Mom's friend works as a restorer in the Hermitage. Several times she gave me truly unique tours of the museum. A long time ago, thanks to her, I visited "under the ceiling" of the Gallery of Antiquities. The day before yesterday she showed the Jordanian (main) stairs... from the most unusual angle.

White marble staircase starting from main gallery, diverges in two wide marches, which reconnect at the upper platform. Here, the effect of baroque theatricalization strikes the imagination: the low, shaded first flight of the stairs contrasts with its main volume, where the space seems to move apart, reflected in the mirrors and breaking through into the infinity of the illusory vault painting. Ten monolithic columns of Serdobol granite support the vaults of the stairs. Permeated with light, sparkling with gilding and mirrors, the interior occupies the entire height of the building of the Winter Palace. It has survived from the Rastrelli interior decoration of the Winter Palace, although it was badly damaged in the fire of 1837. It was restored by the architect V.P. Stasov.

A picturesque plafond depicting Olympus (Diziano Gasparo, 18th century) visually increases the height of the room. The decorative decoration of the stairs includes sculptures brought from Italy during the reign of Peter I: "Power", "Antina", "Diana", "Justice", "Power".

This staircase is undergoing renovations. And we climbed more than 20 meters, to the very ceiling, in order to look at the murals and picturesque panels up close, and at the same time watch the work of restorers.



In the 18th century the staircase was called the Ambassadorial - the ambassadors of foreign powers climbed it, heading to the palace for a reception. From the stairs opens the entrance to the two front suites of the palace - the Neva and the Main, leading to the St. George's Hall and the Great Church. The passage along the Main Enfilade repeats the path of the solemn ceremonies of the mid-19th - early 20th centuries.
Later, the stairs began to be called the Jordanian - during the Feast of the Epiphany, a procession to the Neva descended from the Great Cathedral of the Winter Palace.

At the top, it is decorated with images of atlantes, statues, porticos, etc., creating the effect of volume. In the vicinity, of course, they are flat and even a little rough ... In general, what kind of master do you have to be to create such a thing .. By the way, they were painted not directly on plaster, but on canvas, and this canvas is so tightly connected to the wall that it even hard to believe.

In general, much is not visible from the bottom, for example, in what condition the walls and panels arrived. I clearly remember how, on one of my recent visits to the Hermitage, I looked at the ceiling of the Jordan Stairs and was surprised at how beautifully done ... But in fact, the paintings were crumbling and ruthless corrosion was going on the walls. The restorers have already fixed almost everything, but I found one place (pictured below). By the way, in the first photo, the uncle just beats off the plaster in order to restore the wall element.

What got the most - so this is a panel of the 18th century. By the way, I was sincerely sure that this was a solid ceiling and it was written, if not directly on the ceiling, then on a single and large wooden (or some other) surface. It turned out that it was... a canvas. Or rather, several interconnected canvases, moreover, they even noticeably sag. And their condition ... cracks, traces of dirt, leak holes, even dead flies - what we just didn’t see on them!

By the way, if we are talking about repairs in the Hermitage. Several halls on the first floor have been restored (where there is antiquity). And there are many exhibits that I have not seen before ... I can’t say that they would be very impressive .. but still! Highly recommended for lovers of antiquity!

The interiors of the Winter Palace are famous and have been admired for centuries. They are magnificent not only because they contain treasures in the form of sculptures and paintings, they themselves are treasures that have been witnesses of Russian history since the beginning of the construction of the palace in 1762. The article lists 10 famous interiors that are usually associated with the Winter Palace.

1. Jordan stairs. Distinctive feature: the main staircase No. 1 in Russia

The Ambassadorial (Jordanian) Staircase is the main front staircase in the Winter Palace. According to it, the ambassadors of foreign states went up to the front halls for audiences, so it was originally called the Embassy.

Jordan stairs of the Hermitage. Saint Petersburg

Later, she was given the name Jordanian, since the royal family descended to the Jordan on the feast of Epiphany - a special hole in the winter Neva, where the ceremony of blessing water was held.

