Alexander Palace interiors

[hikaru]

Bob , if you want, I could send the photo for your book.
But , I suppose we should ask Mr. Piotrovsky for permission to put it in the book.

[amy]

Is this the sofa you're speaking of Hikaru? I took this picture in the room I believe you described: former reception room/winter palace/ now with baby craddle.

(I'm sorry for the poor quality. My camera sort of died on this trip.  )

[hikaru]

Yes, It Is .
But now there is  no table with tea set in front of it.

[amy]

Yeah! Now if only I had taken a better camera with me...

BTW- I took this picture last summer, 2004.

[dp5486]

On the first page of this thread there is a discussion about the Kaulbach portrait of Alexandra. I have seen this before but I have never seen the study that Kaulbach did of her. Can anyone post a photo of this study?

Thanks!

[Helen]

When Kaulbach came from Munich to have Alexandra sit for her portrait he did a large pastel portrait of her.  He took this back to his Munich studio along with a dress the Empress selected to create the big portrait.  When it was completed he shipped the painting along with the study.  Nicholas put the study in his New Study.  A miniature copy of this pastel was with him up until the end.  The girls had copies of this study in their rooms.

This must have been Alexandra's favorite portrait of herself.  I think the study is much more successful than the big portrait.

Kaulbach also did studies of all four girls which Alexandra placed on either side of her corner cabinet in the Maple Room.  These went to Siberia and were later returned to the palace.  In the 30's they were sold to Alexander Schaffer who sold them through his first shop in Rockefeller Center.  Two of them can be seen in a picture taken arond 1934 (see below in the background).  They are now lost.

Kaulbach also did a portrait of the tsar himself in 1903 - or at least a study for a portrait. I haven't been able to detect it in any of the pictures of the palace interiors. Is it known in which room of the Alexander Palace this portrait used to be?

Among the items that the family took with them to Tobolsk were the portraits that Kaulbach did of Alexandra and the grand duchesses. I have been wondering: Did they take the Kaulbach portrait of Nicholas with them too? And does anyone know what happened to it after 1918? Was it sold to Alexander Schaffer too?

[BobAtchison]

The portrait of Nicholas is not listed as being in the palace in 1917 and I have never seen irt in any pre-revoltionary pictures.  I'll bet the Kaulbach Museum in Munich would have some info.

Bob

[Helen]

Thank you, Bob, for telling us that it was not at the AP. It is - or was - quite a beautiful portrait, judging from the reproduction I've seen, so I am surprised the family chose not to put it up somewhere with the other Kaulbachs. I'll contact the Kaulbach Museum and see what they know about.

[Helen]

The people at the Kaulbach Villa at Ohlstadt and the Neue Pinakothek at Munich were very co-operative. Unfortunately, they did not know the whereabouts of the original portrait either.

[Geglov2-3]

Странно, но я подумал подвал в Александровском дворце для осмотра бесплатен.
Strange, but I have thought a cellar in Aleksandrovsk a palace for survey is free-of-charge.

Но там были тоже интересные комнаты, комната охраны и технические комнаты.
But there there were too interesting rooms, a room of protection and technical rooms.

http://pushkin-history.info/fotoalbom-old-1-/8478.html

Фото плохое, может у кого-то есть получше.
The photo bad, can eat at someone better.

А это 2008 год.
And it is 2008.

http://pushkin-history.info/fotoalbom-old-1-/8477.html
http://pushkin-history.info/fotoalbom-old-1-/8475.html

[ChristineM]

I have seen the photograph of officers drinking tea beneath the Imperial Bedroom in the Alexander Palace only once before and that was in the archive at Pavlovsk.   It was contained in a very old journal and the quality of the photograph was no better than the one reproduced by Geglov.   There are another two taken at the same time that I know of, but I cannot help access them, unfortunately.

The photographs of the 'cellar' at the Alexander Palace include the small area beneath the Family Wing which has been converted to be used as a cloakroom.   The cellars of the Alexander Palace are vast - and certainly not maintained in the condition such as witnessed in the pictures of the cloakroom.   The entire water, heating and ventillations systems are to be found there.   Structurally probably nothing has changed from the Quarenghi original.

tsaria

[Geglov2-3]

Íà 3-ì ôîòî Âûõîä â ïîäâàë çàêàí÷èâàåòñÿ íà ñåðåäèíå äâîðöà, äàëüøå óæå ïðîñòûì ëþäÿì íå ïðîéòè. Ïîä ñïàëüíþ Èìïåðàòîðà íå ïîïàñòü.
On 3-rd photo the Output in a cellar comes to an end on the midpoint of a palace, further to already simple people to not pass. Under a bedroom of Emperor to not get.

[Mazukov]

Geglov, I've never seen them before. Thank you for posting.

[Geglov2-3]

http://pushkin-history.info/fotoalbom-2/16.html

Как вы думаете это Сиреневый кабинет?
How you think it the Lilac cabinet?

[Sarushka]

http://pushkin-history.info/fotoalbom-2/16.html

Как вы думаете это Сиреневый кабинет?
How you think it the Lilac cabinet?

Yes, I think it could be. The wood trim around the door, the placement of the window, and the view into connecting rooms all appear seem consistent with this modern photo of the Mauve Room: