Exploring the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg

As professor of government at Virginia’s College of William and Mary (W&M), David Dessler visited Russia in the early 2000s to create a study-abroad program. One of the highlights of David Dessler’s trip was taking in sights when visiting St. Petersburg.

A stop on any visitor’s stay in St. Petersburg is the Hermitage Museum, which rivals the Louvre and El Prado in terms of sheer size and quality of its art collection. The former Winter Palace of Russian tsars, the ornate museum served as a royal residence from 1762 to 1917. With 3 million paintings, sculptures, and artifacts, the scope of the collection ranges from prehistoric pieces to works by European masters such as Rembrandt and Leonardo da Vinci.

Another highlight is a gallery that offers some of the world’s most recognizable paintings by French Impressionists, as well as works by Van Gogh, Gaugin, and Picasso. The museum’s collection includes the entire library of the classic French philosopher and novelist Voltaire, which was acquired by Catherine the Great. It has also an extensive collection of Roman and Greek antiquities and traditional art of the Central Asian and Siberian steppes.

The interior design of the Hermitage is equally worth exploring, with the Jordan staircase greeting visitors as they enter. With an ornate ceiling above, the expansive marble staircase was a key part of a yearly tradition of the royal family. The tsar would descend the staircase to begin the ceremony of the blessing of the water of the Neva River.