Uniform dresses of empresses. Hermitage Museum. Uniform dresses of Catherine II
Catherine I
Silk, taffeta, gold threads; weaving, sewing, applique
The dress was transferred to the Armory Chamber on May 23, 1724 “from the rooms of Her Imperial Majesty through the valet Kozma Spiridonov” as part of the coronation vestments of Empress Catherine I. The set also included “shoes” made of silver brocade, white kid gloves, stockings and crimson-colored garters , embroidered with silver. The coronation dress of Catherine I is made of crimson rep silk and decorated with luxurious embroidery. On the coupon of the skirt, fountains cascades embroidered with silver alternate with bouquets braided with lace, and applique embroidered crowns are placed in the stamps formed by flower garlands. As noted by F.V. Berkhholz, Ekaterina Alekseevna's dress was sewn "according to the Spanish fashion." Apparently, a similar stylistic decision of the coronation costume of the first Russian empress was borrowed from Western European monarchs. Some of them even in the XIX century. used as coronation costumes in the old Spanish style.
Anna Ioannovna
Brocade, silk, gold lace; sewing.
Anna Ioannovna, Dowager Duchess of Courland and native niece Peter I, came to the Russian throne in 1730, after the death of Peter II. Her coronation dress was made from "new-fangled" pink patterned brocade, brought from Lyon, France's leading silk weaving center. The color is preserved only in the folds of the dress. The dress has a tight-fitting bodice, which was typical for women's costume throughout the eighteenth century, deep neckline, very small short sleeve, wide bell-shaped skirt. To create such a “bell”, hoops made of whalebone: a skirt of this form was in fashion until the 60s of the 18th century and was called a pannier skirt. The hem of the dress is decorated with a luxurious lace mesh woven from gold threads. Particularly interesting is the train, lined with gilded brocade with moire patterns. With the help of a special system of silver cords and tassels, it could be lifted and draped. There is reason to believe that the dress was made in Russia under the guidance of a court tailor who arrived from Courland with Anna Ioannovna.
Elizaveta Petrovna
Silver eyelet, silk, gold braid, weaving, sewing
Catherine II
Brocade, silk, silk thread; sewing, applique, embroidery.
The coronation dress of Empress Catherine II was made in Russia in 1762. It is made of silver brocade in the Rococo style and consists of a bodice, a skirt with a circumference of more than five meters and a train of 3.5 meters long. The neckline and sleeves are decorated with thin linen "Brabant" lace. This is the only coronation dress, the main decoration of which was the image of the coat of arms of the Russian Empire.
Maria Fedorovna
The dress of Maria Feodorovna itself has not been preserved, there is only a corsage with inserts from the coronation dress. But her shoes survived.
Elizaveta Alekseevna
The dress is made of silver eyelet, embroidered with silver threads and sequins. The neckline and sleeves are trimmed with lace, the upper part of the dress resembles a waistcoat, the folds at the waist diverge towards the hem and form a small figured train. Two-layer curly ribbons (rudimentary folding sleeves) are sewn to the shoulder seams of the swing part of the dress, which, crossing at the back, cover the waist from the sides and are tied in front like a sash.
Alexandra Fedorovna
Brocade, silk, taffeta, lace, silk ribbons, silver threads; weaving, embroidery.
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna attended the coronation in a dress made of silver brocade, decorated with high-relief embroidery with silver threads. The lower part of it is a dress with a cropped bodice and a flared skirt, tailored in strict accordance with the European fashion of the mid-1820s. Short sleeves with puffs, imitating 16th-century double-layer sleeves cut into strips, testify to the romantic nostalgia characteristic of European costume in the first half of the 19th century. The front part of the bodice is decorated with drapery with an interception, a hook is sewn under it, which served to fasten the cross of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called, as a result of which the diamond chain on which the cross was hung formed two sagging garlands. The upper swinging part of the coronation dress is a kind of waistcoat with a train, the edges of which, like the hem of the lower dress, are sheathed with a rudder. Ribbon sleeves sewn in at an angle shoulder seams, indicate that this is a "Russian" court dress in its new modification. The neckline is trimmed with blonds, and loops of white taffeta are sewn to the shoulders, most likely intended to fasten the coronation robe.
Maria Alexandrovna
Glazed, silver threads, embroidery
Maria Fedorovna
Brocade - Moscow, firm "A. and V. Sapozhnikovs”; cutting, sewing - St. Petersburg, Izambard Chancean; embroidery - St. Petersburg, gold embroidery shop "A. Loman.
Brocade, silk, silk ribbons, gas, silver thread; weaving, sewing.
Since the beginning of the XIX century. coronation dresses of Russian empresses were sewn exclusively in the national “Russian” style. Dresses of this kind, introduced in 1834 at the Russian imperial court as a mandatory ceremonial uniform, were called "trains" or "sarafans", and they resembled, as one of his contemporaries wrote, a "Frenchized sundress". An example of a coronation "dress" is the dress of Empress Maria Feodorovna, the wife of Emperor Alexander III. The silver brocade for the dress of the Empress was ordered in Moscow from the Sapozhnikov firm, one of the leading textile firms in Russia in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries. This dress was made in the fashion house "Izambard Chancean", and the luxurious ornamental silver embroidery, covering almost the entire surface, was made in the gold embroidery workshop "A. Loman. After the coronation, white silk openwork stockings with embroidered initials of Maria Feodorovna, white kid gloves and shoes made of silver eyelet on curly heels, decorated with a lace bow on the instep, on which the brand of the company has been preserved: “Alexey Egorov. Moscow".
