several halls of the Marble Palace, which was the first example of using an architectural monument in a new capacity that meets the needs of society. The work on the reconstruction of the premises was led by the architect N. Lansere, and the museum was opened in 1937, a sadly memorable year for the country. The expositions of the museum acquainted visitors in detail with the life and revolutionary activities of the leader of the proletariat.
Modern concept - propaganda of art
The most beautiful building today northern capital, transferred to the Russian Museum - the center of the demonstration of works of "Russian art in combination with world trends. Here, through permanent and temporary expositions and exhibitions, objects of painting, sculpture and other genres are widely presented. A variety of thematic exhibitions are regularly organized:
- The collection of the Rzhevsky brothers (masterpieces of graphics, painting, sculpture, applied art - 503 copies in total).
- Konstantin Romanov - poet of the Silver Age (in the authentic setting of his study and the Musical Lounge).
- Museum Ludwig (works of German classical art 19-21).
- Dialogue of German sculptors E. Barlach and K. Kollwitz with Russian contemporaries (220 works of modernists and works of Russian masters).
In addition, temporary exhibitions showcasing world art are constantly held.
Legends and traditions
Like all significant architectural monuments, the history of the Marble Palace is surrounded by myths. One of the legends says that when the foundation was laid, a box filled to the brim with royal coins was immured into it. Although there is no exact information about this, the rumors about the mysterious box continue to live. There is a legend about why the empress took away the palace presented to Konstantin Pavlovich. Allegedly for the fact that he, being 16 years old, shot live rats from a cannon, frightening his young wife. One of the legends tells of a secret door through which Catherine entered on a date with Orlov, when the construction of the palace was still underway.
