Vasily Surikov. 175th Anniversary of the Artist's Birth
The exhibition presents over 120 paintings and graphic works by Surikov from the museums in St Petersburg, Moscow and Krasnoyarsk, including th...
Monday | 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Mikhailovsky Palace, Benois Wing are open until 8:p.m. | |
Tuesday | The museum is closed |
Wednesday | 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Thursday | 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Friday | 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Saturday | 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Sunday | 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. |
Ticket offices close 30 minutes earlier
4 Inzhenernaya Str., St. Petersburg
Metro - Gostiny Dvor, Nevsky Prospekt
The State Russian Museum is the world’s largest depository of Russian fine art, housed in a unique architectural complex in the historical centre of St Petersburg.
It was the first museum of national art, initiated by Emperor Alexander III. In 1895, Emperor Nicholas II signed a decree ordering “The foundation of a special institution which will be entitled ‘The Emperor Alexander III Russian Museum’ and the assignment of the Mikhailovsky Palace with all its wings, services and the garden, specially acquired by the state treasury for this purpose.” In May of the same year, the architect Vasily Svinyin started the reconstruction of the palace interiors for accommodating future collections of art. The Statute of the Museum was adopted on 3 May 1895.
The ceremonial opening of the Russian Museum took place on 19 (7) March 1898. The basis of the collection consisted of objects and works of art transferred from the Winter, Gatchina and Alexander Palaces, from the Hermitage and the Academy of Arts, as well as from private collections donated to the museum.
The museum collection contains over 440,000 exhibits covering all major periods and trends in the history of Russian art, all main types and genres, trends and schools of Russian art over more than a thousand years: from the 10th to the 21st century. As of 1 January 2023, the museum collection includes 444,705 items, with 423,061 in the main collection and 21,644 in the auxiliary academic collection.
The main retrospective exhibition of the museum is located in the Mikhailovsky Palace (architect Carlo Rossi, 1819–1825), built for the son of Emperor Paul I, Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich, and in the Benois Wing, originally designed as an exhibition pavilion for the Academy of Arts (architects Leonty Benois and Sergei Ovsyannikov, 1914–1919).
Currently, the area of the museum complex is more than 30 hectares. The collection is accommodated in buildings that are outstanding monuments of 18th–19th-century architecture: Mikhailovsky, Stroganov and Marble Palaces, and St Michael’s Castle. The Mikhailovsky Garden, the Summer Garden and the Summer Palace of Peter I, as well as the Cabin of Peter the Great are also part of the museum complex.
The State Russian Museum today is an extensive museum complex. It is a large authoritative institute of academic research, restoration, preservation, and educational centre, supervising the work of all art museums of the country.
The Art Library of the Russian Museum was founded in 1897. Currently, it comprises about 170,000 items. A section for rare books was organised in 1978. An automated information retrieval system was installed in 1993.
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· Website of the Art Library of the Russian Museum
Website of the Department of restoration of museum exhibits of the Russian Museum
The Department of Restoration of Museum Exhibits is a modern scientific and restoration centre comprised of 16 units. These include studios specializing in restoration of paintings, drawings, pieces of applied art, furniture, picture frames, and sculpture; in addition, it has a chemistry and biology research laboratory, and the division of the theory and history of museum restoration. Currently there are 96 people working in the department, mostly artists and restorers of the highest qualification, as well as research workers and photographers. The department conducts all kinds of restoration and research of various works of art, from Ancient Russian monuments to contemporary art objects. All restorers are professionally qualified in restoration and arts.
The collection of masterpieces, chosen by the Russian Museum will allow you to make a first impression of the collection of the Russian Museum.
Russian Museum - one of the world's largest museums and is perhaps the only country where such a full treasure of national culture are presented.
Virtual tour of the museum complex. 2009 (Rus., Eng., Ger., Fin.)
In the online shop of the Russian Museum presented a huge range of souvenirs, illustrated editions and multimedia disks.
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The State Russian Museum
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