Alexandra Fedorovna
The coronation dress of the last Russian Empress Alexandra Feodorovna was made by Madame Olga. Dresses, mantillas and court trains”, whose owner Olga Nikolaevna Bulbenkova was the official supplier of the court. The embroidery drawing was ordered from several Moscow artists, including Mikhail Vrubel, but the empress chose an anonymous sketch, the author of which was actually her lady-in-waiting. Work on the embroidery of the dress with silver and pearls lasted about a year and was recognized as a masterpiece of needlework.
Coronation dresses. Most of this article is devoted to the Russian empresses. Well, not exactly them, but their gorgeous dresses from precious fabrics, embroidered with silver threads and decorated with lace. Stop! Here, the lace on the coronation dresses has not been preserved, or almost not preserved. In any case, these beautiful vestments are much more beautiful and interesting than the current samples. haute couture”, not to mention “Casual”.
Coronation dresses in the State Armory of the Kremlin
Imperial vestments are stored in the Armory, because originally it was a workshop where precious items of the sovereign's household were made and stored.
Coronation celebrations have always taken place in Moscow, which is why the tradition was born here to transfer the coronation robes of emperors to the collection of the Armory.
In total, there are five such collections in the world, the Moscow collection is not the largest among them. The most representative selection of imperial costumes is presented in Sweden. There are similar meetings in London, in the Tower of London. In Vienna, in the Hofburg Palace, you can see the coronation costumes of the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. Another collection exists in Denmark.
The Armory has 17 costumes, 10 of them are for ladies. The uniqueness of the Moscow collection lies in the fact that it is quite complete and allows you to trace the change of traditions and fashion.
The exhibition, in addition to coronation dresses, presents the wardrobe of Peter II, one Wedding Dress and two masquerade costumes. In addition, many clothes of Russian emperors are stored in the funds of the Armory.
Coronation of Catherine I. Coronation dresses
The first coronation of an empress in the history of Russia took place in May 1724. It was from this date that the tradition of transmitting ceremonial vestments to the Armory. Peter decided to crown his second wife, Catherine I. He himself was not crowned as emperor. Undoubtedly, preparations were made ahead of time for the coronation ceremony. Peter, traveling around Europe, observed and studied the traditions of the coronation of European monarchs.
Especially for this event, in November 1723, Peter issued the highest manifesto on the coronation of his wife.
Marta Skavronskaya
The future Russian Empress Marta Skavronskaya was born in 1684. In 1708 she converted to Orthodoxy with the name Catherine, and in 1712 she became the wife of Peter. Despite her low origin, she took a fairly strong position at court due to her intelligence, tact and cheerful disposition. The coronation was necessary for many reasons. Thus, the prestige of the Russian court increased, because in Europe the ignoble origin of the wife of the Russian Tsar was not a secret. Peter thought about the future of his daughters Elizabeth and Anna. To give daughters the title of princess, both parents must be emperors.
The form for the imperial crown was chosen similarly to those with which European sovereigns were crowned. Two hemispheres mean church authority, they are similar to the miter of church hierarchs. The raised band between the two hemispheres means secular power, which rises above the spiritual and governs the state.
Coronation dress I. (Coronation in 1724). coronation dresses
The dress for the Empress was ordered in Berlin. Berlin at that time was the European center of embroidery. The dress was embroidered with silver thread using various techniques.
brought to Russia finished dress, and "cartridge". "Cartridge" is a pattern of clothes, fastened with seams in only a few places. Usually in the form of "cartridges" they brought men's clothing. Apparently, in Berlin they were very afraid not to guess the size of the suit, so they decided to play it safe and not fasten the clothes with seams so that they could fit it to the figure. 
Catherine's dress was brought three days before the coronation and completed in a hurry. Indeed, German dressmakers greatly exaggerated the size of the Russian Empress, the skirt was too wide. The Russian court seamstresses were in such a hurry that the fold behind the skirt was done very carelessly. As a result, the pockets were so displaced that they could not be used. And the pockets in the ladies' closet were very necessary and functional.
Roba - this is how a foreign envoy at the Russian court called the empress' outfit. “She was in a magnificent robe, raspberry color, embroidered with silver thread,” he wrote in the report.
The whole costume consists of several parts - the bodice, skirt and train are separate parts of the costume. The folds along the bottom of the bodice are called "piccadils" - they were invented by tailors in order to hide the connection of the skirt and bodice. The bodice is stiff, all quilted with whalebone. The waist circumference of the Empress is 97 cm.
Parts of an 18th century woman's dress
The myth that a corset could double the waist is not true. In fact, the maximum that you can pull yourself up to is 5-6 cm. Girls were taught to wear corsets from childhood. It was very difficult to breathe in them, hard corsets squeezed the lungs and did not allow to breathe. full chest. Due to the stagnation of air in the lungs (actually due to corsets), ladies often got sick and died from tuberculosis.
The tablet is a front, triangular plate - an overlay on the bodice. It was made separately, at that time this detail was very fashionable.
Lace trim not preserved on the dress. Lace decorated the neckline and short sleeves. They were so expensive that they were most likely torn off to be reused in other toilets, because the coronation dress was worn only once in a lifetime.
The lower part of the dress is called "pannier" - in French, literally "basket". The shape of the skirt was kept with the help of numerous petticoats that have not survived to this day. The current shape of the skirt is the result of the work of restorers.
Embroidery on dresses. coronation dresses
The embroidery technique on the skirt is attached. Sketched on the fabric. This sketch was sheathed with threads and only embroidered on top with silver thread. The appliqué technique was also used - false embroidered crowns. They do not correspond to the shape of a real crown. Its form was kept in the strictest confidence, the craftswomen did not know what the crown would be and embroidered it in accordance with their imagination. The tablet is embroidered with the most difficult technique - on a substrate or a card.
Cotton wool or fabric was placed under the embroidery pattern, and embroidered with silver on top. This type of embroidery was done by men. The craft of an embroiderer was very much appreciated in Europe, it was prestigious and men did not disdain them.
The dress is not very long. The length of the skirt was made in such a way that when walking, a leg in a shoe with a beautiful crimson ribbon-bow tied around the ankle would be shown.
Coronation mantle of Russian empresses. coronation dresses
During the coronation, Catherine was wearing a mantle over the dress, but it has not been preserved. The collection of the Armory Chamber includes a late ermine mantle of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II.
The ends of the mantle were fastened with a diamond buckle. It's called a graph. A real detective story is connected with the agraph made for the coronation of Catherine I.
There were very few good jewelers at that time. One of them, named Rokentin, assumed that he would receive a coronation order from the king. Roquentin made an excellent graph. But the master himself liked the work so much that he did not want to part with it. He persuaded dashing people and staged an attack and theft, even asked to leave bruises and abrasions on his body. Agraf hid. Peter made an investigation and discovered the deception. At that time, Rokentin was not punished very severely: he was not executed, but simply exiled to Siberia.
Masquerade costume of Catherine I. Coronation dresses
In 1723, a public masquerade was held in Moscow in honor of the anniversary of the Treaty of Nystadt. He passed on Maslenitsa, lasted several days. Many courtiers dressed in Russian costumes, among the masks there were even characters from the Most Joking and Most Drunk Cathedral.
Catherine dressed in an Amazon costume. Accompanying Peter in many military companies, she undoubtedly had the right to do so. Her travesty from the point of view of the fashion of the XVIII century is a man's suit, even despite the skirt. The image was completed by a hat and a sword on the side. Camisoles, similar to the top of the attire, were worn by men throughout Europe. This fancy dress is made in Moscow. They say that it was altered from a tablecloth, because good fabrics were very expensive. The costume was decorated with an ostrich feather, which was borrowed from the Holstein ambassador, but not returned. Diplomatic correspondence has been preserved, in which the envoy insistently asks to return the pen to him.
In 1728 took place coronation of the 12-year-old emperor, who entered the history of Russia under the name of Peter II.
Coronation costume of Peter II . coronation dresses
His coronation costume was made of glazete, an expensive and heavy brocade fabric. This camisole is NOT presented in the main exhibition, it is in the funds. The young sovereign died in January 1730, before he even reached the age of 15. They suspect. that Peter II died of smallpox.
The Armory houses his entire wardrobe. The lad grew very quickly and grew out of his clothes, barely having time to put them on.
The showcase displays almost the entire wardrobe of a Russian nobleman of the first half of XVIII century. The most interesting men's dressing gown. It is called a dressing gown, it was sewn from patterned French silk.
Wardrobe of Emperor Peter II At that time there was a special fashion to drink coffee in the morning in a dressing gown.
There are also ceremonial men's camisoles made for Peter II. France, where these outfits were sewn, formed the standard of men's fashion for the whole of Europe. The fashion for such camisoles lasted almost 100 years until the end of the 18th century. Men's camisoles were sewn from bright fabrics, their color even rivaled women's dresses.
Fan
In the 18th century, there was a special language of gestures and accessories. For example, with the help of a fan, one could explain himself without saying a word. There was a special sign language and noble maidens were taught it. By opening and closing the fan, it was possible to conduct a dialogue with the gentleman. An open fan with a mask in the collection of the Armory means: “The lady’s heart is busy”, the gentleman should only rely on friendly relations.
Moreover, all gestures must be very fast so that others do not notice what signs the lady gives to the gentleman.
Coronation of Anna Ioannovna
Coronation of Anna Ioannovna took place in April 1730, two months after her arrival in Russia from Courland. (A fragment of the fan can be seen in the picture below).
Coronation dress of Anna Ioannovna. coronation dresses
sewn in Russia from Lyon brocade. He was sewn by his tailor, whom Anna brought with her.
The tablet on her dress is not very prominent, this detail is starting to go out of fashion as well as embroidery. Initially, the dress was a very beautiful pink-terracotta color. But the dye turned out to be unstable and the dress faded over time. The train is unusual, triangular in shape. The lace trim on the neckline and sleeves has not been preserved.
