On June 10th, we visited the Hermitage, the world-famous art museum that was once the winter palace of the czars of Russia. We went to see the art, of course, but it was the building itself that captivated me. Nothing wrong with the art, mind you; some of it is among the most famous works of art in the world. I’m sure that books could be–and in fact have been–written about the artwork in this great collection. But in the interest of keeping up with my travels, more or less, I am limiting myself to just one blog post on the Hermitage, and for me at least, it was all about the rooms themselves. There were often crowds jostling about, but it really didn’t matter.

The Hermitage was amazing. I spent half my time happily gazing at the ceilings and walls. And now, dear Reader, you can, too. Let’s start with the staircase at the entrance (just above). Watch your step, but look around. Look up, too!

And this is just the beginning. Room after room, the building is as beautiful as the artwork housed within. I present below a number of rooms–walls or ceilings, together with a detail or so, because the joy of them is in both the broad view and the details.

The detail above is over the throne/chair.

Every detail is breathtaking.

Every room is different.

So . . .

. . . many . . .

. . . rooms!

So many more rooms to go!

Remember, this is a really big palace we’re talking about here!

And now back to the rooms . . .

Walls, ceilings, columns of precious stones; even the chandeliers are gorgeous!

Here’s a coffered ceiling.

We went through a long arcaded walkway with painted detailing . . .

. . . in order to get to this room . . .

. . . and then went out into a similar, but of course different, long arcaded room, this one with sculpture.

I leave you with one more room with a coffered ceiling, where every coffer was itself a work of art.