The Summer Palaces of the Romanovs
Treasures from Tsarskoye Selo
by Emmanuel Ducamp with photographs by Marc Walter
Tsarskoye Selo is just outside St Petersburg and is more than 300 years old.
It was originally a modest summer residence for Catherine I, second wife of Peter the Great.
It has since been rebuilt and then refurbished by the Empress Elizabeth and Catherine the Great who developed it as a Royal Country residence. It is now a World Heritage site.
Over the years it had been plundered and left derelict and during WW2 many of the buildings were destroyed. When the war was over a redevelopment and reconstruction plan was put into place. Sadly some of the interiors were destroyed and are now only known through paintings and photographs.
The book is presented in a drop back slip case and is full of the most amazing photos of Tsarskoye Selo, it is dazzling, opulent, it takes your breath away.
My favourite photograph is an aerial view of the Catherine Palace in Winter – it is stunning!
Throughout the book we see the use of marble, chinese silks, parquetry, gilded wood, lapis lazuli, coral and mother of pearl...
Tsarskoye Selo demonstrates the best of Russian art and craftsmanship and the craftsman who worked on it.
Contributed by Theresa
(Published on 2nd Jul 2019 )