Next to exhibited
Coronation dress of Elizabeth Petrovna. coronation dresses
This dress is the only thing reminiscent of the events of the winter of 1741, because the crown of Elizabeth Petrovna has not survived to this day. The dress was made in Russia from Russian brocade. Elizaveta Petrovna specifically decided to wear a dress made of domestic precious fabric in order to support Russian industrialists. The empress also ordered her court ladies to appear at the coronation in dresses made from domestic fabrics. 
After the coronation, the dress could be viewed in the Faceted Chamber. During the time that the imperial robe was presented there, 37 thousand people watched it. People of all classes were allowed to view, except for the meanest, that is, serfs.
Skirt design. coronation dresses
The dress is made of brocade fabric called “eyelet”. By the beginning of the 40s, ladies' fashion had changed and the skirt became prohibitively wide. This is a manifestation of the Rococo style that prevailed at that time. The width of the fizhm corresponded to the court rank. The Empress personally made sure that none of the ladies of the court put on tanks wider than they were supposed to. wear such wide skirts it was extremely uncomfortable. It was impossible to get into a carriage in them, and in the palaces it was necessary to specially expand doorways. It was impossible even to sit down in them, so the ladies simply lay down on the floor to rest, and a special maid of honor, standing at the door, guarded their peace. Corsets were made from different materials- metal, willow twigs. The most expensive corsets were made from whalebone.
They even came up with special levers that regulated the width of the skirt. If the ladies found out that the empress herself would be present at the ball, they could lower the fizma with a lever and reduce the width of the skirt.
Officially, Elizaveta Petrovna was not married and already in 1744 she invited her nephew, the son of Anna's sister, to the court. Soon in Saint Petersburg the bride of the heir, Sophia Augusta Frederica of Anhalt-Zerbst, also arrived. In 1745, their wedding took place in the Winter Palace.
Wedding dress of the future Empress Catherine II. coronation dresses
sewn from silver brocade. Silver darkens strongly over the years, and the new brocade looks very impressive, shimmering with reflections of candlelight, glare of sunlight. It seemed that such dresses were forged from silver, and not sewn with needles and threads. The dress was embroidered with silver thread. Embroidery stitches are placed under different angles and when moving, the dress shone like diamonds.
The wedding dress of Sophie Frederica Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst is in a very bad condition. Brocade is woven on a silk basis, with a silver weft. The silk threads broke in many places and the silver threads sagged.
Sovereign Pavel Petrovich transferred the dress to the collection of the Armory for an unknown reason, since it was originally stored in the capital. The dress was torn open, the restorers sewed it again.
In 1762, the coronation of Catherine II took place.
Coronation dress of Catherine II. coronation dresses
also presented in the Armory. It is distinguished by oval figs. In addition, this dress is the only one on which lace has been preserved. The dress is decorated with double-headed eagles, there are about 300 of them all over the field.
Apparently, in such a visible way, Catherine wanted to emphasize the legitimacy of her accession to the throne.
The empress was distinguished by a very thin waist for her 33 years old, with a circumference of only 62 cm. In this dress, the tailors used a new constructive detail - the so-called schnig. It is assumed that he was supposed to visually make the stomach flatter.
Coronations of the imperial couple. Male coronation suit. coronation dresses
After the death of Catherine II, for the first time in the history of the Russian Empire, the imperial couple, Emperor and Empress, Paul I and his wife were crowned. In this ceremony, much was borrowed from the ceremony of 1724. First, the crown was placed on the emperor, then, turning to the kneeling empress (just like Catherine I before Peter), Paul touched her with his crown and then placed the small imperial crown on the head of his wife. Unlike the large imperial crown, which was the property of the state, the small crown became the property of the empress. Her Majesty could dispose of the small crown at will, even remake it into other jewels.
From the beginning of the 19th century, emperors began to be crowned in military uniform. It was either a guards general's uniform or the uniform of a general of the Preobrazhensky Regiment. In the funds of the Armory, 7 sets of coronation military uniforms have been preserved. 
Coronation dress of Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas I. Coronation dresses
The dress is made in a transitional style from Empire to historicism.
There is a special ruffle at the bottom of the dress to make the bottom of the dress heavier and keep the shape of the bell. The dress is embroidered with colored glass plates to make it shine and shimmer.
In the middle of the century, they began to wear the so-called Frenchized sundress. It was the order of Emperor Nicholas I to court ladies to wear Russian dress.
Gloves were an indispensable addition to the costume. They were changed very often, each courtier had a lot of gloves. They did not serve long, quickly stretched, lost their shape. And the shape of the gloves was carefully monitored, they had to fit the hand like a second skin, so the expression “change like gloves” is quite appropriate. They sewed gloves made of elk skin or silk.
Coronation dress of Maria Alexandrovna, wife of Alexander II. coronation dresses
is the aforementioned Frenchized sundress. Stylistically, this dress can be attributed to the national revival or “Russian style”. They sewed it in Petersburg. For the first time, sleeves appeared on the coronation dress. The wide placket was not preserved, which was sewn in front of the dress and made it look like a sundress. The bar was adorned with diamonds, diamonds and other precious stones so it was torn down. A kokoshnik, also adorned with diamonds, was attached to the costume.
Last coronation
G ornostae mantle, presented in the Armory, belonged to Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II. All 14 coronation robes have been preserved in the funds of the Kremlin museums. The mantle of Alexandra Feodorovna is made of 800 ermine skins, they were bought from Siberian merchants.