The decoration of the Embassy Stairs reflects the features of the Russian Baroque. The steps and the carved balustrade are made of white Carrara marble. The decoration of the walls, their elegant sculpture and gilding are effectively contrasted with smooth columns of gray marble located on the upper balustrade.

The Jordanian staircase leads to a suite of ceremonial halls, where solemn ceremonies and court festivities took place.

2. Petrovsky (Small Throne) Hall. Distinctive feature: the hall is dedicated to the memory of Peter I

The Petrovsky (Small Throne) Hall was created in 1833 by Auguste Montferrand and restored after a fire in 1837 by Vasily Stasov. The hall is dedicated to the memory of Peter I - the interior decoration includes the emperor's monogram (two Latin letters “P”), double-headed eagles and crowns.

In a niche designed as a triumphal arch, there is a painting “Peter I with the allegorical figure of Glory”. In the upper part of the walls there are canvases representing Peter the Great in the battles of the Northern War (P. Scotti and B. Medici).

The throne was made in St. Petersburg at the end of the 18th century. The hall is decorated with silver-embroidered Lyon velvet panels and silverware made in St. Petersburg.

3. Pavilion hall with Peacock clock. Distinctive feature: Peacock watch and

The pavilion hall was decorated in the building of the Small Hermitage in 1858 according to the project of the architect Andrey Stackenschneider. It combines Renaissance, Gothic and oriental motifs. The hall faces the Hanging Garden and the Neva.

The ceiling and the arcade framing the hall are saturated with gilded stucco ornamentation. A combination of light marble with gilded stucco decor and the brilliance of crystal chandeliers give the interior a special showiness.

Pavilion Hall and Peacock Clock of the Hermitage

The Peacock watch was created by British craftsman James Cox in the 1770s and purchased by Catherine II. This is the only large automatic machine of the 18th century in the world that has survived to our time unchanged and in working condition.

Hanging Gardens overlooking the Pavilion Hall

The figures of a peacock, a rooster and an owl, included in the composition of the automatic clock, are equipped with mechanisms that set these birds in motion.

The pavilion hall of the Hermitage and the mosaic of Medusa Gorgon on the floor

The daughter of the architect Stackenschneider wrote in her diary on April 24, 1856: “ The other day, dad took us to the Hermitage, showed us the hall, which he had just graduated from. Quite a magical room. Wonder how good!!»

"Fountain of Tears" in the Pavilion Hall of the Hermitage

Distinctive feature: repetition of frescoes by Raphael Vatican

Catherine II- the founder of the Hermitage collection knew about painting, she wanted to have all the best in Russia. Despite the fact that she did not travel outside her country, she wished to have a copy of the Vatican

Raphael's workshop began painting the Vatican Loggias in 1518. long gallery ( 65 meters) is divided into 13 parts. Each of them depicts 4 episodes of the Old and New Testaments. The loggias of the Vatican were painted by Raphael's students according to sketches and under the supervision of the artist himself.

Three and a half centuries later, by decree of the Russian Empress architects and artists measured and copied the original loggias and over time in St. Petersburg was made a copy of part of the Papal Palace in the Vatican.

It should be noted that that part of the Papal Palace, where it is located The loggias of Raphael are currently closed to tourists. In the Hermitage, anyone who has bought a ticket to the museum can enjoy the lightness and elegance of the gallery, which copies the idea and creation of Raphael.

5. George Hall. Distinctive feature: the main throne of the Winter Palace is located here

The Georgievsky (Large Throne) Hall of the Winter Palace was created in the early 1840s by Vasily Stasov, who retained the compositional solution of his predecessor Giacomo Quarenghi. The two-height columned hall is decorated with Carrara marble and gilded bronze.

Georgievsky Hall of the Hermitage

Above the Throne Place there is a bas-relief "George the Victorious slaying the dragon with a spear". The large imperial throne was executed by order of Empress Anna Ioannovna in London(N. Clausen, 1731-1732). The type-setting parquet created from 16 breeds of a tree is magnificent. The solemn decoration of the hall corresponds to its purpose: official ceremonies and receptions were held here.

