The Lower Dacha (New Palace), at Peterhof

[elisa_1872]

I am thrilled to hear about what has been found, the Grand Piano, the marble sculpture, this is so great!!!!
How touching that parts of the palace are coming back...+

Thanks for the information!

Elisa

[Joanna]

Hello Antonio !

I am in awe of your comment "...I saw a fragment of glimmering red and yellow bricks admist the greenery..." !!!!  Was this the color of the palace? I have only seen black and white photographs and now I am intrigued especially as the walls have a very distinctive pattern.

Joanna

[Antonio_P.Caballer]

Hello Antonio !

I am in awe of your comment "...I saw a fragment of glimmering red and yellow bricks admist the greenery..." !!!!  Was this the color of the palace? I have only seen black and white photographs and now I am intrigued especially as the walls have a very distinctive pattern.

Joanna

Hello Joanna,

Yes, the palace was made of several materials of different colors. The basement level was made of pink granite blocks very similars to those bordering Petersburg´s enbarkments. The ground floor had grey Putilovo slabs and the rest of the palace was made of red terra cotta and high quality and glimmering yellow bricks. These two colors alternated as horizontal strips. The facade details such as columns, balaustrades and so on were of grey sandstone.
In a sunny summer day the palace must have been quite impressive in spite of its reduced size, the tower being an essential feature of Alexandria Park right up to the WWII.

[Sarai_Porretta]

I find that photograph of the ruined palace so moving and sad, as I remember that this was the place where all of the children after Olga were born (although I read that Tatiana was born at the "Farm Palace"). I look at this picture and in my mind imagine the flurry of activity occuring in this place on those days when the children were born, and the sheer exhiliration of the family on that magical summer day when the heir was born right in that old, crumbled building...

To think that a place where such joyous and important events in the life of this family occured was reduced to such a state and now no longer even exists and has been reduced to a pile of rubble! Bits and pieces of objects connected with the family's life lay hidden in the tall grass. How sad indeed that so many of these special places connected with the family were destroyed.

[Forum Admin]

Elisa, and everyone,
We want to keep this site "commercial" free, so please refrain from posting items for sale on ebay or elsewhere on the web. Once we "open the door" there is not stopping it. So, please understand why your post was removed. THANKS
FA

[elisa_1872]

Forum A!

I had no idea! Please accept my apologies!!!!

Elisa

[Joanna]

In Nicholas & Alexandra The Family Albums by Prince Michael of Greece there is a photo on page 69 with a caption "1908 Tsarskoye Selo - Rasputin with the Empress ..."

This photo is next to one of Alexandra that I have identified as her boudoir in the Peterhof palace. Then follows photos in the AP. I was curious what room this was in the Yale Album. Comparing it with the book's photo, the wallpaper is similar and the light style of white furniture. I have read and cannot now remember the source that the Rasputin photo was taken at Peterhof. Can anyone confirm? And was this the dressing room of the Grand Duchess' in Peterhof as the towel drying stand is maybe a clue?

Joanna

[Antonio_P.Caballer]

Hello Joanna,
The first photograph in Album 5, page 38, was taken in Alexey´s reception room in the Lower Palace. The second photograph was taken in the Empress´ drawing room in this same palace(not the pink drawing room but a different study).
The photograph of Rasputin in page 69 of Michael of Greece´s book i think could have been taken in one of the lady in waiting´s rooms,( may be that of maria Vishniakova?)
Of course i haven´t seen all the rooms of the Lower palace but what i´ve seen has a different style. It´s definitely not one of the grand duchesses´private rooms in that palace. In my humble opinion the room is similar to those used by the ladies in waiting in the Alexander Palace, but Bob have the last word on that.
I hope he can help you.

[Antonio_P.Caballer]

Just to add that photograph of Rasputin with the family in page 68 of Michael of Greece´s book was taken in Alexey´s classroom of the Lower palace. The wall fabric is the same, as well as the two kind of chairs that were in this room (in the right side of the photograph you can see one of the chairs and a fragment of the other´s back)

By the way, as a detail, the fabric of Alexey´s reception room in the Lower palace had blue flowers. The effect was quite lovelier than can be seen in the old black and white photographs.

[Joanna]

Many many thanks Antonio! You are fantastic !!!!

Was the photo on page 75 in Prince Michael's book with Maria and Anastastia under the table also taken in Aleksei's classroom? It is lovely to know the color of the blue flowers of the wallpaper!

Joanna

[Antonio_P.Caballer]

You have read my mind Joanna!
I was to tell you right now. Yes, that photograph was taken in that same room.
You will find many mistakes like this one in almost every book. For example, in Michael of Greece´s book, page 28, there´s a photograph of Nicholas that is supposed to be taken in Peterhof. In fact that photograph was taken in the corner drawing room of the Empress, in the Winter palace. Another detail, Serov´s famous portrait of the Emperor was in that room, to the left of the fireplace.

[elisa_1872]

I wonder, does anyone know exactly where abouts were located the panes that young Alix and Nicky signed at Peterhof, as detailed in the Kurth book, what room they were in, whereabouts at Peterhof?

Elisa

[Antonio_P.Caballer]

Hello Elisa,
The panes should be in the old building of the Lower Palace(then named the Italian House or Villa Baboon). They wrote their names in May 31th of 1884, well before the house was enlarged. Nicholas wrote it was in a "rear window"...but do not know the room.

[DanielB]

Hi Johanna and others,

The photo on the MSN site is of the WEST side, not the east. Seaside is on the left, where the tower is. I’m not sure to which Anna V. album you are refering to, but I have seen some photos wrongly identified as taken at Alexandria: This is the case in “Anastasia’s Album” which M. Breheney mentioned here. Those beach front photos were not taken in Peterhof but on the Black Sea Coast in Eupatoria dring the trip the I.F. made to Crimea in May 1916 with Anna V. (not in 1915 as this book says)...

If you want some fabulous never before published colour drawings (by architect Tomishko)    and black and white photos of the Alexandria Palace, try to find the companion book to the exhibition held in Peterhof about the I.F. The English edition, printed in 1998 under the title of “Nicholas II, the Imperial Family” (it can sometimes be found on a site we can’t mention here… ). Lanie and David have already told this nice book. There are some detailed information about the Palace, 8 B&W photos of the interior taken in the 1920-30s (most of which I had never seen before  ), and a colour photo of the lovely upholstery fabric from the Drawing Room of the Empress (pink and red roses)  .

Lanie has offered to scan the photos. I will try to post more information about the Alexandria Palace from this book an other sources soon!.

[NAAOTMA]

When one looks at the map of the Peterhof grounds, on the sea, just left of The Cottage is a spit of land-that is the site of the New Palace, is it not? Thanks in advance, Melissa K.