Art and Artifacts at the Museum
The paintings at the museum are a part of the largest and most diverse collection in the world, and all the artifacts and pieces put together create a collection of over three million items. Even though a minor fraction of the total collection is permanent, the sum of the permanent and visiting collections makes the museum one of the most culturally rich and historically valuable places in the world. The collections are distributed over six different buildings along the Palace Embankment.
Different Collections at the Hermitage
The Western European Art collection is one of the most well known in the world with applied art pieces, sculptures and paintings dating from the 13th century to the 20th century.
The collection of Prehistoric Art includes pieces from the time of the Caucasus, and the artifacts go as far back as the Paleolithic Age and the Iron Age. The majority of these artifacts were discovered during excavations all over the former Soviet Union. The Egyptian Collection includes some of the finest pieces from Ancient Mesopotamia, Babylon, Nimrud, Assyria, and so on.
The collection of Jewelry and Decorative Art is also rather well known. Pieces ranging from the 4th millennium BC to the beginning of the 20th century AD have been collected. The collection also includes treasures from different eras. An impressive range of artifacts from Asia, Caucasus and the Pontic steppes has been amassed.
Needless to say there is an entire collection devoted to Russian art and artifacts as well. These pieces are jewels of the Russian culture, and include art ranging from the 11th century to the 19th century.
Planning a Visit to the Museum
The museum can be found at the address 38 Palace Embankment, Saint Petersburg, Russia. In terms of the number of people who visit every year, the museum ranks as the number 1 spot nationally, and is placed 12th in the global list of annual visitor traffic at famous tourist spots.
Visiting Hours
The Hermitage in St Petersburg remains open from 10:30 in the morning to 6:00 in the evening from Tuesdays to Saturdays. On Sundays the museum is kept open to the public from 10:30 in the morning to 5:00 in the evening. The museum is closed on Mondays.
Booking tickets in advance to the planned day of visit is advisable, since tickets are usually not available at the last minute. The ticket window is closed an hour prior to the closing time of the museum.
Plan your St. Petersburg holiday today!