It is known from historical documents that Catherine II preferred to travel around the city in a carriage. Therefore, Kazan officials, awaiting the arrival of the empress in 1767, ordered a special carriage for her. The newspaper “St. Petersburg Vedomosti” mentioned it in its publication, “At the pier, Her Majesty sat in the carriage that had been prepared, and went through the Taynitsky gate into the city…” A scale model from the museum collection features this carriage.
In terms of design and decoration, the carriage is similar to the carriages that were common during the reign of Catherine II’s predecessor, Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, who ruled the country from 1741 to 1761. At that time, carriages were brought to the court from France.
In such carriages, a seat for two passengers was suspended on leather belts — they helped to absorb shocks when the road was uneven. The tension of the belts could be adjusted depending on the road conditions: this was done by a footman standing at the back of the carriage. It was necessary to change the tension using special iron keys.
The artist decorated the imperial carriage by painting four images with mythical characters. On the doors, he painted the ancient gods. On one door, there was a scene of the meeting of Zeus and Neptune, on the other — the meeting of Zeus and Venus. The artist depicted a chariot on the back, and a boat on the front side of the carriage. In addition, the master added four medallions with similar themes next to the doors. The painting on the carriage was distinguished by bright colors and at the same time did not have too many distracting details.
The trip itself was organized on a grand scale. According to the same newspaper, Her Majesty’s carriage was driven by
In terms of design and decoration, the carriage is similar to the carriages that were common during the reign of Catherine II’s predecessor, Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, who ruled the country from 1741 to 1761. At that time, carriages were brought to the court from France.
In such carriages, a seat for two passengers was suspended on leather belts — they helped to absorb shocks when the road was uneven. The tension of the belts could be adjusted depending on the road conditions: this was done by a footman standing at the back of the carriage. It was necessary to change the tension using special iron keys.
The artist decorated the imperial carriage by painting four images with mythical characters. On the doors, he painted the ancient gods. On one door, there was a scene of the meeting of Zeus and Neptune, on the other — the meeting of Zeus and Venus. The artist depicted a chariot on the back, and a boat on the front side of the carriage. In addition, the master added four medallions with similar themes next to the doors. The painting on the carriage was distinguished by bright colors and at the same time did not have too many distracting details.
The trip itself was organized on a grand scale. According to the same newspaper, Her Majesty’s carriage was driven by
