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The First Exhibition Hall can be reached from the Main Staircase of the Catherine Palace. The exposition in this room acquaints visitors with the main stages in the creation of the Catherine Palace. In the center of the left wall, among antique engravings, can be seen the communique from P. Apraxin to Emperor Peter I dated August 24, 1702, in which Sarskaya myza, which would later become Tzarskoje Selo, is mentioned for the first time. Hanging next to this is the drawing "Sixteen Stone Chambers" depicting the first Tzarskoje Selo palace, designed by Johann Friedrich Braunstein. The austere fasade with two porticoes, the simply designed door and window frames and the fractured roof were all typical features of St. Petersburg palace architecture of the early 18th century.
The central part of the exposition is dedicated to the most significant stage in Tzarskoje Selo palace and park construction in the mid-18th century. In 1742, the architect Mikhail Zemtsov was commissioned to add "galleries on columns" and "stone wings" to the old palace. The plans were designed, but remained unattempted due to the death of their creator. In 1743, the plan for the palace created by architect Savva Chevakinsky and the architect's assistant, Andrei Kvasov, was approved. The exposition includes a surviving wooden model of the Tzarskoje Selo palace built by Andrei Kvasov. It provides a view of the architectural piece, construction of which continued up until 1748, and now no longer in existence. The "Old House" was included in the central building of the new palace as the "Middle House." The palace consisted of three buildings, a chapel and orangery connected by galleries.
When the central building of the palace was enlarged, it became possible to install two more large halls and a Main Staircase. The facade of the building was decorated with pilasters and a figural pediment. Two new wings were attached by Andrei Kvasov to the "middle" house by wooden galleries. A year later, Savva Chevakinsky rebuilt them of stone. In 1745, the single-story, semi-circular buildings of the circumference were completed. These are service wings enclosing the Entrance Court.
In May of 1752, when the palace was finished, Empress Elizabeth decided that the palace was not extravagant enough, and inconvenient for receptions and celebrations. According to her decree of May 10, 1752, the architect Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli was commissioned to head new reconstruction work, which entailed destroying the ready parts of the palace. Paintings by the artist F. Barizien executed in the late 18th century recreate the external appearance of the palace created by Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli in the 1750s, and the regular part of the Catherine Park attached to it.
In this room are displayed documents telling of the conversion of the Catherine Palace into an art museum in 1918. Model of the Tzarskoje Selo palace built by Andrei Kvasov. Photograph. 1998. Contemporary photograph of the First Exhibition Hall. Detail. 1998. Model of the Tzarskoje Selo palace built by Andrei Kvasov. Photograph. 1998. The Second Exhibition Hall The Second Exhibition Hall is located next to the First Exhibition Hall. The exposition in this room tells of the tragic events connected with the years of World War II in Tzarskoje Selo. It also covers the evacuation of the museum's treasures from the Catherine and Alexander Palaces organized by the Soviet government, during which approximately 70,000 objects were rescued. The liberation of the town of Pushkin from German occupants in January of 1944 is depicted in original lithographs by the artist V. Vasiliev. A special section is dedicated to the revival of the Catherine Palace and the Catherine Park. Here are exhibited a fragment of the plans for palace restoration, a sketch for the restoration of the painted ceiling of the Great Hall, antique ceramic tiles preserved and recreated by conservationists, and instruments used by carvers and gilders. Photographs show the master restorers who returned the Catherine Palace to its former grandeur. The author of the general plan for restoration was the architect Alexander Kedrinsky. The facades of the building have been restored inasmuch as possible to their 18th century appearance by the Fasadremstroy Trust. Many of the later layers, which distorted the original appearance of the monument, were eliminated in the process of restoration. In order to determine the original color of the facade of the Catherine Palace, architects cleaned away the layers of paint, at the same time dating each layer. On the wall opposite the window are displayed examples of the palace facade's color at various points in time. The restoration of the interiors of the Catherine Palace was undertaken starting with those rooms by Charles Cameron that had suffered the least damage (1956-1959). Later, work was begun on the completely destroyed Formal Enfilade designed by Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli, and work on this wing continues to this day. Many of these interiors are depicted in watercolors commissioned in the mid-19th century of academicians Edward Hau and Luigi Premazzi. Thanks to the accuracy and careful attention to all details of the architectural and artistic finishing, they were used as documents during restoration. This hall also features materials concerning the restoration of the media used: carvings, stucco, gilding, decorated ceramic tile, decorative painting, upholstery, and inlaid floors. |