6. Military gallery in 1812. Distinctive feature: built in honor of Russia's victory over Napoleonic France

The Military Gallery of the Winter Palace was designed by Carl Rossi in 1826 in honor of Russia's victory over Napoleonic France. On its walls there are 332 portraits of generals - participants in the war of 1812 and foreign campaigns of 1813-1814.

Count Pyotr Petrovich Konovitsyn - General of Infantry

The paintings were created by the English artist George Dow with the participation of A. V. Polyakov and V. A. Golike. A place of honor is occupied by ceremonial portraits of the Allied sovereigns: the Russian Emperor Alexander I and the King of Prussia Friedrich-Wilhem III (artist F. Kruger) and the Emperor of Austria Franz I (P. Kraft). Portraits of four field marshals are located on the sides of the doors leading to the St. George and Armorial Halls.

7. Armorial hall. Distinctive feature: golden pillars of the hall

The Armorial Hall of the Winter Palace, intended for ceremonial receptions, was created by Vasily Stasov in the late 1830s. At the entrances to the hall - sculptural groups ancient Russian warriors with banners, on the poles of which shields with the coats of arms of the Russian provinces were fixed, which determined the name of the hall.

Images of coats of arms of the provinces are preserved on the chandeliers. A slender colonnade carrying a balcony with a balustrade, a frieze with an ornament of acanthus leaves, and a combination of gold and white create an impression of grandeur and solemnity. In the center of the hall is an aventurine bowl made by Yekaterinburg stone cutters of the 19th century.

8. Alexander Hall. Distinctive feature: interior with elegant white stucco

The Alexander Hall of the Winter Palace was created by Alexander Bryullov (the elder brother of the artist Karl Bryullov) after a fire in 1837. architectural solution hall, dedicated to memory Emperor Alexander I and the Patriotic War of 1812, built on a combination of style variations of Gothic and Classicism.

Located in the frieze 24 medallions with allegorical images of the most significant events Patriotic War 1812 and foreign campaigns of 1813 - 1814 reproduce in an enlarged form the medals of the sculptor F.P. Tolstoy.

In the lunette of the end wall there is a medallion with a bas-relief image of Alexander I in the image of the ancient Slavic deity Rodomysl. The hall houses an exposition of European artistic silver of the 16th-19th centuries. Products from Germany, France, Portugal, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Lithuania are presented.

9. Hall of the Great Bowl. Distinctive feature: a huge bowl created in the Altai Territory

She is often referred to as the "Queen of the Vases". The largest stone vase in the world weighs over nineteen tons., its outer diameter reaches 5.04 meters, and the inner one is 3.22 meters, the total height with the pedestal is 2.57 meters. Since the discovery of a huge block of green-wavy jasper thirty long years passed before the placement of the Great Kolyvan vase in the building of the New Hermitage.

Back in 1815, miners discovered a rock of green-wavy jasper at the quarries in the Altai Territory. The stone turned out good quality and suitable for craft work. The next find was a stone that had a length of 8.5 meters. This jasper monolith had a flaw that caused the piece to be split. After a thorough examination of the wreckage received, most of it was taken into work: its length was 5.6 meters.

The author of the project of the elliptical bowl, which was ordered to be made from a monolith, was Abraham Melnikov. In February 1828, preparatory work began. With the help of 230 workers, the stone was moved to the stone shed and slightly raised. Here, for more than two years, workers have been pre-treatment of the monolith. In 1830, the hewn block was transferred to the servants, and 567 people manually pushed it 30 miles to a stone-cutting factory in the village of Kolyvan .

There following for eleven years, skilled stonemasons created the inside of the bowl, applied a carved ornament, polished the surface . At this time, a stone worthy of becoming a pedestal for a bowl was already discovered. With great care, a hole was made in it for the rod, which should connect the pedestal to the bowl. Jasper is a hard stone, but very fragile, difficult to process. Small cracks that appeared in the process of work were repaired by Russian craftsmen with great skill: even with a detailed examination, it is difficult to detect them.

