During the Hermitage Days the exhibition telling about scientific and exhibition activities of the museum in the expiring year started by tradition in the Hermitage Theatre Foyer. In 2009 the State Hermitage Publishing House published approximately 50 books and brochures that represent all types of publishing activities of the museum. The Hermitage issues scientific catalogues and fundamental research for specialists, diverse popular science literature for a wide range of readers, publications of archive documents and materials on the history of the Hermitage.

The most numerous publications of any museum are catalogues. The Hermitage issues two types of catalogues - catalogues of temporary exhibitions and collection catalogues. The museum devotes special attention to the latter since they are exhaustive publications of the Hermitage collections. Collection catalogues are meant, in the first place, for specialists but always arouse interest in all devotees of art. This year two collection catalogues have been published. One of them is British Paintings of the 16th - 19th Centuries (the author is the curator of the Department of Western European Art Elizaveta Renne) that contains information about 135 paintings by artists of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales in the Hermitage collection as well as about portraits in the famous War Gallery in the Winter Palace created by English painter George Dawe and his assistants. The book presents the fullest information on paintings including archive materials and technical characteristics. The second collection catalogue Russian Artistic Lacquers of the 18th - 20th Centuries (the author is Irina Ukhanova, the curator of the Department of Russian Culture) introduces the readers to the Hermitage collection of artistic lacquer articles of Russian masters by the example of which it is possible to trace back all main stages of development of that type of applied art in Russia.

The Hermitage exhibitions have also been accompanied by colourful catalogues. One of them - Book Kunstkammer dedicated to rare and unusual in form, size, design books from the Scientific Library of the State Hermitage - is in its own way an exhibit due to its unusual design.

Scientific researches of the museum employees are represented by monographs and several regular volumes of the Transactions of the State Hermitage. Monograph of Irina Sokolova The Picture Gallery of Pyotr Semenov-Tyan-Shansky and Dutch Paintings at the Antique Market of St Petersburg recreates the history of the largest private collection of Dutch and Flemish paintings in Russia at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries that belong to a great scientist and statesman Pyotr Semenov-Tyan-Shansky and that later on ended up as a part of the Hermitage collection.

Periodical annual publication Announcements of the State Hermitage (this year its 67th edition has been published) is dedicated to attribution of the Hermitage monuments and research on collections history. Now the magazine is published in two language versions - in Russian and in English. English version of the Announcements is going to be published in the first quarter of 2010.

Books on the Hermitage history get great attention. Documents from the Hermitage archive, owning to which it is possible to recreate the events and setting in the museum in 20-s - 30-s of the previous century, are published in the Pages of the Hermitage History series. The Curator book series is dedicated to the distinguished curators of the Hermitage that left a bright imprint in its history. The next book of this series has been published this year and it is dedicated to Antonina Izergina.

Among popular science publications the book by Irina Ukhanova Smoking Pipes of the 18th - Beginning of the 20th  Centuries. Fantasy and Curious Incidents in Miniature Plastic Art (The Hermitage Collections series) shall attract attention of readers. It tells about smoking devices from various materials, about changing fashion for pipes, about images of smoking pipes in paintings and graphic arts. The Hermitage does not only publish works of contemporary authors but also republishes works by curators of the previous years. So together with the catalogue the work by V. Glinka and A. Pomarnatsky The Victory of Poltava was republished for The Perfect Victory exhibition dedicated to three hundred years anniversary of the Battle of Poltava. Also there appeared new forms of popular science publications - It Happened near Poltava colouring book was published for small visitors.

Books of the Hermitage employees are also published in other Russian and foreign publishing houses. In 2009 the Department of Philology and Art of St Petersburg State University issued monumental work of Georgy Vilinbakhov Symbols of Russia dedicated to state and military symbols of our country: national emblem, flag, Russian banners and orders as well as to the analysis of modern development of Russian state symbols.

The Hermitage Days - 2009 project partner is BDO Unicon Ltd.

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Georgy Vilinbakhov, Deputy Director of the State Hermitage, represents Symbols of Russia work

Irina Sokolova, Curator of Dutch Paintings Collection of the 17th-18th Centuries, presents The Picture Gallery of Pyotr Semenov-Tyan-Shansky and Dutch Paintings at the Antique Market of St Petersburg monograph

Olga Zimina, Deputy Head of the Research Library, presents Book Kunstkammer catalogue

At the exhibition in the Foyer of the Hermitage Theatre

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