9: The Dining-Room

This room in the state apartments of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Karl Nesselrode, has for the most part retained the 1820s décor by Carlo Rossi. The airy painting on the ceiling echoes the rhythm of artificial marble pilasters alternating with mirrors. The display completes the subject of the Napoleonic Wars. On display are two costumes for members of the Order of the Holy Spirit: one for the initiation ceremony, the other for the annual ceremonies. Both were given to Alexander I by Louis XVIII after the Bourbon restoration. Nesselrode was a also a knight of the Order of the Holy Spirit. The display also features French bronze candelabra with the figure of Victory and Empire-style furniture. The mahogany console tables with gilded and patinated bronze fittings are decorated with a relief of The Coronation of Virgil (France, early 19th century); the pieces of the furniture set are adorned with the images of Mercury’s staff — the caduceus (Johann Baumann, Saint Petersburg, late 18th or early 19th century).