By February 1843, the bowl was completely ready. Almost 200 horses harnessed to specially equipped sledges were used to transport it to Barnaul. Then the convoy proceeded to Yekaterinburg to the Utkinskaya pier, from where the river route to Moscow and St. Petersburg began. For six months a barge sailed along the rivers of Russia, and finally, in August 1843, the bowl arrived in the capital. For another four long years, the foundation was being built for the Kolyvan queen: it was decided to identify this miracle in the building of the New Hermitage. The hall in which the product was placed is now called the Hall of the Great Vase.

10. Boudoir. Distinctive feature: elegant interior decoration in burgundy color

The boudoir was part of the chambers of Empress Maria Alexandrovna, wife of Alexander II. The elegant decoration of the room was created in 1853 by the architect Harald Bosse, a virtuoso master of interior design in the “second rococo” style. The bright color of the silk fabric - brocatel (silk with metallic thread), the elegant pattern of ornaments, soft gilded furniture create a feeling of sophistication and comfort. A magnificent bronze gilded chandelier, reflected in the mirrors, complements the spectacular decoration of the interior.

Come to St. Petersburg, wander through the halls of the Winter Palace. See you at the museum 🙂

Main staircase

The main staircase of the Winter Palace. Beautiful and majestic interior, about which the connoisseur of architecture A.P. Bashutsky wrote that this staircase is “decidedly the only one in Europe in terms of the beauty of its location and vastness.”

It is she who is called upon to be the first to show that the palace is the imperial residence, that is, not only the place of residence of the head of state and holding various kinds of celebrations, but the “face of the country”: evidence of its power, wealth, and high culture.

First, from the stately but simply decorated gallery, the visitor sees a wide shaded march, the perspective of which ends with a niche with a sculpture. It would seem that nothing promises surprises. But it is enough to climb the stairs, as the space becomes bright, swings open in breadth and upwards, its decoration is multiplied in mirrors and ends with a powerful colonnade and a picturesque ceiling, “revealing” it into the “sky”.

The dynamics of light and shadow, the dynamics of forms, the dynamics of volumes - all these are the features of Baroque architecture, brilliantly embodied in the interior of the Main Staircase by Francesco Bartolommeo Rastrelli.

The main staircase is one of the few interiors of the Winter Palace, completed by the architect and subsequently restored almost without deviations from his style.

It would seem, which of the visitors to the palace did not see her? And yet in its description, we constantly meet with inaccuracies.

For example, in its title. Most often, the staircase is called the Jordanian staircase and, it would seem, quite logically, this is justified by the fact that on the feast of the Epiphany, participants in the procession descended along it, starting from the Big Church, and headed to the entrance overlooking the Neva, and then to the "Jordan" - the hole for watershed. Members of the royal family always took part in these celebrations. They also indicate that this name appeared in the 19th century.

Indeed, the entrance and the gallery were called Jordanian, but the name of the stairs always remained, as in the 18th century, Ambassadorial or simply Main. Only after the revolution, when the palace became a museum, did the guides use the name Jordanian, and it took root, displacing the historical fact.

Another statement - that the staircase occupies the entire north-eastern risalit - is not difficult to refute by simply looking at the plan.

In the 18th century, the staircase in baroque palaces played a very important representative role, being included in the suite of ceremonial halls, and often was their main element. In the Winter Palace, the staircase is the central component, from which two enfilades diverge - the Neva and the Bolshaya.

The beginning of its creation dates back to 1756, when in November Rastrelli received an imperial decree "in what manner to make various decorations for the stairs." Several design drawings by Rastrelli have survived - they give a complete picture of its original design and are considered the best in the graphic heritage of the architect.

In 1758, Alexei Belsky made a model of the stairs.

Huge, the entire height of the building, it was divided into two tiers. The lower one served as the basis for the entire architectural composition and had no windows - the walls were covered with complex gilded molding.

The upper tier, with windows, was divided by paired pilasters, near which allegorical statues were placed. The landing of the second floor turned into a gallery with twin columns. They were wooden, lined with pink artificial marble.

The balusters of the gallery were also gilded wooden.

