The Room of Engravings

In Catherine II's time engravings were acquired in large groups as part of collections of paintings and drawings and then transferred to the Picture Gallery and the Empress's Library. The Prints Cabinet was created in 1805 and there the engravings (some 157,000 sheets) were systematized in chronological order according to schools and recorded in a multi-volume inventory book. In the 1840s the collection was moved to the New Hermitage building. The new repository for the prints was a magnificent room with Serdobol granite columns. Remarkable cabinets made of birchwood with bands of amaranth were specially adapted in size and construction for the storage of prints. For those wishing to obtain a detailed impression of the composition of the Hermitage engraving collection, the 300 best sheets were compiled in separate portfolios. The display was arranged by the windows, behind glass in movable frames that could be turned to the light if necessary.

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