Catherine Palace
Catherine I, the wife of Peter the Great, commissioned the German architect Braunstein to build a palace in 1717. Her daughter Elisabeth I had the existing palace extended by the architect Rastrelli. He added more storeys and extended the façade to a proud 300m (see cover picture).
The tourist crowd was enormous. Our group was ushered through the rooms in the announced time slot. Nevertheless, it was very impressive.
The Golden Hall
This dance hall is a true masterpiece by Rastrelli. The palace hall offers 846 square metres of dance floor. The numerous high windows and the mirrors hanging in between, framed in gilded wood carvings, also visually enlarge the hall.
One of the many rooms with the impressive tiled stoves.
Tsarina Elisabeth Petrovna (1741 - 1761). Among the many images of the tsars, we encounter Peter the Great's favourite daughter here. She had the palace extended to its present size.
This costume on display shows that very wide seats were required for the fashion of the time. I don't even want to touch on the question of the toilet.
The highlight of the tour is a visit to the
Amber Room
The room itself is crowded and photography is prohibited. Therefore, a photo of the view into the Amber Room from the room afterwards.
Here is a hip shot in the Amber Room
Following the guided tour through the magnificently renovated rooms of the Catherine Palace, we visited the
Garden
Palace Church of St Catherine's Palace