Perhaps that is why some authors can read that the original staircase was wooden. In fact, it was marble, as Rastrelli himself mentioned in the description of the Winter Palace: “inside the vast three-story building there is a main, large courtyard and two smaller ones, one of which is located at the edge of the palace and serves to separate the office space from the kitchen. The number of all rooms exceeds 460, including 4 large reception rooms connected on the same floor with a large hall. In addition, there is a main staircase in two flights with a railing of white Italian marble, very magnificent in architecture and sculpture, decorated with several statues ... "

However, at first Rastrelli intended to make the railings of gilded copper, as well as the vases on the pedestals and the bases of the columns.

The entrance to the halls of the Neva Enfilade was framed by a portal with columns, with a sculpture and a cartouche on the pediment. On its sides in niches were statues of Mars and Apollo.

The order for the ceiling at the choice of Rastrelli was made by the Venetian Francesco Fontebasso, who soon arrived in St. Petersburg.

Documents have been preserved, according to which it is possible to present the scope of work, and who performed them, what materials were used, and finally, how much it all cost.

The staircase was completed for the opening of the palace in 1761.

Under Catherine II and Alexander I, the stairs were not used very often. The chambers of the empress, located in the southeastern part of the palace, naturally "attracted" the main communications to themselves. The short reign of Paul made some changes in the layout of the living quarters. The entire southern part of the palace then passed into the possession of Maria Feodorovna and remained with her even after the death of the emperor. It was thanks to the Dowager Empress that the traditions of grand entrances and other official celebrations were preserved.

Changes in the layout and design of the Winter Palace after the fire of 1837 gave the Main Staircase the significance that Rastrelli had originally assumed.

The restoration of the Main Staircase after the fire was entrusted to V.P. Stasov. Emperor Nicholas I ordered "the main staircase to be restored in a completely old way", but at the same time ordered "to replace the upper columns with marble or granite".

The architect was extremely attentive to the complex work, while maintaining the grandiosity of Rastrelli's plan. The already mentioned A.P. Bashutsky, who had seen the stairs even before the fire, assured that Stasov's decoration "without deviating from the style in its forms, was excellently ennobled by the new concept of art regarding the purity of the relief and the correctness of the drawing."

The best materials were used to finish the stairs. The floors, steps and balustrade were made of white Carrara marble. The walls were covered with artificial marble, also white.

At first they wanted to make the columns on the second tier of pink Tivdi marble, but 8 columns of Serdobol granite were found in the warehouse, to which 2 new ones were added. Gray polished stone brought the desired color accent to the overall white and gold gamut of the interior, making it more expressive and emphasizing its monumentality.

Stasov decided to replace the burnt ceiling of Fontebasso with the “Olympus” ceiling found in the pantries of the Hermitage. It was also created in Venice, in the 18th century. Its author, Gasparo Diziani, one of the founders of the Venetian Academy of Arts, at one time served as its president. Obviously, at first the plafond adorned the ceiling of the second anti-chamber, and was removed during the alteration of the halls by G. Quarenghi. The ceiling was rather dilapidated and "consisted of three pieces with damaged edges." Then it was strengthened and rewritten by the side figures of Bacchus and Apollo.

The size of the ceiling turned out to be smaller than the previous one, because the space remaining between it and the former frame, the artist A.I. Solovyov painted according to Stasov's sketches "similar to the previous style in which the staircase was."

Sculptures for decorating niches were taken from the Summer Garden and the Tauride Palace. They were brought to Russia from Italy back in the time of Peter the Great and to early XIX century, some of them needed restoration. It was led by the famous sculptor V.I. Demuth-Malinovsky.

The statues from the Summer Garden were placed in niches on the sides of the first march ("Apollo" and "Diana" - now in their place are "Venus" and "Mercury") and on the sides of the door to the Anteroom ("Power" and "Justice").

A magnificent statue of “Power” was brought from the Taurida Palace, which adorned the central niche on the first landing of the stairs. It is not known when the name "Lady" was assigned to her, becoming a kind of allusion to the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna and Catherine II.

The statues on consoles along the walls are made of alabaster. These are mainly the works of Russian sculptors, graduates of the Academy of Arts. Their images are called in allegorical form to reveal the idea of ​​a prosperous powerful state.

On the northern wall there is a figure of "Justice" by I.I. Leppe and "Mercury" A.M. Manuilova.