The last coronation took place in May 1896.. Emperor Nicholas II was crowned with his wife Alexandra Feodorovna. Nicholas was dressed in the uniform of a Colonel of the Preobrazhensky Regiment. He was not a general, which is why he was embarrassed to put on a general's uniform.
Coronation robe of Alexandra Feodorovna, wife of Nicholas II. coronation dresses
The dress of Alexandra Feodorovna was sewn in St. Petersburg, in the workshop of Olga Bulbennikova.
"Madame Olga" - so in the French manner her studio was called. Embroidered dress in Moscow, the nuns of the Ivanovo monastery. Coronation shoes are made of silver brocade.
Carnival costume of Nicholas II
Carnival costume of Nicholas II. The initiator of the carnival of 1903, which took place in the capital, was Alexandra Fedorovna. She really liked the traditional Russian costume. This carnival was held under the sign of the 17th century, the time of Alexei Mikhailovich. All those present were dressed in Russian dress, corresponding to the era. 
The costume of Nicholas II was sewn in the theater workshops of St. Petersburg. The emperor's travesty was handed over to the Armory because it is decorated with genuine 17th-century cufflinks and buckles. For decoration carnival costume from the Armory to St. Petersburg handed over old Jewelry, number of 25 pieces. The costume used 16 parts and, after the carnival, they were not torn off, but simply sent back a part of the costume.
Our online environment- Until the end of the 18th century, there were no significant changes in fashion, and only starting from the 70s, under the influence of innovations in Western fashion, the Russian noble costume also undergoes strong changes. Fashions were distributed not so much by means of fashion magazines, which were published irregularly, but by ready-made outfits ordered from Paris and London. Among the Russian nobility, not only gallomania flourished - imitation of French fashions and etiquette, passion for the French language - in the last quarter of the century, Anglomania also begins.
Under Catherine II, in the 70-90s of the XVIII century, the costume of the capital's nobility reached extraordinary splendor. One of the nobles of the XVIII century, Prince Kurakin (Russian ambassador to France), was even called the "diamond prince" for the abundance of jewelry that adorned his costume. An example of wastefulness was given by the numerous favorites of the queen - Potemkin, Orlovs and others.
The petty nobility followed the capital, but, of course, they dressed with some lagging behind fashion. In Moscow, they also followed fashion less strictly than in St. Petersburg. Some simplifications of the silhouette and form of clothes occur in last years XVIII century. The caftan narrows and acquires stand-up collar and sloping floors, and sometimes replaced by a tailcoat. True, tailcoats of this time are sewn not only from cloth, but also from velvet and heavy silk.
In the wardrobe of the Empress there were "uniform dresses" in which she public holidays received officers of the guard regiments. These costumes combined the forms of the dominant French fashion with elements of the old Russian costume. The Empress is depicted in a uniform dress in the form of the Life Guards of the Preobrazhensky Regiment.
At the end of the 18th century, the assortment of clothes of the nobility was enriched with clothes for their intended purpose. trends European fashion were reflected not only in the ceremonial dress. Even in the wardrobe of Peter I, dressing gowns, dressing gowns, occupied a special place. Known for his eccentricities, Prokofy Demidov, a representative of the dynasty of the richest Ural industrialists, is depicted in a portrait in a home suit, or as he was called in the French manner - "neglizhe". He is wearing a terracotta dressing gown over a waistcoat that is not fastened with all the buttons, and comfortable slippers. His exotic look is completed by a green nightcap on his head.
Women's costume was decorated with all sorts of lace. Along with those imported from the West, Russian-made lace was used, which, in in large numbers made in monasteries. The assortment of braided lace was very rich: “blonde” lace, silver with white silk, gold, decorated with glass beads, just white were supplied to the court. Glafira Alymova, a graduate of the Smolny Institute, who enjoyed the special patronage of Catherine II, is dressed in a luxurious satin dress richly decorated with lace.
During the 18th century, men's costume underwent changes only in details, becoming lighter and more elegant by the middle of the century. At the beginning of Catherine's reign, caftans (justocors), camisoles (vests) and trousers (culottes) were still worn. The suit worn by the first director of the Academy of Arts A.F. Kokorinov, was sewn specifically on the occasion of his assumption of office. A knee-length white groudetur caftan with sable trim is worn over a satin camisole with gold embroidery. It took the architect a year's salary to make this luxurious toilet.
The 18th century was characterized by the convergence of the external features of a man and a woman, their pampered, even puppet appearance, disregard for age characteristics. Young and old wore the same costumes, used the same decorative cosmetics. Alexei Bobrinsky, illegitimate son of Count G.G. Orlov and Empress Catherine II, dressed in a camisole and green cloth caftan with narrow sleeves and wide cuffs. The costume is decorated with a decorative ornament embroidered with silver thread.
Five granddaughters of Empress Catherine II dressed according to the latest fashion of their time, and the crowned grandmother paid great attention to their upbringing. At the end of her reign, the color scheme of the women's costume becomes light, soft, slightly saturated: pink, blue, salad, lemon, mother-of-pearl brown and gray colors in all shades. Monochromatic fabrics prevail over patterned ones.
