Recently I read the diary of Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov, “Questions of Life,” published in “Russian Antiquity” for 1884-1885 and 1887. In addition, there I read with great pleasure the essay by Protodeacon V. Orlov “The Marble Palace”, dedicated to the centennial anniversary of the completion of the palace (May 1885 issue). The essay gives the history of the construction of the palace, indicates what and how much money was spent on, and lists the names of the craftsmen involved in the work. In addition it is given detailed description two house churches and stored in the shrines that were in the palace. I was unable to find this information on the Internet. A complete copy of the essay is posted in the album http://fotki.yandex.ru/users/amsmolich/album/313723/.
And suddenly an excursion! Of course, we signed up immediately. During the excursion we were told what is already available on all sorts of websites, including the website of the Russian Museum. This explains my mother and I’s disappointment from what we heard, but what we saw left the best impressions.
The excursion consisted of two parts. The first part is historical, with a visit to three state rooms. Previously, the palace had 70 state rooms (but they don’t talk about it!). But only the Marble Hall has survived; the other two halls were made anew from old photographs and drawings. Also, parquet flooring was dismantled everywhere. There is practically nothing left in the palace. Everything was destroyed by the communists.
The second part was devoted to. book Konstantin Konstantinovich and his work, with a visit to seven rooms in which for some reason photography is prohibited. These premises were also restored from photographs, since the communists believed that nothing should remain in the palace that would remind of the royal family. Therefore everything was destroyed.
Below are a few lines from the essay “Marble Palace”. My photographs plus a set of postcards purchased at the palace.
Under Peter the Great, on the site of the present Field of Mars, “animal baiting” was usually carried out, and where the Marble Palace was subsequently built, there was a postal yard, near which in 1711 an “animal house” was built and it housed: a large elephant, lions, tigers sent as a gift from the Persian Shah. “The postal yard,” says Ruban in his “Description of St. Petersburg,” “was made of mud and stood on the spot where the great calm marble house is now being built. At this post yard, Emperor Peter I repeatedly celebrated certain holidays and victories.”
Bashutsky, describing the postal yard in his “Panorama of St. Petersburg,” notes that “the capital has long felt a lack of such an institution, because there was not yet a house where visitors could stay without wasting time looking for an apartment throughout the city. This house consisted of the management of a special caretaker, who had the rank of an army ensign, with a very moderate salary, which was subsequently increased by allowing him to open a special hotel and order a certain amount of wine and other products duty-free. In addition, he was given the opportunity to use part of the collection from the letters sent, but this income was very insignificant, since no more than two kopecks were paid for the delivery of a letter, for example, from St. Petersburg to Moscow. Under Peter I, the Mya (Moika) River was deepened and cleared, from which two canals were drawn: one at the present Marble Palace, later filled in, and the other still exists under the name of the Winter Canal. Under Catherine II, this place was called “Tsaritsyn Meadow”; in 1818 the name “Campus de Mars” was given.
So, on Tsarina’s Meadow, Catherine II decided to build a house of marble, and there is the following legend: having conceived the construction, the empress invited one of the foreign architects and, showing him a drawing of the palace she had designed, asked his opinion about this plan. Knowing that the project belonged to the monarch, the architect showered himself with enthusiastic praise, listening to which the empress said: “if it is so good, then take on its construction.” An agreement, of course, immediately followed, but the architect, in carrying out the most highly sketched plan, was put in great difficulties, even in the outlines of the main walls, and this is how they explain that if you walk around the rooms of the palace, it becomes noticeable that there are no right angles in it in any way. any chambers, nor in the embrasures of windows and doors.
The builder of the Marble Palace was Antonio Rinaldi.
F.Ya. Alekseev. View Palace Embankment. 1790s. 
The entire course of construction of the Marble House from the very beginning to its completion received the special attention of Catherine II; She personally visited the building several times and ordered those participating to be rewarded with money, as can be seen from the reports, and in general nothing happened in it without her orders. A handwritten note from Catherine II (1781 or 1782) has been preserved: “With extreme surprise I hear that in the Marble House Mich. Iv. Mordvinov gives Gampel the freedom to break down walls and rearrange doors as he pleases; ask in which and which rooms such a breakdown occurred and tell Mich. Iv., so that he doesn’t break anything in that house without reporting me. Bring me a plan with the meaning of that reckless withdrawal. As Gampel knows better than Rinaldia. Isn’t he scraping the walls and reducing the bricks in the pipes, like in Tsarskoe Selo, to start fires?
