ORANIENBAUM

48 Dvortsovy prospekt 189510 Lomonosov
Open: 10am - 5pm, Mondays 11am - 5pm
Closed: Tuesdays Tel. 422-4796, 423-1641
By public transport: Train from Baltiysky station to Oranienbaum

Work on the palace and park ensemble of Oranienbaum began under Prince Alexander Menshikov (who owned these lands in the early 18th century) and took almost a century to complete. In 1727 Oranienbaum passed to the State and served as the summer residence of the imperial family. The palaces were nationalized after the 1917 revolution and were gradually turned into museums.

Today, the Oranienbaum estate comprises three ensembles: the Great Palace, Peterstadt and the "Personal Dacha".

The Great Palace (1710-27, architects Giovanni Mario Fontana and Gottfried Johann Schadel) was built in the Baroque style. It is one of the few surviving structures from the Petrine era that has retained many of its original features despite multiple reconstructions carried out at different times by Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli, Antonio Rinaldi, Carlo Rossi and other architects. The palace complex also incorporates the Picture House, constructed in the first quarter of the 18th century, and the Lower Garden, one of the first regular gardens in Russia.

The palace ensemble of Peterstadt features the Gate of Honour (1757, architect Rinaldi) - a relic of the Poteshny (Toy) Fortress of the heir to the throne (the future Emperor Peter III), Peter Ill's two-storey palace (1758-60, architect Rinaldi) and Peter's Park, which acquired its present form in the 1830s. The rooms of the palace abound with painted panels, intricate stuccowork and parquetry designs. On display is a collection of 17th and 18th century Western European paintings. There is also an exhibition devoted to the history of the construction of the palace and park ensemble in Oranienbaum.

The ensemble of the "Personal Dacha" consists of Catherine II's Chinese Palace (1762-68, architect Rinaldi), the Sliding Hill Pavilion (1762-74, architect Rinaldi) and the surrounding Upper Park.

The highlight of the estate, the Chinese Palace - is a splendid monument of Rococo architecture. Its interiors are striking for the wealth and variety of their decor. Particularly exquisite is the Buglework Study. The state rooms are adorned with stylized Chinese motifs, hence the name. The palace houses collections of paintings by artists of the Venetian School, Russian and Western European porcelain, furniture and works of Oriental decorative and applied art, which were very highly rated in the 18th century. The halls of the Sliding Hill Pavilion (the hill itself has not survived) contain a display of porcelain statuettes from Meissen.

The Great Palace, Sliding Hill Pavilion and Picture House are currently under reconstruction.