The type of women's ceremonial dress, consisting of a tight bodice with a neckline, has been preserved for almost the entire century. The ornamentation of fabrics was dominated by floral patterns, depicted naturalistically, in perspective. Lilacs, jasmine, branches of blossoming apple trees, cherries, wild flowers were naturally placed over the entire surface of the fabric, intertwining with the winding lines of ribbons, lace, and stripes. The wife of Admiral Samuil Greig in the portrait is dressed in elegant dress from a silver herbal damask, decorated with lace cuffs. In the 1770s complex structures on the head made of ribbons, flowers and feathers came into fashion. The hair above the forehead was combed smoothly, and divided into curls at the back. Hairpieces were used quite often.
The portrait depicts a young dandy, the younger brother of the favorite of Catherine II. In terms of cut and color, his suit corresponds to the uniform worn by the officers of the Potemkin army. However, the quality of the cloth and the elegance of tailoring testify to the far from ordinary position of the young man. His helmet is adorned with a rich ostrich feather crest and a gilded browband. On the baldric of the elk-leather is the gilded monogram of Catherine II. In the buttonhole - a badge of the Order of St. George IV degree, received for participation in the assault on Ishmael.
Empress Catherine II attempted to regulate the ceremonial court costume and give it national character. On especially solemn occasions - the end of the war, a wedding, a new year - the ladies came to meetings at court in Russian dresses, and the empress herself often and willingly put on a similar costume, which resembled an old Russian dress and a traditional headdress - a kokoshnik. Costumes of this kind "according to the queen" became widespread in Europe.
Based on school-collection.edu.ru and marafon.piterart.ru
In December, a costume gallery was opened for the first time in the Hermitage's depository on Staraya Derevnya. It presents part of the museum's large-scale collection of more than 24,000 exhibits.
In the new storage building, which is still under construction, they plan to open a museum dedicated to costumes. It will house a permanent exhibition and temporary exhibitions, they will also store and study rare clothes and even hold shows.
How they sold in the 20th century historical costumes Why has nothing survived from thousands of dresses of Elizabeth Petrovna and Catherine I, and why does the Hermitage replenish the collection with modern Western haute couture dresses and works by St. Petersburg designers? Nina Tarasova, curator of the Hermitage costume collection, told "Paper" how the museum studies the outfits of past centuries and why they collect samples of modern clothing.
Nina Tarasova
Sector manager applied arts department
history of Russian culture of the Hermitage
The Hermitage has a colossal textile collection - fabrics, embroidery, tapestries, lace. Its scatter is also very significant - from ancient samples to modern ones. It so happened historically that the vast majority of costumes are stored in the department of the history of Russian culture. Despite the fact that we specialize in Russian culture, we also have Western costumes or items made from Western and Eastern fabrics.
After the October Revolution, all textile decoration and costumes from the nationalized mansions of the St. Petersburg nobility, the Winter Palace and other imperial residences go to the historical and household department at the State Russian Museum. They were partially exhibited at some expositions about the horrors of royal life, [to demonstrate] how it was all tasteless and philistine, how much money was spent on it.
Women's shoes. 1770s–1780s. Photo: State Hermitage Museum
Textile collections are moved from one museum to another. Initially, they are in the Russian Museum, which means - in different palaces: the Rumyantsev mansion, the palaces of the Bobrinskys, the Sheremetevs. Then they are transferred to the Museum of the Revolution, that is, they are documented in the Winter Palace. It is not known whether they actually moved - most likely, some boxes were not even moved, but were transferred only according to documents. After the Museum of the Revolution in 1937, the collections end up in the Museum of Ethnography of the Peoples of the USSR. This practice is recognized as incorrect, because there is no place to store and exhibit things, there are simply no conditions for placement. Therefore, in 1941, when a department of the history of Russian culture was organized in the Hermitage, they were transferred here by the decision of the government.
But there is a war, a blockade - and some of the things are evacuated to the Urals. The real work with them begins only after the re-evacuation [of the collections] from Sverdlovsk in 1946.
How imperial costumes were sold in the 1920s and transferred from the Hermitage to other museums
There was a time when textiles were not considered a work of arts and crafts. So it was for a long time, and not only in our country, but also abroad. Although in countries such as Italy or France, the tradition of handling textiles is slightly different: they quickly realized that this is a work of art, they began to collect, store and increase collections. We have for a long time the attitude to this was as to some secondary material.
In the second half of the 1920s, there were sales of those things that seemed superfluous and unnecessary. Observation rooms were organized at the Commandant's Entrance of the Winter Palace, where palace carpets, tapestries, bear and wolf skins were exhibited, as well as, judging by the documents, the costumes of the last empress. All this was sold for a penny, but such sales ended very quickly.
Then, when transfers to different museums begin, losses also occur. For example, I looked at documents that say that samples of fabrics, including Byzantine ones from the 6th century, are being transferred to the Weaver Museum in Orekhovo-Zuyevo (now the Orekhovo-Zuyevo City Museum of Local History - ed.). "Paper"). After a while, there was a fire there, and everything that was transmitted burned down.
