In this issue…

In the Protected Domain of Museums

Still today Peterhof remains a park of national importance, where events of state significance are no rarity.

…8

Cold Waters to a Thirsty Soul

There is plenty of water in St Petersburg: the city stands on water, is surrounded by water and almost every day more water falls on it from the sky. Yet the city was always in need of good drinking water.

…14

"The Appetizing Richness of Colour…"

His exceptional capacity for work and inexhaustible joie-de-vivre astonished everyone, but especially his artist friends. But Kustodiev’s strength was waning.

…28

A Symbol of Luxury and Enjoyment

Moet and Chandon champagne has been served at the Taleon Club from the day it opened. Now, though, collaboration with the champagne house is reaching a new level.

…42

The Master of the Marquis’s Pool

Traversay, who was obliged to economize on everything, selected this shallow area dotted with sandbars for the training of ships’ crews. Every summer the Baltic Fleet squadron cruised its waters, never going farther than Kronstadt. And wisecrackers dubbed this part of the gulf “the Marquis’s Pool”.

…48

Fighting the “Three-Headed Dragon”

Believing that the chief problem lay in the excessive printing of paper money, unjustified expenditures and misappropriation, Cancrin was firm and inflexible in the fight against this “three-headed dragon”. Being a man with a practical turn of mind, he based his actions not on scholarly theory, but on common sense.

…62

“Called a friend of the heart”

Rostovtsev was playing a complex game. But whatever he was aiming at, and however he was acting, alone or in collusion, his plans did not become a reality.

…74

Guarding the Sea of Azov

After the defeat in the Crimean War, Russia had to rebuild the defences of its Black Sea territories. Kerch emerged as the main strategic point on the southern frontiers.

…84

Plutarch on Pyrrhus:“His appearance alone struck fear into his enemies…”

What was he – an ambitious risk-taker exceptionally favoured by fate, or an extremely wise strategist and politician?

…98

“Window to the Free World”

A “Window to the Free World” is how people described the Kurfurstendamm boulevard and surrounding area in the era when Germany was divided between two hostile camps.

…102

Taming “wild” orchids

The orchid palette contains all the colours that exist in this world. Orchids are enigmatic, unpredictable, hard to find and infinitely varied. It is not without cause that they inspire poets and artist.

…108

Alpina: Comfort at Any Speed

The aim of Alpina’s designers is to make their cars comfortable at any speed and any acceleration.

…114

“The whole of Petersburg is making ready for the dacha…”

At the end of the nineteenth century, observers wrote “nowhere in Europe is there such a mass flight from the overcrowded city as in St Petersburg.”

…118