On the east - "Greatness" in the form of Athena and "Abundance" performed by N.A. Ustinov, "Wisdom" (with snakes on a staff) A.I. Terebenev, and "Fidelity" (with an eagle at the feet) by I.I. Leppe.

On the southern wall were originally placed "Justice" by A.I. Terebenev and "Venus" by A.M. Manuylov, but at the behest of the emperor, the statue of Venus was replaced by the "Muse of Erato" by I. German, originally conceived for the Concert Hall.

There is also a sculpture on the pediments above the doors: those that lead to the Anteroom decorate Terebenev's "Peace" and "Abundance", and those in the Field Marshal's - "Glory" and "Wisdom" of Ustinov and Manuilov.

Manuilov and Terebenev also made figures of putti sitting above the windows.

All alabaster figures are designed in a calm, classical manner, but, despite this, they are perfectly included in the baroque decoration of the stairs.

Spectacular and ornate, the Main Staircase seems timeless. It is hard to imagine how she suffered during the Great Patriotic War. The plafond was especially badly damaged, which was covered with a foggy veil from dampness. The painting around its gilded frame crumbled at the slightest shock. (We wrote about the restoration of the ceiling at the beginning of our publications - November 28, 2014).

Immediately after the end of the war, scaffolding was placed on the stairs, and by the spring of 1948 it was restored. Not only the plafond and vault murals were restored: the marblers put the steps and railings in order, the gilders re-covered the molding with leaves of pure gold.

Subsequently, the decoration of the stairs was restored twice more, the last time in 2010.

text: Tatyana Vladimirovna Sonina

layout: Pavel Vladimirovich Deineka

First impression. No one will deny the significance of this postulate. Then you can correct, correct, change the final opinion, but first impressions remain with us forever. The Jordanian staircase, or, as it was originally called, the Ambassadorial, was designed to create an opinion about the Great Russian state. Powerful, rich, large-scale.

Creating a masterpiece

Elizabeth, as the true daughter of Peter, understood the importance of the external attributes of the empire, emphasizing its power and status. Therefore, she ordered to demolish the previous residence of the Russian sovereigns, which, after numerous restructurings, had a slightly solemn, not formal appearance. Francesco was commissioned in 1752 to build a palace that would meet the requirements of the Great Autocrat. Inspired by the task, the legendary builder of St. Petersburg created a creation, each room and element of which is a separate masterpiece of architecture and interior design. The Jordan Staircase is no exception. Keeping in mind the special functions, she was assigned a role: to make the right first impression. The result is truly amazing.

decisively unique in Europe in terms of the beauty of location and vastness

This is how A.P. described the main staircase of the winter residence. Bashutsky.

Style decision

By the end of the 18th century, the baroque wave, covering continental Europe from Italy to Germany and Poland, reached Russia. The main components of the style - pomposity and solemnity - are created due to the special splendor of the decor, the play of light and shadow, theatrical techniques, bizarre proportions and curved dynamics of lines. This makes the style recognizable from the first moments. The pretentiousness of the Baroque was to the taste of the inhabitants of the Northern capital. The Byzantine past made its additions to the European vision, which was called "Russian Baroque". jordan stairs Winter Palace - bright representative this style. The interior of the main staircase was designed and fully implemented by B.F. Rastrelli. Montferan, Kvarnegi, Rossi were involved in the work on the design of other premises.

Magnificent and unique

The great Italian with a southern temperament embodied the baroque in the final image of the Jordan Stairs, using all the possibilities of style. The central element that harmoniously connects all the diversity of decoration - the staircase is divided into two flights, the curved geometry of which, like flowing streams of water, determines the dynamics of the rest of the space. The lower of the two tiers of the stairs, as a base, holds the entire composition. The upper tier, due to the abundance of real and false mirrored windows, "opens" the perspective, visually expanding the space. All this is crowned with an elegant colonnade and ceiling, a picturesque continuation of the sky. The fascination with antique statues, characteristic of the Baroque, found its confirmation here as well. At the entrance to the Neva Enfilade, like faithful guards, the figures of Mars and Apollo froze. In the central niche of the lower tier is located "Power", often called the "Mistress". On the north wall - "Justice" and "Mercury". On the east - "Greatness" (Athena), "Wisdom" and "Loyalty". On the southern wall - "Justice" and Splendor of interiors is impossible without appropriate materials. Gilded stucco, marble and granite emphasize the state status of the Jordan Stairs.

great fire

The human factor, an open air vent, almost destroyed the creation masters of genius. The smell of smoke was noticed in the morning of that ill-fated December day in 1837, but until the evening they could not determine the source of the fire. Dried out for almost a century, the wooden structures of the Palace burned for more than 2 days. The Jordanian staircase in the Hermitage, like other interiors, was destroyed.