Direct supervision of the construction of the Marble Palace was entrusted by the Empress to artillery colonel Mikh. Iv. Mordvinov. Mordvinov kept detailed reports, where all costs were taken into account with an accuracy of ¼ kopeck.
Aubren and Jacotte. Marble Palace. 1840-1850. Lithograph from a drawing by Charlemagne and Duruis. 
At the Sestroretsk factories, a factory was set up in 1772 for forging copper sheets for the roof. The marble was received from Yekaterinburg from the office of building houses and gardens.
In 1772 Gr.Gr. Orlov retired. Catherine, with her own draft decree, among many precious gifts, assigned the Marble Palace to Orlova. As a result, Mordvinov, on September 25, was given a decree: “When you bring the stone house being built under your supervision at the postal pier to completion as we ordered you, and when it is completely removed, and in such a condition it will be brought so that the owner could enter and live in it, then give him the keys. Gr. Gr. Orlov, for we grant him this house with all the furniture in it for eternal and hereditary possession.”
F.S. Rokotov. Portrait of Catherine II. 1779
S. Torelli. Portrait of Count G.G. Orlova. 1763 
But the construction of the palace was delayed for a long time, and Orlov was not destined to read the inscription made on the frieze of the palace, at the behest of Catherine: “building of gratitude”; he died without moving to this house, in Moscow, on April 13, 1783.
After Orlov’s death, Catherine turned to the relatives of the deceased with a proposal to buy out the property of Grigory Orlov, since in her opinion “it is unnecessary for you, the sale of it will not only be a means of quickly paying off the debts of the late Prince Gr. Gr., but also for the benefit of all of you.” She made an inventory and assessment of this property, which, according to her calculations, amounted to “about a million and twenty thousand rubles.” And with installment payments for ten years, the interest, according to her calculations, will amount to “up to five hundred thousand rubles.” When consent was received, she ordered “not to take any taxes on this sale.”
After the death of Mikhail Ivanovich Mordvinov in 1782, the management of the construction of the palace was entrusted to Colonel Buxhoeveden. Such detailed reporting as that of Mordvinov was no longer carried out in subsequent years, but only brief notes and reports exist.
In total, 1,219,677 rubles were spent on the construction of the palace from April 1768 to May 1785. 46 ¼ k. But this is without expenses for three years, from 1778 to 1780, since these reports of Mordvinov were not preserved in the archives.
In terms of its exterior and interior decoration, the Marble Palace serves as an excellent monument to Catherine’s generosity. The lower floor is covered entirely with hewn wild stone, while the upper two floors are covered with multi-colored, polished Finnish and Siberian marble.
The middle and upper floors are accessed by a rich grand staircase made of gray marble with niches for statues and vases designed by Rinaldi.
Sculptor F.I. Shubin based on a drawing by the architect Rinaldi. Night, Morning, Noon, Evening. 
Ceiling lamp of the main staircase. I. Christ. "The Judgment of Paris". 
On the wedding day. book Konstantin Pavlovich (celebrated on February 15, 1796), which took place in the church of the Winter Palace, after the dinner table in the St. George's Hall and at the end of the ball, the newlyweds were received in the Marble Palace. A few days later, Catherine dined with her grandson and this is what she wrote about the Marble Palace in a letter to Grimm: “Je pense qu'il est difficile de trouver une plus belle maison, plus richement meublee et avec plus de gout, de commodite, de richesse ; nous sommes amuses avant et après le diner a parcourir toute la maison, et j’en suis tres contente, et le sieur Constantin aussi.”
Soon after the division of Poland, in 1797, the Polish king Stanislav-August Poniatowski arrived in St. Petersburg, who, of the palaces proposed for him and his retinue: Stone, Tauride and Marble, chose the latter, which is why Konstantin Pavlovich had to temporarily settle in the house of the former chief marshal Shepeleva.
