State Hermitage Museum

Hermitage Anniversary Celebrations 2014

2014 marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. Below are some highlights of its monumental European art collection, all available for licensing in our archive.

Established in 1764 by Catherine the Great, the Hermitage was intended to display the new Empress's culture and refinement, rivalling the private galleries of more established European rulers.

Many of the first paintings acquired were by fashionable Dutch and Flemish artists, including Frans Hals and Jacob Jordaens.

A growing international collection

Catherine II proved to be an avid collector: within 10 years of its founding the Hermitage had acquired over 2,000 canvases from across Europe. The museum now displays works by some of the greatest painters of western art history from the Renaissance to Post-Impressionism and Cubism, including Fra Angelico, Raphael, Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso.

In addition, the Hermitage holds countless photographs, sculptures and crafts spanning the breadth of history, from classical antiquity to the 20th century.


View more images from the Hermitage's collection in our archive

Find out more about our Russian collections

State Russian Museum – browse more paintings by Russian artists in St. Petersburg’s national museum.

Capturing St. Petersburg – step back in time to the city at the brink of revolution with our 20th century photography collection.

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