Other losses were in the 1950s and 1970s, when the Hermitage, by decision of the then Ministry of Culture, had to share its collections with other museums. For example, in the Museum of Azov (Azov Historical, Archaeological and Paleontological Museum-Reserve - approx. "Paper") convey the costumes of chamberlains - court cavaliers - with luxurious gold embroidery, costumes of Cossacks, court blacks. Why are they in the local history museum? What relation did these court gentlemen have to the regional museum? None. However, things have been transferred and there is nothing to return. (Costumes were donated, among other things, to the museums of Irkutsk and Omsk - approx. "Paper").
In 1953, eight items from the wardrobe of Peter I - from the greatest textile collection - were transferred to the Museum of the Battle of Poltava in the city of Poltava. But if in the Soviet Union everything seemed to be in the same hands, now it is a different state. And, unfortunately, as far as I know, things are stored in an inappropriate way. The costumes were published 8–10 years ago in an album in Ukrainian and English. As they once did - unhappy, moth-eaten, deformed - they were photographed.
What costumes of Peter I have been preserved in the Hermitage and where have thousands of dresses of Russian empresses gone
Do not think that the collection of costumes of the imperial family is huge. From the wardrobe of Peter I, it contains about 280 items. This best collection men's dress of the first quarter of the 18th century, which has everything: from formal suits to underwear, from work jackets to fancy dress coats. Even such a national relic as Peter's suit, tailored in the form of an officer of the Life Guards of the Preobrazhensky Regiment, in which he was during the Poltava battle in 1709.
If we talk about wardrobes, for example, Catherine I, Elizabeth Petrovna, Anna Ioannovna, they are not. There are only samples of coronation costumes, which are traditionally kept in the Armory of the Moscow Kremlin. It has been like this for a long time: after the coronation, all things - from stockings, pantaloons and garters to the mantle - got there.
Why aren't there those thousands of dresses of Elizaveta Petrovna that the memoirists talk about? Materials are expensive, dresses cost crazy money, and the empress, due to her status, cannot wear a dress several times. She put it on once - then the dress needs to be put somewhere. Well, if there is a place in the state pantry. And if everything is crowded there or the empress, for example, does not like the dress? We must part.
Since the dresses were made of precious materials, they could be donated to the church, where the outfits were torn apart and altered, making them vestments for a priest or deacon. In the 18th century, fabrics with church symbols were not produced, so you can see the vestments of the priests of this time from brocade with flowers or even, for example, from Chinese fabrics with dragons. Everything expensive, from which it was possible to sew a worthy vestment for a clergyman, was used. So, most of these outfits in the church are gone. For example, in the Hermitage collection there is a vestment made from wedding dress Alexandra Feodorovna - wife of Nicholas I.
Court dress of Grand Duchess Alexandra Feodorovna. 1894
From Catherine II, we only have a decent collection of uniform dresses - outfits that the Empress wore on the days of regimental holidays, greeting the officers of one or another guards or army regiment. They looked quite interesting and, at first glance, strange.
Firstly, regimental colors are always present in dresses. If this is the Semenovsky regiment - green color with gold galloon. If the Horse Guards - a combination of bright blue with bright red. In naval uniforms prevailed White color. Secondly, these were dresses with a masculine cut for a lady - for example, they had decorative flaps that are on an officer's caftan. The buttons also had to match the buttons of the uniforms of those regiments that Catherine welcomed.
This interesting collection, although also not very complete: when it was divided between different museums of St. Petersburg and the palaces of the suburbs, then from one suit someone got a skirt, someone - an upper blouse, someone - an underdress, and someone - an upper one. So some kits just don't assemble.
From what fabrics were the costumes sewn and how are they unique
There are, at first glance, unremarkable velvets, but when you understand how they are processed and how much they cost, it is incomprehensible to the mind. Brocade was also highly valued. There were fabrics of complex production that very few high-ranking Petersburgers could afford - of such a level as the Yusupovs. There is a dress - this was not preserved in the royal collection - from the Yusupov Palace by Charles Frederick Worth ( French fashion designer, founder of the House of Worth fashion house - approx. "Paper"). For him, even the fabric was made to order. That is, the Yusupovs paid for this piece of fabric to be made only for them, which would not be repeated anywhere.
Each piece [of the Hermitage collection] is unique in its own way. Even because of its history: I don’t know in which country you can find such things that have gone through what our costumes have gone through. If only royal costumes miraculously survived the French Revolution.
Why there are almost no clothes of the 20th century in the collection and how St. Petersburg designers donate modern costumes
Most recently, we started a modern costume project. It so happened that for a long time the collection was not replenished and was limited to 1914. It was completely wrong. As a result, when we realized that it needed to be collected, the whole 20th century was gone, we lost it. In the 1920s or 1930s, it was still possible to find something, but then there was a war, a blockade, the difficult post-war years - it is unlikely that people have preserved anything.
Nevertheless, we took the risk of continuing, and some individual things are now coming to us. Firstly, these are the gifts of the authors, secondly, citizens of Russia and foreign countries, and thirdly, the work of the expert procurement commission, that is, what we acquire. But, of course, we do not buy modern costumes, but historical ones (modern costumes in the Hermitage are mostly donated - ed.). "Paper").
For example, just before the New Year, the Countess Chady-Brechart gave us a French Art Deco Charleston dress from 1925, which we practically did not have. One of the dresses was donated by an employee of the Museum of Theater and Musical Art Galina Pogodina - made of plain cotton with modest embroidery, very touching and sweet, 1937. Some girl wore it, putting on a beret and shoes without a heel with a jumper.
