The St Michael’s Castle

The Marble Gallery (St George’s Room)

It is one of the biggest ceremonial rooms in St Michael’s Castle. The gallery adjoined the Round Throne Room of the Emperor and served as a corps de garde for Maltese Order chevaliers.

The décor of the gallery was made in 1799-1801 to the design of the architect Vincenzo Brenna. The name “Marble” reflected the specific features of its décor composed of marble of different colours. The walls were lined with variegated marble. Along the western wall there were three white marble fireplaces incrusted with lapis-lazuli and jasper and decorated with gilded bronze inlays. The doors were inlayed with different fine woods and decorated with gilded bronze inlays. The hall was decorated with antique marble sculpture, gilded bronze and wooden lamps.

After 1801 the parquet floor, mirrors hanging above the fireplaces, sculptures, fireplaces, marble lining of the walls, bas-reliefs and the columns were moved to the Tauride Palace, Pavlovsk and the Hermitage. The richly decorated doors of the hall decorated one of the interiors of the Mariinsky Palace.

The main task of the restoration was a recreation of marble lining of the walls. In addition, the molding (monograms and crowns) of the cornice and the gilding of the cornice elements have been restored. The fireplaces and doors have been restored according to the samples of the surviving Marble Gallery’s original decoration kept in Pavlovsk and the Mariinsky Palace.