In February 1798, Poniatowski died in the Marble Palace and was buried on February 18 under the Catholic Church on Nevsky Prospekt.
Marcello Baciarelli. Death of Stanisław-August Poniatowski. 
After the death of Konstantin Pavlovich (June 27, 1831), the Marble Palace was empty, most of the furniture and things were moved to other palaces, and on March 6, 1832, the palace was assigned to Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich.
Since 1849, over the course of 4 years, major renovations were carried out in the palace. Restored by Alexander Pavlovich Bryullov.
On December 10, 1849, the Marble Palace was granted as a gift, into the hereditary possession of His Imperial Highness Konstantin Nikolaevich. In 1888, the palace passed to his son, Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich.
It is interesting that only the Constantines owned the palace.
In 1919-1936, the building housed the Russian Academy of the History of Material Culture (essentially a local history museum), and after its liquidation, a branch of the Central Lenin Museum. To accommodate the exhibition, the palace was remodeled by architects N.E. Lanceray and D.A. Vasiliev, which led to the loss of the architectural decoration of the halls. In 1992, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Russian Museum.
White Hall. A.P. Bryullov
The hall is made in the Gothic style. At one time there was an arsenal here - a collection of weapons was kept. 
All the chandeliers from this hall were destroyed by the communists. They were melted down because they needed non-ferrous metal.
Bryullov’s drawings of these chandeliers have not survived, so it is not possible to restore them.
Therefore, restorers made new chandeliers based on Bryullov’s surviving drawings.
The fireplace in the White Hall is authentic: 
Winter Garden. A.P. Bryullov
Marble Hall. A. Rinaldi. A.P. Bryullov 
Ceiling lamp S. Torelli. "The Wedding of Cupid and Psyche" 
All the chandeliers in the Marble Hall are original: 
Eagles in honor of the one to whom the grateful Catherine built the palace: 
Sculptor Mikhail Kozlovsky made a bas-relief for the Marble Hall, representing Regulus returning from Rome to Carthaginian captivity, and Camillus liberating Rome from the Gauls.
Regulus - Roman consul in 256 BC, who carried the war with Carthage to Africa, winning two victories over the Carthaginians; when they began to ask for peace, Regulus offered them extremely difficult conditions. The Carthaginians then gathered an army, inflicted a terrible defeat on the Romans and captured Regulus. He remained in captivity for 5 years, after which an embassy was sent to Rome to negotiate a peace beneficial to Carthage. According to legend, Regulus was sent to Rome along with this embassy with the condition that he would return to Carthage if he failed to persuade the Romans to peace on Carthage’s terms. Regulus acted in Rome in favor of his compatriots, turning them against Carthage, and since the embassy was not successful, he returned to Carthage, where he was executed.
It is believed that this allegory was a hint from Catherine to Orlov, who gave her his word not to disclose some secrets known to both of them. Allegory means faithfulness to a given word.
The second bas-relief is of Camillus liberating Rome from the Gauls.
In the 390s BC. After a seven-month siege, hunger began among both the besieged and the besiegers, and an infection broke out among the Gauls. As a result, the parties were inclined to enter into negotiations. The leader of the Gauls, Brennus, agreed to leave with his army for a thousand pounds of gold. They brought the gold and began to weigh it. The Gauls wanted to deceive the Romans and get more precious metal. First slowly, and then openly, they began to pull down the scales with weights. The outraged Romans protested. Then Brenn took off his heavy sword and threw it onto the scale where the weights stood. "What does it mean?!" - the Romans exclaimed. “Woe to the vanquished - that’s what it means!” Brenn shouted. At that moment Camillus appeared with his army, declared the treaty invalid, drove the Gauls out of the city and defeated them in a great battle eight miles from Rome.
I don’t know what Catherine wanted to say with this allegory. On the excursion they didn’t say a word about this bas-relief.
It is interesting that in Soviet times, October students were accepted into pioneers in this hall.
To be continued.
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Marble Palace located in the center Northern capital, is considered one of the most majestic and striking buildings in the city. This architectural monument The 18th century is truly unique. The fact is that this is the first building in St. Petersburg, the facade of which used natural material - marble. It is worth noting that 32 types of marble brought from different countries were used for construction.