There are a few things from 1950-60s that Petersburgers gave us. For example, a wonderful 1957 Dior catwalk dress was a gift from St. Petersburg collector Pavel Abramov. Although the 20th century [foreign fashion] has lost the Hermitage: everything the best examples Chanel, Madeleine Vionnet, Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Balenciaga have long settled either in other museums or in private collections.
I am very glad that St. Petersburg fashion designers have responded to our call to help with replenishing the collection with modern things. We got beautiful gifts. We even managed to close such a gap as the work of the Leningrad House of Fashion Models. His former employee Anastasia Morozova presented us with a gift of 24 items - these are dresses of a critical, difficult time in the mid-1980s. This is very interesting and well done. I know that many artists of the Leningrad House of Fashion Models are still alive, which, by the way, was opened during the war years. Almost a year remained before the victory, but people believed that it would come and wanted to be beautifully dressed. But so far [the costume owners] are reluctant to make contact and do not want to part with their rarities.
Now [from modern St. Petersburg fashion designers] we have Tatiana Parfenova, Tatiana Kotegova, Lilia Kiselenko, Yanis Chamalidi, Stas Lopatkin, Alexander Arngoldt, Vladimir Buhinik, Larisa Pogoretskaya, Svetlana Vorobieva. The collection was also replenished thanks to the gift of Elena Makarova - the daughter of Elena Obraztsova, our great opera singer. She donated 34 items, including five pairs of very good brands- Louboutin, Zegna. We have works by Vyacheslav Zaitsev: he donated 61 items to the Hermitage after the exhibition in 2016.
How fashionable costumes are selected for the collection in the Hermitage and why it is important to study everyday items
Of course, there must be only one criterion - it is high level execution. Preferably haute couture or ready-to-wear de luxe. But non-luxury items can also be interesting: both from the point of view of their history and from the point of view of design. The costume museum is designed not only to show and store, but also to work with students, designers, and future designers. Therefore, of course, you need to collect other kinds of things.
I am convinced that one should not be afraid to slide into some kind of everydayism. Costumes are leaving - a whole era is leaving. And we will completely lose the idea of how the inhabitants of the Soviet Union and Leningrad dressed. We will see it only on TV screens, in chronicles, books and old photographs.
Dress court ceremonial maid of honor of the imperial court. Late XIX - early XX centuries
Therefore, it is necessary to collect household items that reflect our history - tragic and at the same time heroic. I really want the collection to have some thing related to the years after the revolution or wartime.
Handbags leave, shoes leave - this is what will always be missed. There are very few shoes in our collection. Few men's suits. They are considered quite conservative in their cut and completeness, so there are only a few of them. This happens in all museums.
In our collection there is, for example, a coat made of a material characteristic of the early 60s - ratina. Collar in the form of a shawl, a few buttons in front, to the coat - fur hat pie and cloaks - boots with felt tops. And before you immediately the image of Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev and Mikhail Andreevich Suslov.
What will be in the Hermitage Costume Museum and how costumes protect from light, dust and moths
There are no analogues of the museum - in the format proposed by the Hermitage - not only in Russia, but also in the world. The first thing the Hermitage did was to open a costume gallery (the gallery was opened at the Staraya Derevnya restoration and storage center in December 2017; it features about 140 mannequins - approx. "Paper"). After the information about the gallery was published on our website, I received many letters of congratulations and saying that this is probably the best way to exhibit and store costumes today. Because here two functions are combined at once: storage and exposure.
Now we have to wait until the third stage of the Staraya Derevnya is completed (the area of the premises will be more than 3 thousand square meters - approx. "Paper"). I don’t know what they’ll call it: a costume museum or a costume research center, or maybe just a costume department, because it still belongs to the Hermitage. Will be there large areas for storage and open display, exhibition space for temporary projects, a room with transforming walls and equipment. And Mikhail Borisovich [Piotrovsky] said that he would even allow us to do fashion shows in the third line.
Uniform costume of Empress Catherine II in the form of the Semyonovsky Life Guards Regiment. 1770s–1780s (overdress), 1779 (underdress)
Of course, the collections need to be available to the public, to be known and seen. But a suit is a fragile thing. A certain light regime, temperature, humidity are required. One of the main enemies of the suit is dust. Therefore, the window must be hermetically sealed. Light is the second enemy of tissues. But now museum equipment allows you to choose lighting that has no ultraviolet at all.
It is also dangerous to exhibit costumes in summer and spring, because this is the time of activity of moths, leather-eaters. Moreover, insects adapt: the moth now eats not only natural fabrics, but also synthetic ones. Not all repellents can be applied to a suit. For example, when there was an exhibition of Zaitsev in the Manezh, we could not use the usual repellent, because it is not clear how it will behave in conditions where there are no shop windows, the public walks, the heat changes, and the humidity changes. And our service offered special traps with pheromones: they destroy the ability of insects to reproduce.
We work in close connection with restorers who advise us which costume can be put on a mannequin or is it better to put it down, which one should be hung on voluminous hangers, and which one is better not to get at all. They evaluate the degree of safety and make their verdict.