Restoration was entrusted to V.P. Stasov. Approaching his work reverently and responsibly, he restored the Embassy Stairs.

And again writes A.P. Bashutsky, a witness to Rastrelli's original version, noting that the decoration:

without deviating from style in its forms, it is superbly ennobled by the new concept of art regarding the purity of the relief and the correctness of the drawing.

The changing times demanded a modern look at history. The main color of the original interior - pink - was changed to strict gray and classic white. The golden forged lattice was replaced by a carved airy marble balustrade, a military weapons theme was added. Classicism confidently replaced the Baroque.

Jordanian or Embassy?

How to find the Jordan Stairs in the Hermitage? You need to remember the history of the name. It was built as the main one, for a long time it served as the Embassy. It became Jordanian only once a year, when the imperial family descended along it to the Jordan - an ice hole cut in the Neva. last name entrenched, oddly enough, in Soviet times. You can get to it by passing through the Jordanian (Ambassadorial) entrance of the Winter Palace, which is the closest to the Neva. Sometimes this entrance is called Excursion. Most of the guests of the Hermitage enter the Winter Palace through it. Its main task - to make a first impression - the main staircase of the museum performs regularly to this day, attracting tourists.

The Hermitage Embassy staircase is the main front staircase of the Winter Palace. On it, the ambassadors of foreign states went up to the palace. The name "Jordanian" staircase was due to the fact that the royal family on the feast of the Epiphany descended along it to the Jordan - a special hole in the frozen Neva, where the ceremony took place.
The staircase was made by Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli in the Baroque style. The main staircase was restored after a fire in 1837 by V.P. Stasov, who retained in general terms the idea of ​​F.B. Rastrelli.

2 White marble sculptures and balustrades, gray marble columns, luxurious gilding of plaster moldings - everything is admirable. Let's walk through it, shall we?

3 The white marble staircase forks in different directions: to the right and to the left, diverges into two wide solemn marches, which rejoin at the upper platform. It occupies the entire height of the building (height 22 meters). A wide staircase with comfortable low steps - it is good to climb them in chic ball gowns

4 During the restoration of the stairs after the fire, Stasov replaced the gilded carved balusters with a heavy marble balustrade. Balusters made of Carrara marble by sculptors F. Triscorni and E. Moderni

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6 The walls are decorated with decorative sculpture of the era ancient rome. Atlant

7 Caryatid

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9 Sculptures "Justice" and "Mercy"

10 At the top of the stairs - monolithic columns made of gray (Serdobol) granite - St. Petersburg stone. Ten monolithic Corinthian columns decorate and support the vaults of the staircase.

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13 In the central niche there is a statue of the "Vladychitsa", brought from the Taurida Palace

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16 The central ceiling of the staircase has an area of ​​about 200 square meters. It depicts a picturesque composition "Olympus" by the Italian artist XVIII century Gasparo Diziani, which rests on padugas, decorated with figurative and ornamental paintings in the manner of "grisaille". Having chosen an 18th-century plafond with the image of Olympus in the pantries of the Hermitage, Stasov included it in the composition of the ceiling, and since the new plafond turned out to be somewhat smaller than the old one, the remaining space, the artist A.I. Solovyov painted according to Stasov's sketches

17 In 1898-1901, electric lighting fixtures in the form of chandeliers and sconces made of non-ferrous metal, gilded in a galvanic way, were used to illuminate the stairs.

18 They were made in neo-baroque style under the guidance of architect L.N. Benois according to the drawing of the artist V. Emme at the St. Petersburg factory of A. Moran