The Marble Palace became a gift for the queen's favorite, Grigory Orlov. Catherine decided to generously thank Grigory Grigorievich for helping her become empress.
Initially, on the site of the Marble Palace there was a two-story building of the Postal Yard, built according to the design of Domenico Trezzini. Here Peter I held his assemblies and festive events. There was also a restaurant, hotel and post office in the building. It is interesting that in good weather Peter came here on foot from the Summer Garden. In winter, hotel guests lived like on a powder keg. If the Tsar unexpectedly came to the Postal Yard, then all the residents were immediately evicted. After a while, a Manege was built here, and the post office moved to another place. But the new Manege building burned down already in 1737.
In 1769, by decree of Catherine II, large-scale construction of the Marble Palace began here under the leadership of the architect Antonio Rinaldi. This majestic building became a gift for the queen’s favorite, Grigory Orlov. Catherine decided to generously thank Grigory Grigorievich for helping her become empress. Of course, Orlov could not help but make a return gift and chose the luxurious Nadir Shah diamond as a present. The cost of the stone was 460 thousand rubles - fabulous money for that time. By the way, approximately the same amount of money was spent on the construction of the Marble Palace itself.
There is a version that Catherine II personally sketched the design of the Marble Palace.
Marble for cladding the building was brought from Italy, Greece and Russia.
Interestingly, a large box of coins, also made of marble, was laid in the foundation of the building. About 300 people worked daily at the construction site of the Marble Palace. The Empress personally monitored the progress of work and encouraged the most active builders.
The interior decoration of the Marble Palace amazes with its splendor. Everything here has been thought out to the smallest detail. The main staircase was decorated with statues of Morning, Day, Evening and Night, as well as sculptural groups representing the spring and autumn equinoxes. In addition to luxurious halls, there was a library, a large art gallery, bedrooms, living rooms, an office, Turkish and Greek baths. The construction of this huge house was delayed. Count Orlov died without ever seeing the palace in its finished form. True, in those years he was no longer the empress’s favorite.
Later, the Marble Palace belonged to the grandson of Catherine II, Konstantin Pavlovich Romanov, and his children. After the revolution, the building was nationalized, and all the rich collections were transferred to the Hermitage. In the palace in different time There were such organizations as the People's Commissariat of Education, the Administration of Palaces and Museums, the Central Bureau of Local History and others. In 1992, the house was placed under the jurisdiction of the Russian Museum. An equestrian monument to Alexander III was erected in front of the building.
Practical information
The Marble Palace is located at the address: St. Petersburg, Millionnaya street, 5/1, Nevsky Prospekt metro station.
The ticket price for adult visitors is 350 RUB, for schoolchildren and students - 170 RUB. You can purchase a comprehensive ticket to visit the Marble, Mikhailovsky, Stroganov Palaces and the Mikhailovsky Castle for 650 RUB. The discounted price for such a ticket is 300 RUB. You will have to pay an additional 500 RUB for photography.
Address: Millionnaya st., 5/1
Prices on the page are as of September 2018.
Since 1780, the finishing of the two upper floors has been carried out. All work was completed by 1785. A clock turret was installed on the attic. On the sides of the tower were placed two figures by the sculptor F.I. Shubin - Loyalty (right) and Generosity (left). In total, the palace housed about 40 works by this master.
Copper sheets were produced for the roof in Sestroretsk. Their fitting and soldering were carried out so carefully that the roof did not leak until the renovation in 1931.
The main staircase of the Marble Palace is decorated with statues of Morning, Day, Evening and Night. On the site from the second to the third floor there are sculptures representing the autumn and spring equinox.
On the ground floor there were kitchens, boiler rooms and a church consecrated in the name of the Entry into the Temple Holy Mother of God. The 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 ceremonial baths on the second floor. In the building on Mramorny Lane there is a well with a pump for supplying water to the kindergarten. In the Nevsky building there is a swimming pool for cleaning mechanisms.
