Catherine the Great: An Enlightened Empress
Learn the story
of the woman behind the legends and discover the greatest
collection of treasures from Russia ever seen in the UK.
Sharp, funny, generous, iron-willed and passionate, Catherine
the Great was one of Russia’s most successful rulers and one of the
greatest art collectors of all time. Presented in partnership with
the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg, this unique exhibition
is showing only in Edinburgh.
Explore Catherine’s reign through her collections, which vividly
reflect her own interests and provide a fascinating glimpse of the
wealth and magnificence of the Imperial Russian court. Learn of a
woman who won wars and built palaces, wrote plays and books, built
a rollercoaster for her own entertainment and who put Russia firmly
on the cultural map of Europe. The exhibition also highlights
Catherine's connections with Scotland, uncovering the stories of
the influential Scots at her court.
Snuff box showing the monument to Peter the Great, by Falconet,
1780s.
Snuff box with a map of the Crimea.
Gold, diamond and rock crystal snuff box by Johann Gottlieb
Scharff.
Portrait of Catherine II on her horse Brilliant, by Vigilius
Eriksen, after 1762.
Pin with image of Catherine the Great.
Ring featuring a cameo of Catherine the Great.
Images © The State
Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg.
The exhibition features more than 600 priceless works collected
by the Empress. See spectacular paintings, outstanding costumes and
uniforms, dazzling cameos, snuffboxes and jewellery, hunting
weapons and exquisite works of art seldom seen outside Russia.