The Novo-Mikhailovsky Palace is a historic building and former grand ducal palace located in the center of St. Petersburg.
The palace is an architectural monument of the 18th century (federal significance).
Today, the walls of the former palace still contain some historical buildings. In part of the palace is located the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which conducts guided tours.
The magnificent northern facade of the Novo-Mikhailovsky Palace overlooks the Palace Embankment.
The palace was built in 1857-1862 by the architect Andrey Ivanovich Stackenschneider as the residence of Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolaevich-the fourth son of Emperor Nicholas I.
The palace was a gift for the wedding of Mikhail Nikolaevich and Princess Cecilia Augusta of Baden.
The palace was built according to unique technologies for those times: metal rafters were used, which have fire resistance and durability.
The name "Novo -" palace was given because the city already had (and still has) one Mikhailovsky Palace.
After the death of the prince (1909), the palace passed to his heir-the eldest son-Grand Duke Nikolai Mikhailovich.
In 1911, in the premises that Mikhail Nikolaevich occupied during his lifetime, a museum was created, which presented an exposition concerning the personal life, as well as the military and state activities of Mikhail Nikolaevich.
After the October Revolution in 1917, the palace was nationalized, and the Communist Academy was located within its walls.
Since 1949, the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences (formerly the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Academy of Sciences) has been located in the western wing of the Novo-Mikhailovsky Palace.
Since 2009, the premises formerly occupied by the Grand Ducal stables have been converted into the book depository of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts, whose collection has been formed over two centuries and contains about a million volumes in the Oriental library, at least 40,000 folders in the archive and more than 100,000 items in 65 living and dead Oriental languages in the manuscript fund.
The building of the former Novo-Mikhailovsky Palace has the style of early eclecticism (a mixture of different architectural styles and trends) and stands out from a number of St. Petersburg palaces and mansions, as well as nearby buildings - a magnificent and elegant decoration of the facades.
The northern facade of the Novo-Mikhailovsky Palace faces the Palace Embankment and, together with the Winter and Marble palaces, forms the main panorama of the Palace Embankment.
In the decoration of the palace, you can see details of Rococo, Baroque, as well as the Renaissance style and the so-called "Louis XIV style".
The facade facing the Palace Embankment (the main facade of the palace) is decorated with Carrara marble. The facade is decorated with stucco drawings and is distinguished by three risalites: a majestic central one and two side ones. The risalites of the palace are crowned with triangular pediments filled with figured decorations.
At the level of the second floor there are small balconies, and in the spaces of the risalites the facade is decorated with columns of the Corinthian order.
At the third floor level, the risalites have caryatid figures (statues of clothed women) standing in various poses and supporting triangular pediments, semicircular pediments-arches or cornices.
The central risalit is decorated more luxuriously and with more detail than the side ones.
In this risalit, between the caryatid figures, there is a marble grand ducal coat of arms; in the side ones, between the caryatids, there are monograms of Mikhail Nikolaevich, supported by women in laurel wreaths.
A balustrade and decorative vases, placed on a wide entablature, crown the facade of the building.
Inside the palace, a number of historical interiors of the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries have been preserved.
You can visit the palace with a tour of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The grand staircase, the two-light Green (music / gold) hall, the reception room and the office of Prince Nikolai Mikhailovich are open to tourists.
Practical information
Address of the Novo-Mikhailovsky Palace: Dvortsovaya Embankment, 18.
The nearest metro stations: Admiralteyskaya and Nevsky Prospekt.
All information concerning excursions around the palace can be found on the website of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts: orientalstudies.
All accommodation facilities in St. Petersburg, including in the city center and more remote from it, can be viewed and booked here