In the northern part of the second floor of the Marble Palace there was the Great Nevsky Enfilade. You got here from the Grand Staircase through the Front and Oval entrances. From the Oval entrance you 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 is Catherine's, glorifying Catherine II. From the south, the personal chambers of Grigory Orlov adjoined the Catherine Hall: the State Bedroom, the Garden with five apple trees, five cherries and a fountain. In the south-eastern 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 there are Greek and Turkish baths. In the northwestern part there are spare rooms of the Malaya Nevskaya 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. In the building on 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 aroused unpleasant emotions in the count. Together with his wife, he lived in one of the modest St. Petersburg houses, which was also given to him by the Empress.
One of the St. Petersburg legends says that there was a secret door on the side of Mramorny 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 gave it to her six-year-old grandson, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich. The building has been empty for more than 10 years. The Grand Duke settled in the palace only after his marriage to Princess Saxe-Saafeld-Coburg (in Orthodoxy Anna Fedorovna) in February 1796. Later, the empress evicted her grandson from the palace for bad behavior. Konstantin Pavlovich, who was 16 years old at the time of the wedding (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 vacated by Paul I. In 1797-1798, the Marble Palace was occupied by the former Polish king Stanislav August Poniatowski. He lived here with his court of 167 people and 83 members of his retinue. To receive the king and his entourage, part of the Marble Palace was rebuilt by V. Brenna. However, even after this Poniatowski complained about the cramped conditions. 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, library, and porcelain collection. 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 since January 1813, when he joined the active army and made a foreign campaign with it. In April 1814, he became the governor of the Kingdom of Poland and left St. Petersburg.
After the departure of Konstantin Pavlovich, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Court Chancellery. Here apartments were rented to court officials. In 1830, the building was examined by architects V. Ochakov and H. Meyer. They declared it unsafe and began major repairs.
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 carried out by A.P. Bryullov. The ceiling of the Marble Hall was raised by one floor. Next to it is the State Dining Room. One could get into the Front Office of Konstantin Nikolaevich through the first hall of the Reception Room. Next to it, Bryullov created a Library, from which there was a passage to the Winter Garden, created on the site of the Sadik. Next is the Great Hall, where concerts were held with the participation of M. Balakirev, A. Rubinstein, N. Rimsky-Korsakov. Nearby, Bryullov created a Bathroom in the antique style and 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 music evenings were held here. In 1857, an organ by G. Metzel was installed in the White Hall. An entrance appeared from Marble Lane. Later, a legend appeared that it was through him that Catherine II went on dates with Orlov. The “Judgment of Paris” ceiling lamp 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 Nikolaevich 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 “Putto with a branch” by an unknown sculptor was installed in the garden between the Marble Palace and the service building.
The Marble Palace was rebuilt again in the 1860s. New offices, dining rooms, and children's rooms were built here. A power station appeared that provided electricity not only to the premises of the palace, but also to the lanterns on the Champ de Mars. We equipped lifting machines - elevators. In 1883, a telephone appeared here. The inhabitants of the palace amused themselves by listening to opera performances through it.
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich was a supporter of the reforms of 1860-1870. In public life, the expression “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, and amateur performances were staged here. In 1884-1886, the architect A.K. Dzhiorguli remodeled the ground floor premises on 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, and Study have also changed. In 1898, on 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 icebreaker "Ermak" according to the design of Admiral S. O. Makarov. D. I. Mendeleev and S. Yu. Witte were present at the meeting.
In addition to Konstantin Konstantinovich, Grand Duke Dmitry Konstantinovich also had apartments in the Marble Palace.
During the First World War, 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 government to purchase the entire palace 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 office of the authorized People's Commissariat of Education, the Administration of Palace Museums, the Academy of the History of Material Culture (in 1919-1936), the Society of Sociology and Theory of Art, and the Central Bureau of Local History.
After the liquidation of the Academy, the Marble Palace was transferred to the Leningrad branch of the Central Museum of V. I. Lenin. The building was rebuilt for museum purposes according to the design of N. E. Lansere and D. A. Vasiliev. The Main Staircase and the Marble Hall were preserved. In some rooms the artistic decoration was preserved. 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, 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. V.I. Lenin's armored car 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 and exhibitions of foreign artists. The premises are being restored.
On January 24, 2002, the White Hall was shown to journalists after renovation. 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 is one of the most interesting palaces in St. Petersburg. This architectural ensemble entirely made of natural stone. The facades and interiors are decorated and lined with various types of marble. This is where the name came from.
