Housed in four splendid 18th- and 19th-century buildings, part of which comprised the Russian royalty’s Winter Palace (and still retains the name & much of the interior splendor thereof). The collections, housed in over three hundred rooms, are in total one of the largest in the world. They are divided into 6 major exhibits: Prehistoric Cultures, Art & Culture of the East, Antiquity, Russian Art, Western European art, and Numismatics. Of these Russian Art is the smallest group, due to most of it having been transferred to St. Petersburg’s Russian Museum around the turn of the century, but there are still many fine pieces, including some very good religious icons. Western European Art is the largest and most important group, with particularly strong representation of French and Italian work. Da Vinci’s Madonna with a Flower, one of the few confirmed paintings from the master’s early period, is here; as is Michaelangelo’s sculpture Crouching Boy. There are also several Bernini pieces including a rare Self-Portrait. Among Dutch and Flemish artists, a set of portraits from Van Dyck and Rembrandt stand out, along with some Rubens landscapes.
The Hermitage is also rich in early modern painting and sculpture, with important works from Millet, Degas, Renoir, Matisse, Rodin, and Picasso on display. Some of the most fascinating sights in the Hermitage are the smallest: the collection of elaborately-worked cups, vases, clocks, religious icons, and wall panels—mostly found in the Russian Art group—is worth going out of your way for. A series of Greek miniature terra-cottas, bronzes, and jewelry are in astonishingly perfect good condition, as are many of the early Byzantine, Armenian, Syrian, and Iranian items, including some exceptional triptych carvings. In the Numismatics section—one of the most extensive in Europe—more than 90,000 coins, medallions, and seals are organized by region and era. For all of its displays, however, the Hermitage may be at least as famous for the vast stores of art it holds and does not show; as recent news reports indicate, not even the Moscow government is always aware of all that’s squirreled away in the cellars and storerooms of St Petersburg. As these treasures (including much loot from WWII) gradually emerge into the better-lit atmosphere of post-Communist Russia, some items will no doubt be reclaimed by rightful owners; the rest, however, will serve to further enhance this already-spectacular museum.
Open Tuesday-Sunday; closed Mondays; some collections closed by rotation; admission.