History of the Marble Palace
The Marble Palace is one of the most beautiful buildings in St. Petersburg on Palace Embankment
Gift for favorite
The palace was created by order of Catherine II for her favorite Grigory Orlov. The Empress presented a luxurious gift as a token of gratitude for her active participation in the events of 1762, as a result of which she became the full-fledged mistress of the throne.
Catherine's lover did not remain in debt; he gave her a huge Persian emerald, the value of which was almost equal to the cost of the palace.
By her order, an inscription addressed to Orlov was made above the entrance to the palace - “Building of Gratitude.” The construction, which began in 1768, lasted so long, 17 years, that Count Orlov died before the completion of the work, not having time to celebrate a housewarming party in it.
Owners of the palace
In 1785, Catherine bought the palace from her heirs for 1.5 million rubles and soon gave it to her 16-year-old grandson Konstantin Pavlovich on the occasion of his marriage.
However, she soon had to deprive the heir of the gift for “misbehavior.” The young prince, mocking his 14-year-old wife, shot live rats from a cannon in the corridor.
Then the son and grandson of Nicholas I lived alternately in the Marble Palace. So it became for many years the residence of one of the branches of the Romanov family- Konstantinovich, although it was intended for Count Orlov.
During the First World War, the palace was used as a hospital for wounded officers. During Soviet times, the Russian Academy of the History of Material Culture was located there. At this time, many interiors were lost.
Later, the former grand ducal residence turned into the Lenin Museum. Its courtyard was decorated with the “Enemy of Capital” armored car, from which the leader of the revolution delivered his fiery speeches.
Now, in place of the armored car, an equestrian statue of Alexander III has been placed. Since 1994, the building of the Marble Palace came under the jurisdiction of the Russian Museum.
Architectural features
The Marble Palace occupies an entire block between the Neva River and Millionnaya Street; it seems that it grew out of the granite of the Neva. The gray-pink granite and walls of the building echo the color of the St. Petersburg sky. The building was built in the style of early classicism of Russian architecture of the second half of the 18th century.
External structure of the palace
The palace has a complex shape. The main entrance is in the courtyard and faces the garden. Above the entrance there is an inscription: “Building of Gratitude.”
The eastern façade is topped by an elegant clock tower decorated with marble vases. It houses the palace chimes. The facade is generously decorated with columns and pilasters - vertical projections in the wall.
On the sides there are two marble allegorical statues “Generosity” and “Loyalty” by F.I. Shubina. The interiors of the palace are decorated with more than 40 works by this architect. The front courtyard from the south and from the Neva is limited by a forged lattice placed on granite pillars with marble vases.
In 1780, a Service Corps, which contained stables, an arena, a carriage house, and hay sheds. On the ground floor there were kitchens, a boiler room, a church, and a machine for supplying water to the ceremonial baths. On the second floor there is a bathroom, a steam room, and a ballroom.
The western part, intended for household needs, was closed by the front facades of buildings located on Millionnaya Street.
On the fence connecting the service wing with the palace there are relief friezes “The Service of the Horse to Man.”
External facades
The main artistic value of the palace is the external facades, decorated with natural stone. The ground floor is lined with pink-red Tivdi granite, which blends perfectly with the granite embankment of the Neva. The two upper floors are decorated with light gray granite.
The thickness of the palace walls is 1.5-2 meters. The height of the building is from 12 to 22 meters. Columns made of pink marble rhythmically alternate with window openings. The window frames are made of gray Ruskeala marble. Between the windows of the second and third floors - relief airy white marble garlands.
The architecture of the building has Baroque features: the graceful ornate shape of the clock tower, the bizarre contour of the roof created by openwork vases, the complex configuration of the main staircase.
32 types of marble were used to decorate the facades and interiors. Huge blocks of stone were delivered along the Neva from quarries near Lakes Ladoga and Onega. White marble was brought from Italy.
The northern and southern facades, facing the Neva embankment and the Field of Mars, are designed to be perceived from a great distance.
The balcony railings are made of marble with gilded bronze balusters and low figured columns in the form of miniature columns. Along the entire perimeter of the facades there are vases made of gray dolomite, a durable translucent stone with a glass sheen.
Interiors of the Marble Palace
The interiors of the palace are rich interior decoration using a rare and expensive stone - agate. All this luxury is designed to emphasize the strength and masculinity of its owner, Count Orlov.
According to Rinaldi's plan, the artistic decoration of the interior was to be a worthy continuation of the stone decoration of the facades. The architect implemented his idea when decorating the main staircase and halls of the palace.
A majestic staircase, decorated with various types of colored marble, leads to the enfilade of state halls on the second floor. Its monolithic columns are amazingly picturesque.
The main staircase was made according to Rinaldi's design from gray-silver marble.
The ceiling of the staircase is crowned with the ceiling "The Judgment of Paris". Numerous sculptures decorating the staircase were created from Italian marble by the architect F. Shubin especially for the Marble Palace.
Opposite the entrance on the wall is a marble relief with a portrait of Antonio Rinaldi. It appeared here at the request of Count Grigory Orlov in recognition of the architect’s services. Shortly before the completion of the work, the architect was seriously injured after falling from scaffolding. Without waiting for the end of construction, for this reason he left Russia for Italy.
The basis of the artistic decoration of the main staircase is a sculpture made of Italian marble and installed in special niches. The relief composition on the walls of the third floor and the decorative ceiling complement the unusual decoration of the front entrance.
The sculptures of the main staircase of the Marble Palace represent an allegorical ensemble. In the niches between the first and second floors there are four marble statues, personifying the time of day and symbolizing human life stages.
- Morning is human childhood. This is a female figure in the form of the dawn goddess Aurora. At her feet is a solar disk, and her arms are wrapped in garlands of roses.
- Noon is the youth of man. A female figure with an arrow, a symbol of the sun's rays. The sundial shows noon.
- Evening is a mature age. A female figure in the image of the goddess of the hunt, Diana, who goes out hunting at dusk, taking a bow and a quiver of arrows.
- Night is the old age of a person. A female figure with an attribute of the night – an owl.
In the rectangular niches between the second and third floors there are two statues:
- The spring equinox is a female figure with a flower garland in her hands, at her feet is the head of a ram, the zodiac sign of Aries, which the sun enters after the spring equinox.
- Autumn equinox - a male figure with a bunch of ripe grapes in his hand.
On the walls of the third floor there are relief images of four main Virtues:
- Moderation.
- Prudence.
- Justice.
- Strength of mind.
On the western wall is the composition “Game of Cupids”, which is crowned with a rich clock dial.
Throughout the staircase there are sculptures of nymphs. All the symbols of the main staircase glorified the military valor, fortitude and exploits of Grigory Orlov.
Marble Hall of the Palace
The marble hall of the palace is unique. When decorating the hall, the architect used various types of Russian and Italian marble, combining them in various ways.
The walls are lined with Ural, Karelian, Greek, and Italian marble. In the decoration of the main room of the palace, the architect used a rare ornamental stone - lapis lazuli.
The ceiling is supported by supports in the form of thin columns, turning into fan vaults. On the sides of the doorway, two marble columns were installed, on which figures of Russian knights were placed.
On the eastern side of the hall the sculptor depicted double headed eagles. Along the perimeter of the walls there are 14 round bas-reliefs on the theme “Sacrifice”.
The window frames and balcony doors are made of gilded bronze. Door panels and stunning floor coverings made of stacked parquet with a complex pattern create a unique atmosphere, characterizing the delicate taste of architects and sculptors.
The hall is decorated with gilded bronze chandeliers with crystal decoration. Two marble fireplaces with mirrors in gold carved frames emphasize the generosity of the empress, at whose command the palace was built.
Winter Garden
Nearby is a winter garden, located on the terrace of the second and third floors. Its decorative arches rest on cast iron columns and semi-columns.
The metal ceiling is decorated with coffers, graceful geometric indentations across its entire surface.
On the east side - balcony with elegant wrought iron lattice. In the middle of the garden, a marble fountain with three bowls rises on a mosaic stone floor.
A large three-leaf glass door opens the entrance to the Flower Garden, in which a marble fireplace with a mirror blends harmoniously into the sea of flowers.
Halls of the Marble Palace
Marble was also used in the decoration of other halls of the palace.
- The white hall looks rich and sophisticated, decorated with slender white columns.
- The lacquer hall is decorated with wood, the walls are decorated with panels with paintings of the exploits of Alexander the Great. The velvet walls are crowned with the monograms of the Empress. In front of her majestic portrait is a pedestal with a vase decorated with war trophies.
- The Oryol and Catherine Halls glorify the activities and symbolize the valor and luxury of the Empress and her favorite. The bas-reliefs of the Russian sculptor M. Kozlovsky, glorifying duty, loyalty to the Fatherland, self-sacrifice and generosity of commanders, stand out with their ideal whiteness.
- The Chinese hall is very beautiful and fashionable. During important receptions it served as a formal dining room.
- The art gallery presents 206 masterpieces of painting.
Current state
Since 1994, the palace regularly hosts art exhibitions, meetings, and concerts. Open here permanent exhibitions:
- Russian art in the context of world art.
- Foreign artists in Russia in the 18th and 19th centuries.
- Ludwig Museum in the Russian Museum.
- Collection of St. Petersburg collectors Rzhevsky brothers
- Konstantin Romanov is a poet of the Silver Age.
Exhibitions of works by contemporary Russian and foreign artists are also regularly held. Spouses Peter and Irene Ludwig donated works of Russian and foreign artists of the 20th century from their collection to the museum.
In 1998, the St. Petersburg collectors Rzhevsky brothers, who had been storing works of Russian painting for half a century, donated their collection to the Russian Museum. Among them are works by Aivazovsky, Clover, Dubovsky, Mashkov, Konchalovsky, Kustodiev.
A particularly rare part of the collection – mantel clock, floor and travel, made by different watchmakers of the 18th-19th centuries. All watches with unique clock mechanisms play several melodies, with an interesting decorative design of the dial and case.
Most of the collection represents graphics, sculpture, furniture, lighting fixtures, and artistic bronze. In 2015, the Bank of Russia issued a commemorative coin with a face value of 25 rubles, dedicated to the Marble Palace.
B is one of the most famous buildings of the 18th century. The palace was built according to the calculations of the architect. A. Rinaldi at the behest of Catherine II for her favorite G.G. Orlova. It is known that the empress personally made a sketch of the future building, and the architect embodied her plan. Count Orlov was so delighted with the architect's work that as soon as he took possession, he ordered a marble relief with a portrait of Rinaldi to be installed.
The count was awarded such a royal gift for helping Catherine take the Russian throne. The favorite appreciated the gift and, for his part, presented Catherine II with a huge diamond, the cost of which was almost equal to the cost of the entire building. Today this diamond is called “Orlov”.
The construction of the palace began in 1769, the construction work was supervised by M. Mordvinov. The Empress often came to the construction site and awarded good craftsmen with special awards. In 1774, they began finishing the facades and interior halls with granite and 32 types of marble, and white marble was imported from Italy. The roof was covered with copper sheets, the connection and soldering of which were carried out with such diligence that the roof stood without repair until 1931.
The construction of the palace took so long that Orlov, without waiting for its completion, died in 1783, on April 13. Work on the construction of Marble was coming to an end when another misfortune happened: A. Rinaldi fell from the scaffolding. The architect, without waiting for the completion of construction, went to his home in Italy, leaving behind this great creation.
All halls, private chambers, boudoir, staircases, picture galleries of the palace are richly decorated with gilding, stucco and statues. On the third floor there was a Library, living quarters, living rooms for card games, a Chinese sofa room, and a ball room. The palace is notable for the fact that there was the Catherine Hall, glorifying Catherine, and the Orlov Hall, glorifying Orlov and his brothers.
On the ground floor there was a boiler room, a kitchen, a church and service rooms, which were equipped with mechanisms that supplied water to the Garden, bathhouse, kitchen and pool.
After the revolution, the building passed to different departments, until the architect N. Lansere, in 1937, rebuilt it as a museum, trying to preserve the interior decoration in its original form.
Today, the Marble Palace hosts exhibitions, meetings of political figures, scientific work is carried out, and the premises are being restored.
You can get to the Marble Palace from the station. metro station - Nevsky Prospekt.
